[Subversive_plot]

I think the nitrogen in the urine helped a "wee" bit 

It's well known that if the ratio of carbon:nitrogen is not right, 23:1 or lower, decomposition won't "go".

Your finished compost likely also had a good number of worms, insects etc. in it. These organisms are highly beneficial for composting.

[pepsi100]

I never saw many worms in the compost or that many bugs
I would have expected lots of worms and bugs, but I didnt see any while I was raking it over the soil
Maybe I should introduce worms to the compost to help it rot down or get eaten
It never smell very much, just a good earthy smell, which I think is a good thing

All the twigs and woody types of stuff I put back in there with some more cardboard and shredded paper, then layered the grass cuttings

[Subversive_plot]

Earthworms could help, if your compost has some earthy material in it (old soil from potted plants for example).

If you add them, do so after the compost has gone through.and cooled down from, any hot decomposition phase. Otherwise you will just cook the worms.

[pepsi100]

My Compost container never got hot, when I felt it it, it wasnt even warm (frost was on it some mornings)

Yes, all the old hanging baskets plants went in there, soil, plants, the lot
old cabbage leaves, grass cuttings, anything green or dead went it there

Then it was just a case of adding green stuff in the winter (cabbage, sprouts, carrot tops, onion skins)

I think worms would help both the compost and the soil

I ran my rotavator over it today, it seemed devoid of bugs, worms (maybe when I had chickens on there, they ate all the worms)

Now to look for earth worms

[Subversive_plot]

I'd look for the earthworms outside, following a good spring rain.  We tend to see a lot on roads and driveways at times like that. For some reason, I tend to see more after a thunderstorm.

[pepsi100]

I had looked in fishing tackle shops, then on Ebay, but the worms there seem to be more fish food, I dont think they are the kind of worms I would be after

(Are all earth worms the same ?)

Even on my grass I rarely see worms or worm casts, if they do appear, the crows are straight in there

Any suggestions where to get earh worms for a compost heap ?

[Yorkie]

I thought the worms in compost heaps tended to be brandling worms, not necessarily earth worms?

[pepsi100]

Yorkie

I thought worms were just worms, I cant tell the difference, just fat or thin worms to me

[Subversive_plot]

I thought the worms in compost heaps tended to be brandling worms, not necessarily earth worms?

Brandling worms are a type of earthworm.

My compost bin is a large cylinder of plastic lattice, open top and bottom, sitting on soil. Many kinds of worms move into the compost from the soil, including brandlings but also night crawlers and other types. As long as the compost is moist and touching soil, the worms will move in.

[lettice]

I have two dalek bins side by side.
From the house I put all my veg peelings in it, along wit h torn up loo rolls, tea leaves and coffee grounds (even what I squeeze out the dolce gusto pods).
From the garden, its grass cuttings, hedge trimmings, all kinds of veg and flower plants and plenty of weeds (but not any seeded ones like dandelions).
Do rip all the personal bits (so no shredding and put them in water and squished an hour or so later they go in the bins as paper.
Do rip up some thin cardboard (like cereal packets or delivery boxes from the likes of amazon) and put in once a month.

About once a week I fork it about in the bins and once every few months lift up the whole daleks with their lids and fork it all onto two old flat compost bags and then mix it up between the two bins and place the dalek back over it.
About every six months or so while doing that, I take a fair bit of the lower beautiful compost out for use.

It generates loads of worms for me, some that I allow to stay when taking the ready compost.

Have always once a week, added a little urine, from a filled jar in the bathroom.

[pepsi100]

Like you, if its green, it goes in the bin, I have been having quite a few deliveries, so cardboard is ripped up and in there

So far, just cut the grass onece, into the bin with it, but I layered it with cardboad, then a sprinkling of Garotta, then dampened down with a drop of pee

(does pee affect the worm population ?)

I haven to much else to put in there yet, so its a work in progress

I still havent been able to find worms to put on the earth (I dug it over, there just wasnt many there)

All the worms I could find on ebay were for fishing, maybe I should open a worm farm

I still put all my coffee grounds in there, quite a bit, the filter paper goes in as well, not so sure about tea bags though, I got told they contain plastic, I dont know how true that is

[New shoot]

A lot of tea bags do contain plastic.  If it doesn't say plastic free on the box, assume it is in there.

As for worms, there is this place.  Its not that cheap but they sell proper composting worms.

https://www.wigglywigglers.co.uk/collections/live-worms

[pepsi100]

Ah as I suspected, so just tear the bag open, bag in the bin, leaves in the compost (Why would you put plastic in teabags ?)

Thanks for the link, so its off to order some worms 

[rowlandwells]

tea bags all the veg leaves and peelings don't put any food waist or paper or cardboard that's all for the recycle bin it must be doing some good because there's loads of worms in the bins some bins are mixed with horse manure

[Snow]

I've always found that the worms just move in at the right time, ie close to the end of composting, if the heap is on bare soil. Most paper and cardboard have soy based inks and/or a clay based design on them so are fine to compost. Some do of course have a plastic part to them, if you have ever tried to compost a tetra pak orange juice carton for example you will end up with plastic in your pile.