By the end of this lesson: you will prepare new bedding so it is less of a shock to the worms.

Dry cardboard added straight from the shredder may pull moisture from the surrounding material. Saturated coir can do the opposite and create a heavy block. So, prepare bedding separately where possible.

Dampen it in stages, mix thoroughly and leave it for several hours or overnight.

Squeeze a handful:

It should hold together lightly but release little or no free water. Add a small amount of mature material to introduce microbial life.

When replacing a whole system, keep a portion of the old healthy bedding. A completely sterile reset may look clean to us but throws away the established ecosystem the worms were using.