WORMS ANYONE?:-~)

[LaLa Chickie]

I had a Great Uncle who started off with beautiful Angora Rabbit farm...he soon learned those huge fishing worms loved the Rabbit droppings. He became one of the largest worm farmers in Ramona California, back in the day. He was so successful. He put them in the droppings under the pens and it controlled the fly population and smell too...what an amazing thing the worm is. I need to get some.

 

[Kikiriki]

For those interested in the garden barrel and worm tower, check out half-pinthomestead.com they sell the plans, the plans plus the hard to come by parts and the fully assembled barrels for much cheaper the $300. I want to get some for my garden next year.

Thanks for the tip! The video she did was awesome!

 

[Kikiriki]

are those the nightcrawlers that eat up my Pototato bush? They are like huge moths when they grow and burrow in the soil? They were so destructive to all my flowering plants.

I want to get earth worms or ? to put in my composter. We let the lawn go the water bill was very high, so maybe I should just make a smaller area of grass? I have a Giant Composter, can you put earth worms in it and just turn the composter as usual? Any ideas?

Night crawlers are just a variety of earthworm. They do not eat your plants: they eat bacteria that grows on dead plant material and their gut kills bad bacteria, but they help beneficial bacteria. They do tunnel in the ground: as they do they allow oxygen to penetrate the soil which helps plants and the beneficial bacteria (aerobic, meaning oxygen users are typically good, while anaerobic ones are the ones that thrive without oxygen and cause the stink in stagnant water for example). The nightcrawlers also leave materials that are very good for plants for nutrition, drought tolerance, and pest resistance.

You do need to cover your ground with something. Bare ground is dead ground: it gets too hot for living things, becomes hydrophobic (repels water), blows in the wind, and becomes prone to erosion. A Japanese style dry garden is lovely and the rocks can protect the soil. Drought resistant plants are a good option (like the purslane I wrote about before, which grows prolifically in my gravel areas).

What you can do in your yard (and especially the front yard) may be dictated by your city or county ordinaces, or a Home Owners Association, if you have one. Be sure to check before you invest time, energy, and money!

If you can do it according to your local rules, many people are beginning to plant food gardens in the front yard. If you try to make it look pretty, neighbors are less likely to complain: use attractive pots and planters, use pavers for walkways, etc...

A guy called John has a youtube channel you should check out called "growing your greens". Some of his areas are more attractive than others, but he gives great info on container gardening. Containers are good because you can set them up to use far less water than gardening in the ground requires. Look up "wicking containers" or "wicking beds". Worms work very well with these because they retain moisture so well.

Using compost around any plant sets up a very nice situation for it: it helps retain moisture, keeps the ground cool, supports the worms, bacteria, and fungus that help enrich the soil.

So yes! Do it!

 

[Hammerga]

it sounds like something called webworms you are describing,.earthworms have never bothered any plants in my garden.I work to promote large numbers of eartworms.

 

[LaLa Chickie]

I went to the store and bought 2 containers of night crawlers, and brought them home and put them in my composter. I haven't seen any since.... I think they must have died..LOL ... oh dear! I planted a small grassy area and I am really hoping that I will get my earthworms back. My worm farming wasn't so good!

 

[gaitngirl]

I went to the store and bought 2 containers of night crawlers, and brought them home and put them in my composter. I haven't seen any since.... I think they must have died..LOL ... oh dear! I planted a small grassy area and I am really hoping that I will get my earthworms back. My worm farming wasn't so good!

Are you wanting to repopulate your earthworms or are you wanting composting worms? Because the two (actually there are several types of each) have different requirements if you are keeping them in a bin or composter.

 

[LaLa Chickie]

I wanted to put them in my composter to get more for my yard and chickens...It's been so dry out here they've all gone in hiding..:/
I tried to just by earthworms but they were out...

 

[LaLa Chickie]

"buy" earthworms...good ole garden variety...

 

[gaitngirl]

For your composter, you will want Red Wigglers (or Leaf Worms they might be called at the bait store). They will turn your kitchen and garden waste into rich, pithy castings that are great for pretty much everything.
For your yard - don't buy earthworms. Go to your nearest golf course after a hard rain or after they water. Take a bucket. You can pick up hundreds in a few minutes time.

 

[gaitngirl]

I forgot to mention that there is a way to 'scare' them out of the ground, too. There are a couple pods on youtube showing this - I think I saw it on Discovery or Animal Planet . . . you put a stake in the ground (generally in a wooded or damp area known to have earthworms) and you run a ridged stick, stake, etc. back and forth across the stake in the ground. The worms think there is a mole or something digging toward them and pop out of the ground, lol. Then you just collect them. There are a couple different ways to simulate this, too.