Worms in the cellar
 

i purchased 1000 breeders of the
European night crawler variety

they are doing fantastic and eating very healthy
plus i am getting healthier as a result too
because i am juicing a pound of carrots each week
to feed them the carrot pulp with some worm food
blended into it as an attractant. here's a pic on day 1

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c6...ghtcrawler.png

Is this another example of importing a foreign species of animals that when they escape from your cellar will cause havoc and destruction of the native fauna?:biglaugh:

I could have given you 1000's of worms from my yard to raise and nurture! Come by this week with a flashlight and pick as many as you like.

You BOUGHT worms????

I go out and collect my own. Heck, with the weather we're getting this week I can probably get 4-5 dozen per night (figure I'd spend a half hour or so collecting).
I used to keep a 20"X 20"X 10" plastic tub in the basement.
I had crawlers year round.
The biggest kick (regarding worm-wrangling) is when you see the eggs and the new hatched worms in the bedding.
Of course this was started as a direct result of successful composting.
Whatever I didn't use would either go back in the tub in the basement, or the compost pile.

these are a special breed
 

Eisena Hortensis (related to nebe):grins:
they are strictly for composting
and grow (multiply at a phenomenal rate)

they are not the standard "lumbricus terresties"
variety that are commonly called night crawlers here
or also known as Canadian night crawlers

which by the way originally came from the banks of the Nile River
in Egypt and are already imported technically and are not Native
to North America ...the shorter stubby garden red worm is however.
~
Phil i will do that SURE
pm me your address
but you do it at Night
using a red light so they don't bolt down the burrow
my record is, so far ....329 pulled in one hour

Let me check out and see if they are still active nightly, haven't actually looked for them recently but this weather is good. Not sure you'll pick at that rate in my yard but still welcome.

they have definite Hours
 

typically they (canadian night crawlers or lumbricus terrestries)
emerge from their burrows at somewhere between 9-11 pm
then they search in a 360 degree circle for food or mating opportunities
sometimes leaving the burrow entirely
and you can grab them two at a time side by side.

putting anything red over a flashlight will make it a worm light
and you have to approach them in stealth mode quietly.
any thumping on the ground will send then down

and your right a damp warmer night is best
heavy rains are not always the best time...

i have local spots Phil so unless your sitting on the motherload
the cost of travel these days is a big consideration.
i am looking to gather many for the green house bed
that i am still building.... 4' feet by 75' by 24 'inches deep

Save the gas, go local. I definitely don't have a "Mother" load.

When I use to do a lot of freshwater fishing we would collect worms in my grandmothers yard and put them in a tin can and soak some paper towels in anise and the worms would absorb the scent and out fish regular worms 10 to 1.
Posted from my iPhone/Mobile device

If you are looking for garden worms, skip the nightcrawlers as they are too big and spend most of their time too deep to be truly benefit a garden. Oh, they will help with aeration, but they are so deep and they come to the surface when it rains.
To collect native garden worms and/or "red wigglers", start a small compost pile with green vegetation waste. These little buggers will find your pile in no time, and will feed and breed like crazy.

I used to find tens to hundreds when I tossed watermelon rinds (chopped) on top of my compost pile.
The also LOVE soggy, moldy old bread.

Heck, even turning over a rock or two should provide some as well!

nope not lookin for garden worms as i have plenty of that species

and the difference between red wigglers and the europeans
is they can live in soil where as red wigglers cannot.

some of the BED run .........will be added to the raised bed
and the breeders will be allowed to keep breeding

they are mainly for fertilizer production making castings....