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Gold Hill, Oregon

whats the best worms to use? the ones from the yard? a dozen fishing worms from the store? or mail order? or?

thanks
dave

1/3/2009 12:33:58 AM

Paradise Mountain, New York

Little red worms,

1/3/2009 12:51:38 AM

Minnesota

Red wigglers, there is a european kind of worms that are suppose to also be good.

1/3/2009 1:10:47 AM

Columbus,ohio

red rigglers ef's is the abrivited scitific name...this kind breeds faster btu dosn't eat as much from what I have read.
european nightcrawlers eh's is the abrivted scitific name...these are pigs from what I have read but they breed a little bit slower.

1/3/2009 2:08:19 AM

Santa Rosa, CA

Look for Red Wigglers. (Eisenia fetida)

I have 2 worm bins and they do nothing but eat and make more worms. While you can buy them,($20 for 1,000) I give them to local gardeners.

A great book to read is Worms Eat My Garbage by Mary Appelhof.

Good luck!

Chuck

1/3/2009 7:25:44 PM

Gold Hill, Oregon

where can i buy some?

1/3/2009 9:20:21 PM

Iowa

Good info Chuck.

1/3/2009 11:20:22 PM

Upstate S.C.

Big Deamer, Chuck and Peep are both right EF's (redwigglers) are the type worms you need to buy, you see they live in only the top 1 to 2 inches of the soil. Unlike nightcrawlers whom burrow down deep into the soil were they live and eat. Ef's are sometimes called "compost worms" because of there composting ability. Thats why you will find them and ONLY them in compost piles, leaves and under brush. You see they eat the microscopic things that break down stuff. It is up for debate but most experts will tell you that the redworms don't eat the things you feed them, they eat the things that BREAK DOWN the food. You will find that it will take some time after you bury your food in the bin for the worms to start eating, this is because it take a day or two for the food to start breaking down, and then they dig in. The book from Mary Appelhof is a must, but if you do need more help I will be glad to get you started.

1/4/2009 1:52:23 AM

Upstate S.C.

P.S. to answer you second question there are lots of places that sell worms, JUST FOR COMPOSTING that are listed on the two websites mentioned, if you still need help let me know and I will give you some sources that are close to you , this is key because you don't want to buy worms that will take a long time to get to you. The closer the better. You don't want the worms in transit any longer than needed.

1/4/2009 1:57:46 AM

Gold Hill, Oregon

thank you for all of the information. that would be great if you could help me find some worms locally sctrooper. i really appreciate your guys's help.
dave

1/4/2009 3:14:44 AM

Paradise Mountain, New York

I bought my red worms to get started cheap on e-bay

1/4/2009 3:05:10 PM

Upstate S.C.

Big Pumpkin, Here is a link that you can go to that list some of the proven suppliers...You want to order 1 to 2 pounds PER BIN...So if you have one bin just do one order 2 bins 4 pounds...Just remember how fast they multiply so you may what to start out with one bin then after 5 months start another. Let me know if this helps......

http://vermicomposters.ning.com/forum/topic/show?id=2094123%3ATopic%3A5122

1/4/2009 3:25:13 PM

Columbus,ohio

Most night crawlers can't be used for composting but european night crawlers can. I hear many people say I will never go back to ef's because the european night crawlers are pigs. They ussally cost a little more usless you find a deal.

1/4/2009 7:04:53 PM

Dallas, Oregon

Hey Dave, What you are looking for are called Dilly worms which are different than composting worms. I added 4000 in the fall. The place to get them is Leiber's worms in Woodburn. Tom

1/4/2009 11:12:51 PM

Dallas, Oregon

sounds like your also interested in vermicomposting, Leiber's also has worms for that too.

1/4/2009 11:19:48 PM