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worms in vegetable gardens

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Posted by composthead (My Page) on
Mon, Feb 8, 10 at 9:42

Have worms been added directly to raised beds and "fed" by the existing compost and cover crop? Sort of an accelerated lasagna garden?
Thanks, Tom

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RE: worms in vegetable gardens

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I will be doing a small garden this spring...
Will want to add some night crawlers to it...
My understanding is that night crawlers will survive in the garden & the red wigglers will not...
Bob
Colorado

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RE: worms in vegetable gardens

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Welcome bmaintz; composthead I started last year with existing Canadian night crawlers in a square foot garden. By using not quite finished compost in a ring around the plants. I stayed about 1 inch from the stem and built the compost into a dished shape for ease of watering. They did come and I must tell you they don't like the soil dug up. To much tilling and they will head out of the area. So this year the plan is minimum Tillage and top dressing with compost on the larger plants like peppers etc. The worms should do my tilling for me right. Well I won't do the whole garden this way (no guts) but a large area that should give me an idea if it might work. Lumbricus terrestris and Lumbricus rubellus are two of the most common worms in my area. I would think that ENCs (Eisenia hortensis) would work as they are more of a soil dwelling worm. Only a guess I have not tried them in the garden only in a bin.

Curt~~~~ :-)

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RE: worms in vegetable gardens

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I have several 1/2 whiskey barrels that I will put a dozen or so worms in each...
Will enrich with castings & other scrapes, plant my tomatoes & peppers & watch them grow....
Bob

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RE: worms in vegetable gardens

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I will also be incorporating rough vermicompost (30-40% castings) along with worms & cocoons into my garden. I'll add a mix of decaying leaves and slightly aged horse manure as worm food.

I may try the worm tower method (linked below) using 4" corrugated flexible drain "pipes". These would restrict the worms to certain areas and may increase their reproduction rates.

Here is a link that might be useful: worm towers

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RE: worms in vegetable gardens

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I have had red wrigglers in my square foot garden and other flower beds for almost a year now. I would add food scraps every so often until the cats and/or critters started digging it up. Now I use water bottles with the bottom cut off and the cap off, buried 2-3 inches. Just lift the bottle and add the food. I can move it easily to new areas. I just want to add that I don't have snow or extreme cold, although the worms did fine in the summer, which is over 100 degrees.

  
 

 

 


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