Worm Farming

Advertising may be the most expensive part of many small businesses, including a worm farm. But without the correct advertisement, your business will have difficulty. There are numerous types of advertising to consider, but the best will always be happy repeat customers who will refer others to you.

Radio advertising, newspaper or magazine advertisements are all pretty expensive. Simply because of the cost you may not be able to advertise on a regular basis. Start-up costs can be demanding in any business.

You should have signage that is large enough to read, brightly colored and carefully located so that it will be spotted by people driving by. A sign that is professionally done will attract the interest of more people. Think about it from the consumer point of view. Surely a large, colorful sign would draw more attention than a small black and white sign. The advertisement for your worm farm should be inviting to visitors.

Another means of advertising your worm farm is by creating flyers or bulletins. Many people will make up a large stack of them and place them on each and every car they see until they run out. But you want to get the most out of every cent you invest in your advertising. Think about areas where people may be interested in worm farming. A person outside of a hardware or sports store may be more likely to want worms for fishing or to use the worm compost for fertilizer than a busy mom taking her kids to soccer practice. . Always get permission from owners or managers of stores before posting anything or leaving flyers on car windshields. Flower or garden shops may allow you to post a flyer on a bulletin board-use your imagination and be creative!

You could consider holding a demonstration about the benefits of your worm farm at the local library. Many libraries hold special sessions for the kids during the summer. These children have parents and grandparents who garden and fish and own reptiles or birds who might need worms. Be sure to hand out color pages or bookmarks or something similar with a small bit of information for your business, including your phone number.

You can purchase a magnetic sign that can be placed on your car or truck which would advertise your worm farm. There are thrift newspapers that have lower cost advertising. There may be local flea markets or farmer’s markets where you can set up a booth.

Make sure you check out your tax laws and your business license requirements for your area. Even if you have your worm farm at your house, you may be required to get a permit to sell your worms or the things you are able to produce because of your worms (like the tea, compost, fertilizers, etc.).

With some creative thinking you will be able to come up with many ideas that will make advertising your worm farm fun and yield profitable results.

Worm farming is not new, it has been around for quite some time. There are numerous benefits to be derived from a worm farm.

Worms may be sold to fisherman or people who want to compost. Specific breeds of worms are carefully bred and are normally kept in breed specific quarters. Many of the worms that are raised in worm farms are used in composting.

Landfills and garbage dumps utilize worms which were raised by worm farmers.

Certain worms may also be used to fertilize the soil. As worms dig through the ground, they aerate and stir up the soil carrying water along. The “worm poop” that is created is high in nutrients and fertilizes the soil. A wholesome soil is then produced for better growing plants, vegetables and crops.

In recent years, the supply of worm farming equipment and accessories makes it simpler for individuals to make a hobby of this technique. Household sized bins are on the market in a variety of shapes and sizes. Home owners and apartment dwellers are given the chance to raise their own worms for waste compost and soil fertilization.

All that you will need to feed the worms in your worm farms are the fruit and vegetable scraps you would ordinarily throw into the garbage. You can also feed the worms newspaper, egg shells and hair. The waste product that the worms leave behind is called worm compost or vermicast.

Worms are also farmed for bait. Worm farmers supply many bait and tackle shops with all the worms that fisherman can use as bait.

Make sure you choose the species of worm that is best suited for the job. Some worms crawl close to the surface, others dig down into the soil. Red wiggler worms are generally used for composting while the Belgian worms are great for both composting and bait. Home owners looking for worms to keep in lawns and flower beds may find success with Night Crawlers and Wigglers.

Worm farming can certainly be an excellent educational tool. Because a worm bin doesn’t take up much space a small worm bin could easily fit in a classroom. A worm farm provides a practical experience for the kids to learn about composting. Using natural methods for composting and reducing waste in landfills is easily demonstrated by classroom worm farms.

Worms can be farmed practically anywhere. With the various systems available on the market today, home owners can raise their own supply of worms outdoors or in an apartment. The variables that must be controlled in a worm farm are the temperature, moisture, light, bedding and the type and quantity of food. In return, the reward will be a natural way of composting without filling up local landfills.

Click to get more information about the Worm Factory 360

Go to Red Wiggler Composting Worms to find out more.

Are you looking for something to do that is a little unusual? If you are looking for an activity that is good for the environment and has business potential-worm farming may be for you.

Were you aware that an earthworm can lay nearly 900 eggs each year? That’s a lot of eggs! Their gastrointestinal tract helps neutralize acidic soil or soil with a high alkaline level. Gardener’s really like the soil that worms produce. Other animals eat worms-nice diet huh? A natural food that is safe and healthy. So, how could you go wrong with a good worm farm?

An interesting and strange thing to know about worm farming is that long ago Cleopatra declared earthworms to be sacred, gods of fertility. A little old earthworm was protected and cherished, death to the person who caused harm to the earthworm. Of course in the United States today the earthworm doesn’t get that form of respect. Most of the time the worm is used as bait, thought to be “icky” or simply forgotten about. Some other cultures use it for food, which could be considered sacred to a starving person!

Worms are good to eat if you are trying to lower your cholesterol level. Seriously, earthworms can reduce your cholesterol level because they contain Omega 3 oil. You may be saying that you’d rather have a high cholesterol level. Consider some of the other things that you eat. To a vegetarian, meat eaters are the sick people. Someone that eats meat might not understand how someone can live by eating only vegetables. Perhaps eating worms isn’t so crazy after all! Worms do contain protein, are very lean, and are inexpensive to farm. If you prefer a sophisticated term for this oddity, its scientific term is entomophagy.

In the United States worm farming isn’t done to produce human food, however they are raised for other reasons. Those worms in the bait shop or in the pet store need to come from somewhere. Now you know where they came from. All businesses have risks associated with them, worm farming is no exception. There is some work involved in building a productive worm farm.

Feeding your worms doesn’t cost much for a small worm farm. Worms will eat fruits and vegetables, newspapers, grass clippings and leaves. Just make sure that anything you feed them has no residues of any sort of poisons.

The easiest worm farm is a container with some dirt, air holes, newspaper bedding and some food scraps. A larger worm farm needs a method to separate the worms from the castings after the worms have done their thing. The liquid that is produced can be diluted and used to water your plants. Try starting a small worm farm to see if it is something that is of interest to you before you try to become a mega worm farmer.

Worm farming is becoming more and more popular all over the United States, this article will give you some ideas to help you start your own worm farm.

Worm farms on a large scale exist as follows: Arizona, Connecticut, New York, Oregon, South Carolina, Michigan, Montana, New Mexico-1 each. Florida, Massachusetts, Missouri, and the United Kingdom-2 each. Pennsylvania, Texas-3 each. Canada and Washington-4 each. California-15. There are many more smaller worm farms that are not listed in the major directories. All over the world there are people with small worm farms in their yard.

Any business, including worm farming, will take from 3 to 5 years to break-even after their initial investment and maintenance costs. Proper planning is the key to starting a worm farming business. Careful consideration means a better chance of netting profits sooner.

What do you know about breed stock? You can find good breed stock in a city gardener’s basement supply just as well as you can from any established breeder with the same type of worm. It isn’t unusual for someone to try to sell breed stock at an inflated price in any animal business. The population can take as long as 90 days to double no matter where you buy your breed stock.

How many worms you should start with depends on several things. What is your budget? Will you have a large or small worm farm? Do you have enough space or will you need to expand? Will this be your primary souce of income or just a side business? Do you live in an area with seasonal temperature changes and will you be able to keep the worm farm at a fairly consistent temperature? Are you going to ship worms all over the country or are you just going to sell locally?

Other useful ideas:

1. Weather changes will affect the worms. Finding them in the lid of your worm bin before it rains is no reason to panic.

2. Ants will be more likely to enter your worm bins if the bedding is dry or highly acidic. Raise the moisture content or keep the legs of your stand in a container of water. You could try applying petroleum jelly around the legs or adding some garden lime near the ant gathering spot.

3. Cover your fresh worm food with the soil in the bed or place a layer of wet newspaper over it to get rid of vinegar flies. Don’t overfeed the worms because that can attract flies and other insects if there is extra food for them.

4. If the worm bin smells you are either feeding them too much or you are feeding them food which is rotting before they can eat it. Stir the waste lightly to allow air flow and space for the worms to travel more easily and feed less. Over time you will get an idea of the amount of food the worms can digest. The amount will change as the worms multiply.

Knowing this information should help you to become an excellent worm farmer!

Some people ask, “Why in the world would I want to have a worm farm? There are plenty of other useful farms that sell vegetables, fruits, animals, and eggs. What good is a worm farm?” Well, it’s an understandable reaction. After all, it’s usually the quiet people in society that go unnoticed; so why shouldn’t there be quiet creatures that go unnoticed? People underestimate the value of the worm.

It’s true that there are worms that do damage to crops, animals, and people. Worms in your intestinal system are best flushed out. That’s why dogs and cats, even horses and cows receive worm treatments. These worms are taking away nutritional values the animals need to survive.

What about the good worms? The first reaction to a worm is, “Ewww, gross.” Well, understanding anything is the key to appreciating it more. The good worms are not poisonous and have positive benefits that are not readily seen. They’re hard-working little creatures and deserve our respect.

So, what are good worms? Earthworms, compost worms (red wigglers, blue worms), and fishing worms (night crawlers) are good worms. Earthworms are found in rich soil. If your plants are healthy and growing, chances are there are earthworms down there toiling away to help make this happen. Those die-hard fishermen can tell you about the benefits of a good, fat fishing worm! Catfish and bream are two of the types of fish that enjoy worms.

Worms are important for composting. They break down the material and produce a rich compost called vermicast or vermicompost. This compost is an excellent fertilizer. It retains moisture, encourages root growth and is high in the minerals that help plants grow.

Here’s one way you can help an earthworm (I know you want to)-the next time it rains and you see a worm on the street or sidewalk, gently move it to a grassy area so that it can burrow back into the ground. You can then congratulate yourself on being a lifesaver!

So now you know why you should create a worm farm. Worms are a vital part of our ecosystem and they do deserve our appreciation and respect.