Worm Farming

You’ll find people who don’t know how important worm farming is to the ecosystem. Worms just don’t crawl around in the dirt, they are necessary for the soil.

Worms were some of the very first creatures on earth. Worms composted the dinosaur waste and turned it into a rich soil eons ago. Today, worms are still the best composters.

Do you know the main reasons that worm farming is indeed critical to the natural environment? Worm farming is done for three main reasons; it’s used for composting, worm castings, fishing bait and to feed other animals and birds.

Many types of food scraps and some other biodegradable things are efficiently composted in worm farms. Some industrial organizations use worms farms to keep much of their waste materials away from landfills. Because of the worm farms, numerous objects are kept out of garbage dumps. Worms are so effective that even landfills utilize them to help compost a portion of the trash.

Even people who reside in condominiums and homeowners can manage a worm farm. It’s easy to place food scraps and paper products into the worm bin and have the worms compost it. This keeps even more items from trash dumps. There are a number of different sizes of worm farms that may be purchased. You can maintain a worm farm inside or outside according to space constraints and the outside temperature.

A number of the items which can be placed into a personal worm farm are: paper products, dampened cardboard, vegetables, fruits, cereal, bread, hair, egg shells and coffee grounds. The finished product is a wonderful rich soil that can be used in gardens and flower beds.

At this point, we can look at another reason for setting up a worm farm. Worm poop, also known as vermicompost or worm castings, is the substance that worms excrete. What you supply the worms will be broken down and turned into nutrient rich castings. These castings can be used as plant food and are an extremely powerful fertilizer for plants. If you would like an all-natural fertilizer then vermicompost is perfect for you.

There’s no need for synthetic chemical substances or chemical fertilizers when you use worm castings. One of the problems with artificial fertilizers is the fact that although it has a temporary quick effect, the soil itself is broken down and nutrients are destroyed. You would then need to use even more fertilizer to get the same effects. It doesn’t fix the problem-you still have to replace the nutrients in the soil.

Excessive use of synthetic fertilizers together with pesticides have destroyed some worm populations. If the earth is polluted the worms will often move to a chemical free area or they could actually die.

By using the organic and natural vermicompost you do not need any outside chemicals, therefore the land will not be polluted. You may also want to add some worms to a flower bed or garden to aerate and fertilize the soil.

A final reason for having a worm farm is to raise worms for fishing bait or to feed other animals. Birds, fish and a few other animals like to consume worms. These animal owners appreciate being able to obtain live worms which were organically raised and are much better for the animals.

Many fisherman are looking for an excellent source of live bait to use for their hobby or profession. The worms from your worm farm are provided with natural ingredients and can produce a fantastic bait.

As you can see, worm farming provides many benefits to the ecosystem. By starting a worm farm you can appreciate the importance of worms a little bit better. Feeding worms food and material that would have gone right into a landfill creates that rich compost that helps the garden soil and supports the planet.

Worms have been a benefit to mankind and nature long before worm farming became well-known. The soil that worms generate is great environmentally friendly fertilizer for plants, worms may be used by fisherman as bait and lots of different animals eat worms for food.

A worm farm is good for the planet. A worm farm at a zoo or natural history museum can show exactly how nature composts normally. Kids would love the chance to touch the worms. A worm farm is ideal for show and tell at school. If you belong to a garden club, a worm farm could produce a great compost that you can use on your plants.

Birds love worms and bird owners could start their own worm farm to provide food for their pets. Fish and reptiles like worms and their owners may like to start a worm farm. In your own home, a worm farm is a terrific way to show kids how to compost their foods scraps, teach the children responsibility and show them how the fertilizer is good for plants.

Worm farms are a good way to support the economy by buying and selling. They furnish a useful service by increasing the health of soil, they provide a useful product, and they encourage equipment sales. They provide an extra income to the seller as well as jobs for any workers needed on the bigger farms.

Worms

Catfish love to eat worms, so a catfish farmer would reap the rewards of a worm farm. The worms are a natural bait and are better for the environment than artificial lures that could be left behind by fisherman.

Developing a worm farm along with a chicken ranch would keep your costs for food down..

Now, how many businesses really can reap the rewards of a worm farm? Everybody is able to in someway. Without worms our plants, fruits and veggies would not have good soil in which to grow. Whoever has used a compost pile knows how their plants react to this great fertilizer.

It might be fun to mention worm farming at a get together and see the response of people. You might be surprised at the number of people who respond in one way or the other with this all-natural activity.

Even though you do not like to touch worms you can come to appreciate the dedication of the little worms as they eat away at your kitchen or garden scraps. Most worms are helpful to nature. For those who aren’t squeamish, worms can even be an exotic treat. Remember when we were kids there was always someone who was happy to eat a worm.

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.

A Red Wiggler Worm

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.

Worm Factory 360

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Red Wiggler Composting Worms

Go to Red Wiggler Composting Worms to find out more.

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!