Home worm farm

For the overwhelming majority of summer residents and owners of backyard plots, the farm is chickens, geese, pigs, cows and other well-known domestic animals. But there are vermi farms where worms are grown. Our tips site is ready to tell you how to breed worms on the site and why it is useful..

In its series of articles on organic farming, the portal spoke in detail about the benefits that ordinary earthworms bring, how they have a beneficial effect on the soil..

You can decide to grow worms for various reasons:

1. To get vermicompost. It is a very valuable, natural, natural fertilizer. Vermicompost has an excellent effect on soil quality, increases productivity. And it is the worms that recycle waste that produce it completely free of charge;
2. For fishing, feeding poultry. If you are a fisherman, then you know for sure that fishing without worms often simply has nothing to do. And poultry, the same chickens, just love to eat worms, this has a beneficial effect on their health. And if you have your own mini-pond with fish on your site, then you definitely cannot do without live feeding;
3. To get worm tea. As a matter of fact, this is the same vermicompost, but diluted with water, liquid. The loose material that is obtained as a result of the vital activity of worms is called coprolite. To obtain worm tea, it is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:10. But not just bred, but as if brewed like tea. Coprolite will be placed in a porous bag, you can even in an old T-shirt, for example, but it should be tightly tied. And they put it in water, preferably rainwater or just settled, without bleach. During the night, the water will turn light brown, that is, the worm tea is brewed. They are watered with it, for example, strawberries, houseplants, and, in fact, anything that grows in your beds or in a greenhouse. An increase in productivity is guaranteed;
4. For sale. A worm farm can be a good business. Moreover, you can start small, grow worms in small volumes and sell vermicompost to neighbors of a summer resident, and the worms themselves – to familiar fishermen or to local pet stores..

What worms can be grown:

• Normal rainfall. The most popular option, you will not need to buy a breeding stock, for the first time you can dig up worms in your garden. In addition, earthworms are perfectly prepared for our climate, unpretentious. But, unfortunately, they multiply and produce biohumus more slowly than their “pedigree colleagues”;
• California red worm. Undemanding to feed, multiplies very quickly, vermicompost is of high quality. But the breeding stock will have to be bought, while making sure that the worms are really red and active. In addition, Californian worms do not tolerate temperature drops below + 10 ° C;
• The Prospector worm. The main competitor of the Californian “colleague”. It is active, grows quickly, produces high-quality vermicompost. But it also does not tolerate temperatures below + 9 ° C.

Thus, if you plan to grow worms solely for your own needs and do not plan to spend extra money, then ordinary earthworms will suit you. If you want to increase the efficiency of vermicompost production and make money on worms, choose Californian red or Prospector.

A box with 1200-1500 adults of the California red worm, with fry and cocoons, costs only about 1000 rubles. The Prospector worm is about the same.

You can grow worms anywhere: in a barn or other outbuilding, in a garage or cellar, in an attic. The main thing is that the humidity is normal and the temperature is suitable.

Important! If the room is below + 3 ° C, the worms will hibernate. And if it rises above + 36 ° C, they will die.

Technologically, the process of growing worms is very simple: we prepare a habitat, buy a breeding stock or collect earthworms in a vegetable garden, populate them in a new house, wait for the compost to turn into vermicompost and reproduce worms, collect a “crop” of fertilizers and live individuals, fill in a new nutritious bedding. In fact, everything is really simple, the worms will feed and reproduce with little or no input. It is only necessary at the first stage to properly prepare the bedding for them, to ensure a comfortable temperature, humidity and feed them in time after collecting the finished vermicompost..

Important! Normal humidity for worms is 60–70%. That is, the soil with additives for them will have to be evenly and regularly moistened, and also covered with something so that it does not dry out quickly.

You can’t just pour earth into an ordinary box, put worms in there and wait for the “harvest”. They need a more nutritious environment, organic waste. We’ve already covered how to make a compost pit. For growing worms, it is advisable to use almost everything that you usually put in this pile..

The worm habitat should look like this:

• The top layer will be occupied by the very same organic waste, all kinds of cleaning that will provide the worms with nutrients;
• The middle layer will be mainly occupied by worms. Of course, they move, but most often they will find themselves exactly in the middle, in the humus;
• The bottom layer is the most valuable for us – derivatives of the vital activity of worms will go down there, that is, the necessary vermicompost.

You can grow worms:

• In ordinary wooden boxes with a lid and a tray to collect excess liquid, that is, worm tea. The cover must be made with holes for ventilation. The standard size of the box is 1х2х0.5 meters;
• Carton boxes. They will not last long, the worms eat cardboard, it gets soaked, but for one cycle of worm life they are quite suitable;
• Plastic containers. Again, it is important to provide ventilation, drill holes in the side walls and the lid, and put a pallet to collect the vermicom;
• Vermicomposter. The purchased option will cost 5-6 thousand rubles, but it has everything you need: a stand, a drain for vermicom, ventilation holes, separate containers for organic waste, worms and vermicompost, and even a lining that provides the necessary soil moisture.

Sometimes old bathtubs or refrigerators are used for the wormhole. Why not.

For worms to eat normally, you need humus, to which you can and should add the following:

• Potato peelings;
• Cabbage leaves;
• Stale bread;
• Brewing tea and coffee grounds;
• Boiled vegetables and their cleaning;
• Banana peel;
• The water with which you rinsed the can of milk, sour cream, kefir;
• Fermented manure.

Do not add citrus fruits, which will increase the acidity of the soil, pure kefir, meat waste, as well as fresh manure.

A new portion of soil with organic waste is added as the worms eat the old.

As you can see, there is nothing difficult in growing worms, but there are many benefits. Try it. At the very least, be sure to provide your garden beds and greenhouse with natural fertilizers. And the head of the family, a fisherman, a treat for an abundant catch.