The effortless, everlasting wormery

[Aknib]

I've always been sceptical about compost heaps supplying enough lobworms for a heavy user but I stand corrected!

I was talking about this with Kev earlier, after quickly collecting a large supply of even larger lobs for a days fishing tomorrow.

I've read, researched and looked at all sorts of alternative ideas for keeping myself in good supply of quality lobs and often ended up buying dendras for convenience, these alternatives included all manner of dubious looking after dark collecting techniques and off the shelf wormeries that would equate to five star accommodation with the feeding regime and waste drain off required, along with online suppliers who will post the worms out to you.

And through my tightness and refusal to pay thrity quid to have my garden bin emptied every fortnight I found the answer.

A compost heap, neatly tucked away in the corner of the garden and not what I would see as an eyesore in any way.

I've been lightly forking around in there for some time and was encouraged by the size and amount of worms present and this afternoon I went all in for a good bucket full which would see me through a days fishing with ease.

Five minutes later my fears that the worms would buqqer off in the colder weather had gone and my bucket was full, not only have they not buqqered off but they have actively worked their way up the column of garden waste way above soil level and while ever the grub is there so the worms will be, I wonder if there's some sort of fermentation going on as it all rots down which in turn will keep the temperature artificially high for them?

Also and quite by accident, I found the flat part of an old bird table buried near the surface and I think this may have added some protection from the exceptional wet weather and might point to some sort of cover being a good idea during such extremes.

Either way, nature has provided a borderless answer and the worms without the need for moulded plastic, stacking containers... The 'heap' is still of a significant size from last Summer and rotting down well with more grass and garden prunings to be added in the coming season.

There were literally hundreds of 'em in there!

I may branch out and add used tea bags, food waste etc. and really go into turbo mode

(I have a cat and despite his age he's very 'on it' and rodents of any nature on his manor really aren't a problem).

One thing I will say and which I've found out from work... If you treat your lawn with chemicals or iron don't put the clippings on the compost heap or the worms will be packing their bags and buqqering off in short order.

Stands to reason really but easy to overlook.

Otherwise...

If you're not already doing it then give it a go, you'll likely reduce your bait carbon footprint and you may also be very pleasantly surprised, especially if it also diverts the attentions of those dreaded slugs and in turn provides a reliable feeding point for frogs and hedgehogs.

So that's the lobbies sorted then, anyone have any suggestions for brandlings and red worms?

 

[103841]

Don’t go putting tea bags in Steve, the majority won’t compost, empty them first.

I’ve a compost heap, never seen a worm in it yet.

 

[barbelboi]

Nope - My 'lobbies' are sorted out with miles of fields behind the house - head torch after dark and finger on the buzzer (or should that be the soil side of the worm - two falls or a submission) after rain - don't need to pillage my lawn these days. Anything else is easily sorted by means of my local friendly farmers and sometimes the river bank..........

 

[lambert1]

Horse manure that is well rotted is great for Red Worms Steve. I get mine from a local stables heap. Lively little buggers they are too and in my opinion they are better than Dendras.

 

[Aknib]

Don’t go putting tea bags in Steve, the majority won’t compost, empty them first.

I’ve a compost heap, never seen a worm in it yet.

Thanks John i'll bare that in mind but it's puzzling why you have no worms.

I have noticed that my garden was quite well inhabited with them prior to the compost heap although of a spread which meant digging them was impractical, I wonder if it's a case of introducing them if they're not already abundant?

Surprisingly, most of the more recent houses around here and the town in general are built on concrete rafts due to the local geology being dominated by sand and not of a material you would associate with worms although I have added a lot of organic matter since being here.

(Not literally, of course )

 

[flightliner]

Steve, I made one out of scaffold battens four years ago. It's maybe 6'x2'x 3' deep.
I feed it regularly with kitchen waste and it's amazing how many dendres it produces, this winter being mild it's still going strong. I've been filling my weekly requirements most weeks since Christmas , saving me going to the tackle shop.
In that four years I've emptied the rich soil produced twice to be spreaded over my veg patch. It turns so fast there's only some six inches of decomposing material that the worms have to chew on.
Re the tea bags-- I understand that there is a small amount of plastic in a teabags make up so I avoid using them to be on the safe side.

 

[lambert1]

I was horrified when my wife told me that there is plastic in tea bags as I have been putting them in the compost as well. Coming to think of it though, paper alone would not be strong enough to stop the bags bursting when wet I suppose, but surely there is a better way than using plastic.

 

[David Rogers 3]

Are you sure they're lobworms in your compost heap? I've never founds lobs in any compost heap or bin - plenty of brandlings and redworms, but not lobs. These are mainly to be found living in healthy garden soil or under lawns (hence the time-honoured method of collecting them on damp nights when they emerge to mate).

 

[Aknib]

Yep no doubt about it... Big, flat-tailed lobbies.

 

[lambert1]

I think it depends on the amount of leaf litter there is. I come across plenty of lobs underneath leaves on patios when I am raking or brushing the leaves off. If the leaves have been there for a while the lobs seem to seek them out.

 

[dicky123]

Are you sure they're lobworms in your compost heap? I've never founds lobs in any compost heap or bin - plenty of brandlings and redworms, but not lobs. These are mainly to be found living in healthy garden soil or under lawns (hence the time-honoured method of collecting them on damp nights when they emerge to mate).

Me to I'v never seen it done, or recommended for lob-worms. Amazing, maybe it's unique and you have something just right. However I don't think it would work for everyone. Red-worms yes, not Lobs.