If you're considering making your own worm compost, you might be wondering why you have to buy worms; can't you just pick them up on the sidewalk after a light rain? Unfortunately, no. Chances are if you harvest worms from your yard or the sidewalk that they won't be the most effective breed for making worm compost. Yes, all worms eat and create worm castings, but not all worms are the most effective at turning human garbage into fertilizer in a timely manner. Not to mention that you need hundreds of worms to start an effective worm bin.
Two breeds are known in the "worming industry" for their effectiveness at making worm compost quickly; Eisenia fetida (Red Worms) and Eisenia hortensis (European Nightcrawlers). I breed Eisenia fetida exclusively, mostly because I want to concentrate on one breed before I branch out into others. Only recently have European Nightcrawlers been used widely for composting, and many believe that red worms are still the worm of choice for creating worm compost, so that's what I'm starting with. Red worms can eat between 50-100% of their body weight in food scraps every day, so they are very effective for managing your household's food waste outgo.
When you wrap your head around the fact that you'll be inviting worms into your house and you've found a worm bin, stop back here to buy worms. Why buy worms from me? I'm honest, I have fair prices, and I love my worms. I call my worms "my boys" and have been known to both talk soothingly and snap at them (as in the case of a "great worm escape", which happens occasionally). They're like thousands of red, slimy, wiggly children.
Good worming!
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