All About the Wriggles

An unsung hero in the world of Regenerative and Organic Agriculture is Eisenia fetida, also known as the red wiggler, compost worm, or tiger worm. Native to Europe, they have made their way to every continent except Antarctica. They are characterized with reddish-brown coloring, rings around its body (which resemble tiger stripes, hence the name), and an overall length of 3-4 inches at maturity. These little guys have a voracious appetite, with the ability to consume half their weight in a day. And the garbage that goes in comes out as vermicasting, or black gold, from the perspective of a farmer.

               The primary role Eisenia fetida plays is to be a decomposer of organic material. There are a few things that are not ideal food sources for it such as fats, oils, and meats, but so much of our organic waste stream can be digested by E. fetida. It has a mouth that can open surprisingly large for the size of animal it is and pass through its body until it reaches a gizzard. In the gizzard, the food is ground down in size just like how it is in a chicken. In then passes into the stomach and finally through the intestines and exists as black gold. The stuff gardeners and farmers go gaggle over. In one presentation I had listened to previously, the speaker also made the comment that E. fetida is one of the few animals that have both a gizzard to grind food and will also ferment its food as well. I have not since been able to find this presentation, but that factoid has stuck with me for some time.

               So why all the hub-bub about worms? Well for many reasons. Some of the lesser known reasons is that the poop will come out with a neutral pH and help address salinity issues as well as excesses of micronutrients. It also has value in providing nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus to plants as well and can reduce the pathogens in organic material including E. coli.  On the one hand, worms assist in fixing problems through ingestion. And on the other hand, what comes out of the worm’s butt in the form of vermicompost inoculates the soil with life, which is what I believe to be the most important contribution that it does. Modern agriculture has unwittingly and perhaps even purposely removed much of the biology from soil and in return created a dependency on chemicals. The life vermicasting imparts on the soil is one step into regaining freedom and adding resiliency. The increased amounts and diversity of life in the soil is what helps to free up nutrients that ordinarily would not be available, can effectively be a means to control plant diseases, and adds additional frost protection to plants as well. This is a new horizon of discovery for agriculture and one that deserves attention as it effects the food we eat and the overall health of the world around us. There are a few various methods to utilize vermicasting. One method is to take the finished product and spread it out over a field. It has also been used by dropping some in the row as seeds are planted and even used as an inoculant directly on seed, just like how an alfalfa seed should be inoculated with a Rhizobium sp. to increase the nitrogen fixing capacity.

               Starting a little worm bin (or even a big one) is not that difficult. It can take up little room, and aids in the amount of unnecessary solid waste being buried in landfills. The reason E. fetida has become the go to worm for composting organic waste is because of its hardiness and ability to survive a wide range of environments. I bought red wrigglers through the mail over 12 years ago, and with all the miles we have moved over the years, descendants of the original worms are still with us. I have watched them eating away parts of compost piles they were in that were frozen. There are a few basic things to follow to ensure success. In my opinion the number one thing that they need to be in material that is moist, they can not dry out or they will die. The ideal percentage is 70 percent, having too much water is just as bad as the worms still need to breathe. Another point is the optimal range for them is between 55-77 degrees F. While they can survive colder temperatures, how much material they eat slows dramatically. Finally, they should have some type of bedding material that is carbon based. Shredded leaves and paper work well. The carbon material also acts as a sponge to soak unprocessed green waste called leachate, which should not be applied to edible plants as it can harbor pathogens. If this article sparks an interest in the topic, I suggest a search on YouTube for the subject worminar.

Originally Published Dec 22 Silverado Express