# Anyone else raise worms? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 2, 2013, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-raise-worms/657349 "2013-05-02T20:04:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-raise-worms/657349/21 "2013-05-09T20:11:42Z")
Are Red Wigglers truly the Cadillac of worms? ---
**Author:** ![QuarkChild](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/c5a1d2/32.png) [@QuarkChild](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuarkChild)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2013, 9:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-raise-worms/657349/22 "2013-05-09T21:04:56Z")
While I agree with the idea of not giving worms garlic or onion (they won’t hurt the worms, but the worms generally don’t eat them promptly, so there’s no point), I am skeptical of claims about citrus, pineapple, and tomatoes. Read the book _The Best Place for Garbage_ by worm farmer Sandra Wiese. She feeds her worms massive quantities of tomatoes and other “forbidden” foods and claims they don’t harm the worms. One thing she emphasizes in her book is that there is a lot of incorrect information on the internet about what to feed worms. It sounds like she feeds her worms anything that humans eat (including very spicy chili peppers), and the worms do fine. ---
**Author:** ![control-z](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/eada6e/32.png) [@control-z](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/control-z)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2013, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-raise-worms/657349/23 "2013-05-10T20:42:31Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > My wife and i have between 25,000 and 30,000 red wigglers that we’ve been raising since last summer. My chickens want to know if they can come for a visit. ---
**Author:** ![picunurse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7bcc69/32.png) [@picunurse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/picunurse)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2013, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-raise-worms/657349/24 "2013-05-10T21:16:31Z")
When I lived on a lake, back in the '70s, we put coffee grounds in a box open to the soil. In a very short time it filled up with huge night crawlers we used for fishing. Are red wigglers different than night crawlers? ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2013, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-raise-worms/657349/25 "2013-05-11T02:18:26Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > Are Red Wigglers truly the Cadillac of worms? \*My \*red wigglers are the Lincolns of the Cadillac of worms > [@QuarkChild](#): > > While I agree with the idea of not giving worms garlic or onion (they won’t hurt the worms, but the worms generally don’t eat them promptly, so there’s no point), I am skeptical of claims about citrus, pineapple, and tomatoes. Read the book _The Best Place for Garbage_ by worm farmer Sandra Wiese. She feeds her worms massive quantities of tomatoes and other “forbidden” foods and claims they don’t harm the worms. One thing she emphasizes in her book is that there is a lot of incorrect information on the internet about what to feed worms. It sounds like she feeds her worms anything that humans eat (including very spicy chili peppers), and the worms do fine. Interesting. I may have to experiment with a segment of my worms. > [@control-z](#): > > My chickens want to know if they can come for a visit. As long as they stay in the front yard. > [@picunurse](#): > > When I lived on a lake, back in the '70s, we put coffee grounds in a box open to the soil. In a very short time it filled up with huge night crawlers we used for fishing. > Are red wigglers different than night crawlers? They’re different. Nightcrawlers typically live and burrow in the soil. Red wigglers live in compostable materials. Nightcrawlers are usually bigger and thrive in cooler temperatures than red wigglers. Nightcrawlers are what you find when you dig in your garden or lawn, and what you see on the sidewalk after a rain. ---
**Author:** ![guilty\_as\_charged](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d9b06d/32.png) [@guilty\_as\_charged](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/guilty_as_charged)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2013, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-raise-worms/657349/26 "2013-05-21T01:51:04Z")
Ha funny thing, i was just on my way out to do a little “worm hunting” so i can go fishing. ---
**Author:** ![Dinsdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/97f17d/32.png) [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2013, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-raise-worms/657349/27 "2013-05-21T12:21:33Z")
I just read [The Earth Moved](http://www.amazon.com/Earth-Moved-Remarkable-Achievements-Earthworms/dp/1565124685) which described many facets of earthworms and their keeping. Pretty fascinating stuff. Has me seriously considering getting a worm bin myself. Going to keep an eye out for a copy of Darwin’s book. The author wrote that it was pretty difficult to actually make money raising worms. Congrats on beating the odds! ---
**Author:** ![bodangus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/c37758/32.png) [@bodangus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bodangus)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2013, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-raise-worms/657349/28 "2013-05-21T13:38:11Z")
So, how do you gather the castings? I have areas of my property that have little vegetation but have quite a bit of worm castings lying about. How would I gather this stuff so I got just the castings without any other stuff? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anyone-else-raise-worms/657349.md?page=1)