local worm suppliers?

hello all,

does anybody know if there are local suppliers of red wriggler worms that i can get for vermicomposting? i know there are online suppliers, but i would rather not do the whole shipping thing, especially if there's someone local.

if there isn't, does anyone have any supplier recommendations?

thanks!

r.c.

I checked into this last year: most of the local bait shops get their worms shipped in. You can buy red wigglers (sometimes called "leaf worms") at any bait shop and some pet stores, but you're not going to get the full pound you need to start vermicomposting; you'll get about 20-30 worms (you need like 1,000 worms)

I didn't have much luck starting with the tin of worms we had from the bait shop (I didn't feed them much, but was hoping they'd produce offspring as promised - and we did get worm eggs) some things I noticed - they really needed the garbage to be broken down (if you've got an old blender you're willing to give up for the project, that's probably what they'll need) Our bin got broken into by our neighborhood possum, and that was the end of that. If you can do this indoors or in a garage, you may have better luck than we did.

A couple years back, there were worm farmers at the Garfield Park Conservatory market - they were selling earthworm farms (earthworms being different from red wigglers - I forget the specific advantages) but the market is closed - it's worth a call to the Conservatory, though. Ridgeville Park District's Farmer's Market also had some guys selling vermicompost at the beginning of the year, and they may be able to find them for you.

Ok, thanks! I had wondered about bait shops, but then figured that 1000 worms would be too expensive to get through them.

I have an enclosed back porch that the worms are going to inhabit. No possums possible.

I will definitely check with the Conservatory. Thanks for the tip.

I have a backyard composting bin and wonder if I should put worms into it? The bottom of the bin is not solid, it has a lot of pencil-thick holes in it. In theory the worms crawl in, the worms crawl out, but I am not convinced, and was thinking about supplementing. My guess is earthworms, is this reasonable?

I don't know the specific answer to your question, but I do know that redworms won't survive through the winter. I'm not sure about random foraged earthworms or the nightcrawlers sold by baitshops.

HI,

I would contact a local University of Illinois Cooperative Extension office. They have (had?) worm composting programs and very likely have a list of sources. They won't recommend one over the other, they will simply offer information.

Regards,

Before introducing worms, you might see how your compost garden grows without them. We didn't add any worms to our compost pile and every time I open the lid I see a bustling, rotten metropolis of insect life: worms, flies, creepy crawly things.

I don't have a compost pile...I am too transient for that in this stage of my life. The hope is to get a wooden box and fill it with worms and shredded newspaper, feed them veggie peelings, and to have highly nutrient rich worm castings to spread on my garden by the time spring comes around. it seemed like a good compromise until i can get a larger-scale composting system set up.

b

A suggestion from Martha Bayne's blog led me to the Pacific Garden Mission's vermicomposting project. You can get a full worm-bin setup, or just 1,000 worms if you want.

I would check out PetCo- there was a demo on this at the OP Conservatory and the women mentioned you can get the worms at PetCo

Mhays wrote:A suggestion from Martha Bayne's blog led me to the Pacific Garden Mission's vermicomposting project. You can get a full worm-bin setup, or just 1,000 worms if you want.

I was at the new and improved Pacific Garden Mission today, and in the green house, they have quite a worm production process going.



Jose tends the worms; they live and thrive in the coffins, filled with shredded newsprint.



Here's an example of the pine boxes they sell, filled with worms.



They also sell just the castings.



Pacific Garden Mission
1458 S. Canal Street

I know this is an old post but my company has entered the distribution of castings and worms for green roof gardening. Our main business has been the development of commercial Extensive green roof systems. We found that LWA engineered media was lacking the attributes of mychorizzal populations to help drought hearty plants to establish after planting. You see engineered media has a small percentage of organics to control weight. Sometimes less than 8%. We added castings to boost Endo and Echtomychorizzal growth so the root systems would grow outside the potting soil used in the plugs. Great results!
We have now sourced the purest black castings for organically boosting the establishment rate of new green roof implementations.
I have been an enthusiastic gardener and began to use the castings over the winter with tremendous results indoors.
If anyone is interested, we have 2 gallon containers for $20.00. Our application rate is 1 gallon per 1000 sq ft.
I would be interested in discussing larger roof top production of vegetables with any commercially minded members.
Our source can bring in a volume of worms and these are very hardy European redworms. No need to buy out the local bait shop. These will be fresher too.
http://www.greenroofsolutions.com