What Every Gardener Should Know About Earthworms by Henry Hopp

Author:Henry Hopp
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Storey Publishing, LLC
Published: 2008-03-25T16:00:00+00:00

Building Worm Population

Earthworms are very sensitive to changes in the soil brought about by cropping the land. In localities where earthworms are present, the population varies greatly according to the farming or gardening methods used.

Recent investigations have disclosed efficient methods of maintaining earthworms on tilled land. These new practices came from studies on the life habits of earthworms.

It was found that earthworms follow a well-defined yearly cycle. One might consider the cycle as starting in the fall of the year (below). At that time, many of the earthworms are young, just starting their life. With the advent of wet, cool weather, they become extremely active physically. They feed on the organic debris in and on top of the soil, and mix it with the mineral soil to produce casts, as well as making new burrows in the soil. During damp, cool nights, and occasionally on wet cloudy days, too, they come out of their burrows to seek new areas to inhabit. Within a few hours of a night, they may migrate a considerable number of feet. With dawn, they disappear into the ground but the tracks they leave in the soft ground are evidence of their nocturnal meanderings.

The high level of physical activity normally continues throughout the fall, winter and spring. During this period, the young earthworms mature and more eggs are laid. During the winter, both mature and young earthworms, as well as eggs, can be found in the soil. But by late spring, most of the earthworms are mature. With the coming of summer, the soil dries and heats. The earthworms become less and less active. They lay eggs and many die. During the hottest and driest part of the summer, almost all the earthworms in a garden are young ones or unhatched eggs that had been deposited by the mature ones before they died.

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