Early in October I spreaded lots of horse dung on the top of the soil in my
intended potato plot and covered it all with carpet etc. It has been said
here many times that the worms will do their work so I don't really have to
dig it in.
My question is where did the worms come from, there are loads of them even
now when I lift a bit of the covering to have a look. Nice big fat
earthworms and lots of much smaller red worms. The red worms are quite
different from the ones in the compost heap.
I was thinking that they could have come with the dung, if so, how? And
also should I be doing someting about it?

Thanks
Baz

On Tue, 13 Nov 2012 14:08:31 GMT, Baz wrote:

Early in October I spreaded lots of horse dung on the top of the soil in my
intended potato plot and covered it all with carpet etc. It has been said
here many times that the worms will do their work so I don't really have to
dig it in.
My question is where did the worms come from, there are loads of them even
now when I lift a bit of the covering to have a look. Nice big fat
earthworms and lots of much smaller red worms. The red worms are quite
different from the ones in the compost heap.
I was thinking that they could have come with the dung, if so, how? And
also should I be doing someting about it?

Thanks
Baz

It's quite possible that the red worms (most likely brandlings) were
introduced along with the dung - a lot depends on how it was stored
before you got it. Just leave them to do their job. Some will also
have migrated from elsewhere in your garden - they can smell dung a
mile off (pardon the pun) and will converge on it. If the dung is
warm, they will also reproduce rapidly and it's not unusual for
numbers to double in little over a month!

As things cool down, they will disappear and reproduction will slow
down. They tend to go to sleep below 10C and die at 0C.

Brandlings are litter lovers. They aren't really soil dwellers. You
might find them amongst fallen leaves, decaying surface vegetation and
the like. This makes them readily available for ground-feeding birds.
And this is, I suppose, why we don't see so many of them outside
wormeries, enclosed compost bins or covered areas (like under your
carpet).

Cheers, Jake
=======================================
Urgling from the East End of Swansea Bay where sometimes
it's raining and sometimes it's not.

The Original Jake wrote in
:

On Tue, 13 Nov 2012 14:08:31 GMT, Baz wrote:

Early in October I spreaded lots of horse dung on the top of the soil
in my intended potato plot and covered it all with carpet etc. It has
been said here many times that the worms will do their work so I don't
really have to dig it in.
My question is where did the worms come from, there are loads of them
even now when I lift a bit of the covering to have a look. Nice big
fat earthworms and lots of much smaller red worms. The red worms are
quite different from the ones in the compost heap.
I was thinking that they could have come with the dung, if so, how?
And also should I be doing someting about it?

Thanks
Baz

It's quite possible that the red worms (most likely brandlings) were
introduced along with the dung - a lot depends on how it was stored
before you got it. Just leave them to do their job. Some will also
have migrated from elsewhere in your garden - they can smell dung a
mile off (pardon the pun) and will converge on it. If the dung is
warm, they will also reproduce rapidly and it's not unusual for
numbers to double in little over a month!

As things cool down, they will disappear and reproduction will slow
down. They tend to go to sleep below 10C and die at 0C.

Brandlings are litter lovers. They aren't really soil dwellers. You
might find them amongst fallen leaves, decaying surface vegetation and
the like. This makes them readily available for ground-feeding birds.
And this is, I suppose, why we don't see so many of them outside
wormeries, enclosed compost bins or covered areas (like under your
carpet).

Cheers, Jake
=======================================
Urgling from the East End of Swansea Bay where sometimes
it's raining and sometimes it's not.


Thanks, Jake.
Before I click and send my thanks to you, do you know anything about
Dendrobaena worms? I have just been reminded, a q from my grandson.

Baz

On Tue, 13 Nov 2012 15:44:44 GMT, Baz wrote:


Before I click and send my thanks to you, do you know anything about
Dendrobaena worms? I have just been reminded, a q from my grandson.

Apart from them being good bait for freshwater fishing, can't help you
sorry.

Cheers, Jake
=======================================
Urgling from the East End of Swansea Bay where sometimes
it's raining and sometimes it's not.

"Baz" wrote in message
...
The Original Jake wrote in
:

On Tue, 13 Nov 2012 14:08:31 GMT, Baz wrote:
It's quite possible that the red worms (most likely brandlings) were
introduced along with the dung - a lot depends on how it was stored
before you got it. Just leave them to do their job. Some will also
have migrated from elsewhere in your garden - they can smell dung a
mile off (pardon the pun) and will converge on it. If the dung is
warm, they will also reproduce rapidly and it's not unusual for
numbers to double in little over a month!

As things cool down, they will disappear and reproduction will slow
down. They tend to go to sleep below 10C and die at 0C.

Brandlings are litter lovers. They aren't really soil dwellers. You
might find them amongst fallen leaves, decaying surface vegetation and
the like. This makes them readily available for ground-feeding birds.
And this is, I suppose, why we don't see so many of them outside
wormeries, enclosed compost bins or covered areas (like under your
carpet).

Cheers, Jake
=======================================
Urgling from the East End of Swansea Bay where sometimes
it's raining and sometimes it's not.


Thanks, Jake.
Before I click and send my thanks to you, do you know anything about
Dendrobaena worms? I have just been reminded, a q from my grandson.

Baz


Google is your friend or look at:

http://www.scottishworms.com/compost_worms.asp

Bill

"Bill Grey" wrote in news:FcKdnc0-v-
:



Google is your friend or look at:

http://www.scottishworms.com/compost_worms.asp

Bill




Bill, Google is not my friend. Its now a cliche. Just a tool which can be
trusted, or not.
If it were my friend, there would be no use using this group for me, would
there!
Scottish compost worms? Why, What? I will pass on that as it has no
relevence.
But thanks anyway. I need reminding every so often that Google is my
friend, baulk and barf.

Baz

I know someone who knows a great deal about Dendrobaena. Let me know your question, and I'll see if I can persuade him into an answer.

kay wrote in news:kay.b26e616
@gardenbanter.co.uk:


'Baz[_3_ Wrote:
;972877']
Thanks, Jake.
Before I click and send my thanks to you, do you know anything about
Dendrobaena worms? I have just been reminded, a q from my grandson.


I know someone who knows a great deal about Dendrobaena. Let me know
your question, and I'll see if I can persuade him into an answer.





Thankyou, kay.
We have all the info now. It was part of a science project at my grandsons
school and a breeder visited and gave them a visual presentation.
Its all about different life, such as insects, arachnids, mammals, birds
and all.
When I was that age at school all we had was a story or two read to us and
a few tips on how to cross the road without dying.
How things have changed! For the better.

Thanks again
Baz