Comments on: European Nightcrawlers – In More Detail

By: Kirsti

Kirsti — Sat, 09 May 2020 14:46:46 +0000

Bentley, I just wanted to chime in that I am so glad to see you are posting about euros again! I have quite a few bins going, and dare I say, I prefer them to the wigglers.

However, after having fed them solely fruit/veggie scraps, cardboard, coir, etc. for over a year, I have gradually seen the euros shrink and get less energetic. I remember long ago thinking how huge, adventurous, and active they were compared to the little, squirmy, congregating reds. I recently wondered if I hadn’t mixed in reds by mistake as they were starting to look identical.

Since 2 weeks, I started feeding them oats, flour, cornmeal and they seem to be perking up. (I also recently changed my water source and now only use rain water.) I have one bin to which I do not add grains and they continue to be lethargic. My main purpose of having worms is for composting, so not sure how I feel about having to actually feed euros different food (more like a pet).

All the info you post about them, I am reading eagerly. Thanks.

By: Bentley

Bentley — Wed, 06 May 2020 12:57:12 +0000

That’s fantastic, Crystal – sounds like a great approach! 😎

By: Crystal

Crystal — Tue, 05 May 2020 21:30:23 +0000

Hi Bently, my experiment with keeping my red wigglers outside in the winter in Maine, zone 5 worked! I was inspired after watching you on the HGFS summit last year. I couldn’t dig a trench in our lawn because of all of the tree roots so I put them on the ground, with food scraps and a deep litter of leaves in the early fall. Before the freezing weather arrived I covered the whole area with hay bales, three bales high and three bales wide by six bales long. It was a milder winter than usual but with periods of well below freezing weather and no snow cover. The bales were filled with red wigglers this spring. Yeah!!! This area will become my new planting bed. Thank you!

By: Bentley

Bentley — Sat, 25 Apr 2020 12:23:08 +0000

Hi Siobhan – thanks for stopping by. I had completely forgotten about this article and I’m getting more active with Euros these days so this is great timing.
They are definitely more sensitive than Reds and I can remember the earliest Euros I received (via a shipped order) years ago being very restless early on. Lots of dry cover bedding and light should help them settle in.
As for temps – hopefully your indoor temps are a bit more moderate than the range you mentioned. Somewhere between 20 and 30 C (68 and 86 F) would probably be the best bet.
😎

By: Siobhan Boyd

Siobhan Boyd — Sat, 25 Apr 2020 11:07:20 +0000

Hi,
Thank you for the information and positivity on the ease of raising Euros. I have just started raising Euros with a view to developing a business. My worms arrived in good condition. I like to settle them in straight away in complete darkness; to my shock many of them escaped within hours! This has never happened with red wigglers so I was horrified. They have now settled in with a cover and light over the top, no deaths. They absolutely love layers of intact cardboard in the bedding and scoff a mix of ground up oatmeal, brown rice and milk powder like there’s no tomorrow although they eat everything I offer them including coffee grounds. Having harvested cocoons I’m eagerly watching the babies mature. I’m in the process of setting up a two tier, polystyrene tray tower system for vermicompost and single trays for breeding. We get temps from -1C to 39C where I am and I hope the polystyrene and being indoors will help to protect them. Though I may have to cool them during hotter weather. Early days, but all seems to be going well and I think the Euros will be very popular choice for gardeners, exotic pet owners and fishermen alike.

By: Kim

Kim — Sun, 29 Mar 2020 15:04:27 +0000

Both eat kitchen scraps. Any leftover veggie pieces will be great for your work bins! Potato, apple, banana, carrot peels…etc. Just avoid fats, dairy, and meats. Also avoid citrus and acidic fruit waste.

By: Timber Holmes

Timber Holmes — Thu, 23 Jan 2020 19:09:36 +0000

Please be aware of the difference between Euros and jumping worms. The second is both highly invasive and harmful. Someone wrote about the tail coming off. That wasn’t a Euro, that was a jumping worm.
https://www.facebook.com/NYMasterNaturalist/photos/a.928856023874843/1569801966446909/?type=3

By: Stephen Sanford

Stephen Sanford — Sun, 12 Mar 2017 12:04:17 +0000

great information

By: Stephen Sanford

Stephen Sanford — Sun, 12 Mar 2017 12:02:56 +0000

nice info.

By: Martha Hill

Martha Hill — Sat, 13 Jun 2015 01:22:56 +0000

Ok, I have raised these worms off and on for years but still need to know what they are called. I live in Texas and I am talking about our southern nightcrawler. The one we find crawling in our yards after a rain. Anyone know the name for sure ? I m starting my beds again and would love to be able to look up the requirements for them and learn a bit more. I have always used them for bait. And am thinking of a small business possibility.