Everything you ever wanted to know about raising nightcrawlers
Raising nightcrawlers is a great way to keep a constant supply of fresh fishing bait on hand. Any serious fisherman should consider raising nightcrawlers to prevent constant trips to the bait shop.
Raising nightcrawlers is very simple as long as you set up your worm box properly. Start with sheets of plywood. You can make the worm box any size you want, although you probably won’t need one that’s more than a couple of feet wide. Use the sheets of plywood to create a box, using screws to attach the boards together. You will also need to use other planks of wood to reinforce the box. You’ll also need a set of hinges to attach the lid to the top of your worm box. This will prevent the worms from getting out of your bed. Don’t forget to drill small holes in the bottom of your worm box. This will provide better movement for your worms. The holes should be just big enough for small worms to get out.
Once your box is constructed, then it’s time to add the dirt. Use a mixture of peat moss and top soil mix. After the box is full of dirt, then it’s time to add water. Use enough water to make sure the soil becomes moist throughout. Worms love moist soil, and keeping the top moist is especially important. Worms only feed when the top of the soil is moist. Feeding means they will also reproduce, making you more worms to support your fishing sport.
Just be careful that you don’t make the soil too wet, or your worms may try to escape from the box. A quick squeeze of the soil will tell you if it’s too wet. Anything over a drop of water when you squeeze the dirt means that it’s too wet for your worms. You will need to add more water to the box periodically, but you don’t want to add so much that you drown your worms. Instead, use a sprinkler system to deliver a small amount of water that’s just enough to dampen the soil while you’re raising nightcrawlers.
Wait until a couple of days after you put the worms in the box to feed them. Keep a bright light on inside the box to convince your worms to stay put. The best kind of food to feed worms is vegetable matter. Grass clippings make excellent food for works, as do leftover fruits and fruit peels or vegetables. Used coffee grounds are also excellent worm food. If you don’t have any of these things, then you might want to consider keeping uncooked cornmeal or oatmeal on hand to feed your worms. Don’t forget to stir up the soil a bit whenever you add more food to your worm box. As long as your worms know they always have a supply of food in your box, then they won’t try to get out.
When winter approaches, buy some straw to lay over the box and keep your worms warm through cooler temperatures.