Worm Farming Secrets that Make a Successful Business

If you are looking for worm farming secrets, then most probably you are in the process of starting a worm farming business. When you get yourself at this stage and you find it lucrative, the tendency is to look for ways or “secrets” that can increase the production of the worm farm.

What worm farming secrets must the worm farmers be looking at?

Picking the Right Type of Worms

The type of worm that is ideal to culture depends on the purpose of worm farming. If you are in business for commercial scale, there are several markets that you can choose from. You can breed worms to be sold to other worm farmers. You can sell worms to fishermen or hobbyists. You can also sell to agricultural famers who want to make composts or you can also get into a commercial scale of composting to be sold to organic farmers. For all of these, there are different worm types that you must culture.

• If the purpose of worm farming is to sell live baits for personal use or for sale to local fishermen through bait and tackle shops, the most ideal worms to farm are the so called European Night Crawlers.  These species of worm can also be farmed for composting purposes, but best used as bait or feed to other animals like birds and reptiles. These are hard to culture and must be well guarded at night.

• If the farm intends to pursue composting or sell to farmers who would like to compost their own organic fertilizers, the appropriate type of worms best for this purpose is the Red Wiggler or Eisenia fetida. These worms do not just consume huge amounts of kitchen waste and scraps, they are also prolific and can reproduce even under hardy conditions.

• Take note that there are over 3000 types of worms. The ones mentioned were simply the most popular. If you want your worm farm to thrive, it is important to match the worm type you are going to culture and your purpose. For instance, Dendrobaena are perfect for breeding because these are large and thick species. Conversely, the smaller Red Worms are great for composting.

Techniques on the Culture of Worms

The most important technique is to understand the ecological and biological requirements of the worm and provide them in their optimum levels. Though worms have more or less similar requirements, each species has certain uniqueness. Knowing these can help you improve their reproductive potential or fecundity.

• For growing worms intended for composting, the correct bin type must be used to allow composting without the usual problem of fouling because of decomposing waste matters.

• Keep the soil at the right temperature. Worms do not like direct sunlight so keep the bins shaded and moist at all times because they breathe through their skin. The soil must be damp but not soggy wet because these can interfere with the level of oxygen.

• Wooden bins work better than plastic bins because wooden bins allow better oxygen circulation. If using plastics, make perforations so that the oxygen can circulate freely.

Increasing Biomass

Just like when you raise pets or farm animals, you want them to attain optimum growth and health. It is the same with worms. Worms with higher biomass are more robust, healthy, and prolific so that they can command a better price.

• Large and fat worms can be cultured when the growing conditions are optimal to ideal. Thus, it is critical to keep the bins fresh and clean, moist but not wet, and in kept in the shade.

• It is also important to feed the worms with protein-rich diet that make the worms grow faster and gain weight optimally.

• For worms to increase in biomass, worm farmers must use a mixed feed. This can include chicken layer pellets, powdered whole milk, wheat meal corn meal, and agricultural lime. The food supply needs to be regular, on time and of a high quality.

There are really no worm farming secrets. These techniques are standard, but may be neglected. Just like when you are raising pets, know what they need, provide them these and spend time with them. Soon, you will be smiling all the way to the bank for a successful worm farming business.