Adding live worms to super soil

Do you think this would be a good idea? why or why not?

I used to dig up about ten worms per plant to add, for each outside plant I had, they were in 7 gallon pots and they seem to add a good amount of aeration to the soil, you'll see a bunch of worm castings out of the bottom, where the drainage holes are. Honestly didn't seem to make a difference, but I have my setup pretty dialed in, so it came out really great either way. I FELT cooler when I had the worms in there though....if that's any consolation... Doesn't hurt anything, one could argue that maybe the worms may eat your amendments, alfalfa meal, and such. As long as it doesn't get hot they'll be fine.
I used native CA worms, so they weren't the red composters, they were the earthworm type, from what I've read they burrow more than the reds and eat less...

good to know I did read it helped with aeration just wondering if it would add more living enzymes to the bunch

No, not a good idea.

Why? Because potato.

Sativied said:

No, not a good idea.

Why? Because potato.

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Potato? Did I miss something, or are you trying to be cryptic about some kind of code or password...

For outdoor YES, though they should be in the soil if you choose a wise spot, with a naturally good soil.
when you dig the hole, look after some worms in the matter you have just been extracting.

For indoor very bad idea... the worms will die in a very few days, as soon as you let the soil dry too much.
Too much for the worms not for our lovely ganja plants.

I've already tested it.

Though it is a matter of a good balance with watering.
I would think about taller pots, there we could be sure it can dry on the first top centimeters without disturbing the living organisms.

just my thoughts about it.

Best

sort of an update:

Yesterday, I was looking at my growing area.
I was lifting up a pot with a querkle clone, I directly saw a worm escaping the bottom hole of the pot.
Another worm was still inside the bottom.

I havn't added worms on purpose, just prepared a mix with 1/3 compost and 2/3 used substrate.
Being sure the soil is keeping wet at least at the bottom looks to be the key

SO this is Indoor, in a 1L square pot.
I was wondering how this girl was so healthy.
I repotted 3 others within 3.8L [1gallon] but lack of room made me wait for this extra 4th clone.

Organic wonders

I have 2 pictures but they are silly blur, taken with my portable phone, focus is a mess.

Anyway here they are:


They are tiny worms, so I wonder how the process happened.
were some babies left in the compost and waiting for warmer conditions to activate?
I really don't know.

Look at the primary ingredient of Supersoil. Worm Castings. Worms are a good idea. My current formula is to keep several worm bins and compost all my egg shells, veggie scraps, fan leaves, etc. I also add kelp and alfalfa, making "super" worm casting. This is added to my growing medium ( Ocean Forest, Happy Frog, Coir, Perlite) along with a concentrated supersoil that has been aged for 1+ years. Short answer...worms...yes!

So freshly harvested plant....in a 4 litre....

I've had worms inside harvested party cups before aswell...

As long as your soil is moist (should be anyway to keep your microbes going) and your soil recipe is sound (Fresh worm castings and/or compost....and live worms are the ultimate meter of your soil) you will have worms hang around till you harvest.

I know this thread is old but I didn't want to open a new one when my question is kinda on the same subject. What kinda worms dI'd you guys add...just registered old worms u find under a log....I was gonna add some of those along with some nightcrawlers ...I kinda figured having both would give off the best of what each had to offer...especially with the big night crawlers making big holes for aeration...if anyone has any info please let me know

I've been putting a dozen red wrigglers in each 15 gallon pot for a while now.
Makes for great aeration.
Using home worm compost, as I do, it's hard to see how to keep worms out of the mix anyway...

I think k I'm gonna try a mix of nightcrawlers and the regular old fish worms ...those big long bastards have to get the air flowing

it is indeed a good idea, even better if you mulch, and yes I am talking about indoor. The worms will in turn aerate your soil and make nutrients more readily available... they will not die, as long as your plants alive.

GoRealUhGro said:

I think k I'm gonna try a mix of nightcrawlers and the regular old fish worms ...those big long bastards have to get the air flowing

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ideally, you want red wigglers.

"...The worms used for composting are known by various names; brandling, manure, red or tiger worms. These include the species Eisenia foetida, E. andreii and Dendrabaena veneta. Composting worms live in decaying organic matter, whereas earthworms are soil dwellers. They are smaller and darker red than the common earthworm, Lumbricus terrestris, which is unsuitable for using in worm composting..."
https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=726

This Hidden Creature said:

They are tiny worms, so I wonder how the process happened.
were some babies left in the compost and waiting for warmer conditions to activate?
I really don't know.

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Don't know if you've found more info on this matter in the years passed, but I offer my 2 cents at any rate. (First ever comment on here) the worms likely were dormant in your compost. If your pot was directly on the ground that likely could have simply traveled in through drainage holes in search of food and moisture.

A little worm physiology, the wide band that wraps around a larger worms body is a sign of maturity. The reproduce through the slime they leave behind, full of non-fertilized eggs. As another worm passes by they fertilize the eggs. If sufficiently fed and kept moist worms can double populations in just a few months using this reproductive process.

I don't have a lot of experience as a grower, but it couldn't be a bad idea, especially in an organic grow. Worm castings will provide a replenishing food source for you're true stars, the microbes. The worms will travel up and down through your medium following their moisture goldilocks zone, in order to respirate, feeding your microbes all the way. Heat shouldn't be an issue, as they will thrive and reproduce up to 90°f and can make due with temps around 60°f.

Hope this helps.

GreenSanta said:

ideally, you want red wigglers.

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actually you'd be surprised, I think the native earthworms do more for my containers than the reds, the reds just compost, and don't do much past the first couple inches of the soil, but the natives dive up and down, back and forth, making little gopher hole-type piles of castings.

greasemonkeymann said:

actually you'd be surprised, I think the native earthworms do more for my containers than the reds, the reds just compost, and don't do much past the first couple inches of the soil, but the natives dive up and down, back and forth, making little gopher hole-type piles of castings.

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Would the natives and reds interbreed...? Super dooper hybrid styles..?

Chronikool said:

Would the natives and reds interbreed...? Super dooper hybrid styles..?

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We'd only end up with different strains of worms pmsl