How to Attract Earthworms to a Garden
If you have a large earthworm population in your garden, it's a sign of soil health. Earthworms aerate the soil, and increase the humus content of the soil when they turn dead plant matter into earthworm castings. Furthermore, earthworms are a good food source for toads and birds, which also are beneficial to your plants. Attract earthworms to your garden and watch it thrive. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Keep soil evenly moist. Earthworms perish when their moist skin dries out, but they flee their burrows when you flood them with water. The soil should have the moisture level of a wrung out sponge.
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Add a 3-inch layer of organic mulch over the surface of your garden soil. You can purchase bagged wood chips, but straw, grass clippings or chopped leaves are just as effective at attracting earthworms, which appreciate the cool, moist soil under the mulch.
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Bury your kitchen scraps under your mulch. Include any kind of produce trimmings, as well as coffee grounds. Earthworms will eat these treats and turn them into nutrient-rich castings.
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Use natural pesticides targeted to the insect affecting your plants. Earthworms have porous skin, and they can absorb any toxic chemical pesticides you spray in your yard.
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Forgo chemical fertilizers, and use compost or manure tea to nourish your plants instead. Chemical fertilizers increase the acidity and salt content of soil, which repels earthworms.
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Tips & Warnings
If your local water is high in chlorine or other contaminants, use a rain barrel to capture water for irrigating your garden between rain showers. This helps the earthworms' reproductive and overall health.
