Growing earthworms is profitable. Worm farming as a business

In Russia and all over the world, the business of breeding worms is becoming increasingly widespread. This is a new, but rapidly developing type of activity that can bring the owner a high, stable income, since worms are in demand in many areas (for example, pharmaceuticals, fishing products).

Let's consider the main markets for products, the features and profitability of the business, recommendations for the care and maintenance of worms, as well as problems that may arise, so that you can understand whether this type of activity is suitable for you and whether it is really profitable and promising.

Sales market

Potential consumers of the resulting products will be:

The demand for worms and their metabolic products (vermicompost) is great, thanks to which a businessman will be able to obtain a stable customer base and sales market, including regular individual customers.

Business Features

This type of activity is suitable for those who live in rural areas or owners of summer cottages.

The features of the business are that:

1. Worm breeding activities do not require large financial costs or the purchase of special equipment. When purchasing worms in bulk, there are significant discounts, and leftover food can be used as food. At the initial stage, small a home farm will cost an entrepreneur 4500-5000 rubles.
2. Unpretentiousness worms that do not require special care and are not demanding in feed and breeding.
3. A large number of potential clients in various fields. Possibility of creating a permanent customer base.
4. No need to obtain permits for breeding worms. You just need to go through the simple process of registering as an individual entrepreneur.
5. High demand and lack of significant competition, since the worm breeding business is a new and not yet sufficiently developed type of activity in Russia.

To get a high income in the shortest possible time, you need to draw up a clear business plan and stick to it. The main components of this business plan will be:

• planned volumes of production and sales of products (worms, vermicompost);
• production part (costs of purchasing worms);
• marketing part (advertising, product prices);
• organizational part (information about suppliers, partners, buyers, personnel);
• assessment of possible risks;
• financial part (sources of financing, planned income);
• conclusion (the purpose of drawing up a business plan and carrying out worm breeding activities).

Profitability

Profit depends on production volumes and the size of land plots used. The profitability of this type of activity is high (100-130%), and if there is stable demand, the business will pay off in 8 months - 1 year.

Growing California worms is more profitable than other species if your goal is to obtain vermicompost, as they produce biomass faster, which has valuable properties. The resulting biomass is in high demand due to the content of a large number of enzymes, active substances and microflora. California worms are readily purchased by fisheries and stores, as well as fishermen.

The average cost of one worm is from 30 kopecks to 1 ruble, it all depends on the region; in large cities the demand and cost are higher. If you are raising worms for sale, it is better to give preference to the “miner worm”, which reproduces much faster than the American type.

The income received from the enterprise ranges from 40,000 rubles to 200,000 rubles per month.

The profitability of the business can be increased to 500-700%, but in this case significant financial investments will be required to purchase feed for a large population of worms, which can be reduced if you have a farm for growing vegetables and fruits. In this case, you will have a full-cycle worm breeding farm, which will save you from the cost of feed and the seasonal nature of the business. Additional investments will be required for advertising to find large regular customers, but the result will not take long to reap and it is possible to receive a high income.

Income can be significantly increased if you create your own product sales network. In this case, additional financial investments will be required to rent premises, purchase equipment and hire staff.

Breeding area

Worms are bred in gardens or summer cottages, for which wooden or plastic boxes are used. The optimal height of the boxes is 30-40 centimeters.

If worms are bred in an open area, then it is necessary to fence it with a protective net or you can use a concreted area, otherwise an invasion of moles and other pests cannot be avoided. If the boxes are placed in barns, cellars or other premises, then worms can be raised all year round.

To grow enchitrae (white worms), you can use jars, aquariums, crystallizers and other vessels into which 2-3 centimeters of water are poured. Water can only be used with settled water, aquarium water or rain water, which must be changed daily.

Breeding Californian worms as a business - the video below is dedicated to this.

Features of care and maintenance

It is necessary to maintain an optimal temperature of +15 to +25 degrees Celsius, and air humidity should be 75-80%. The acidity of the neutral environment must be maintained at 7 pH.

The box with worms is covered with a lid, burlap, and hay, which protects them from excessive light and drying out.

The following is used as feed:

• manure (rabbit, cow, pig, goat);
• food waste (residues of vegetables and fruits);
• soaked and shredded paper (newspapers, cardboard);
• used tea or coffee leaves.

Manure that has been sitting for more than 2 years should not be used, as it contains few nutrients and is not suitable for worms. Rabbit and goat manure can be used almost immediately after receiving, but pig and cow manure must lie for at least six months, otherwise the worms will die.

To speed up the fermentation of pig and cow manure, preparations containing effective microorganisms are used. It is prohibited to use food waste of animal origin (meat, eggs, etc.) to feed worms. Solid food should be ground in a meat grinder or blender.

The worms are fed every one and a half to two weeks. The frequency of feeding depends on the number of individuals and the temperature of their keeping, since at high temperatures the activity of the worms increases.

In addition to feeding and maintaining optimal temperature, humidity and acidity of the environment, it is also necessary to regularly loosen and water the compost in the boxes. For watering, use a watering can with small holes, and for loosening, use a fork with rounded ends; while loosening the compost, you should not mix its layers.

A new batch of worms is placed in moist compost, which must first be kept for a week and watered regularly. The worms in the compost are distributed evenly and after 2-3 days the first feeding is carried out by layering the food on the surface of the compost with a layer of 3-5 centimeters.

Check worm activity regularly, especially after introducing a batch into new compost. The mobility and activity of individuals is a sign of their health and well-being. If the worms are lethargic and do not hide from the light, then it is necessary to move them to new biomass from another source.

In winter, worms can be kept in heated rooms or outdoors. When the temperature drops to -5 degrees Celsius, the compost is covered with a layer of manure (20-30 centimeters), which is watered and covered with a layer of hay on top. The total height of the compost with hay and manure should be 100-130 centimeters, which helps the worms keep warm even in the coldest winter and hibernate. After awakening in the spring, they will feed on the top layer.

Possible problems

Breeding worms is a long and painstaking process, despite the unpretentiousness of the individuals. The main problem that can arise is related to removing the worms from their substrate, keeping them alive is important.

There are several ways to obtain live worms.

Stop feeding them for 3-4 days. After days, new food is placed on part of the biomass, into which hungry individuals move. After 2 days, the layer of food with worms is removed. In order to collect all the worms, this procedure is carried out at least 3 times (once a week). Worms can also be additionally attracted by cut paper dipped in sugar, slicing vegetables and fruits.

If worms are bred to obtain biomass and it is necessary to free it from individuals, then this method is also used: the use of special boxes, for example, with a lattice or mesh bottom, double boxes with a lattice in the middle. Thanks to the design of such boxes, worms crawl from one box to another at the right moment, releasing vermicompost.

Worm breeding is a new highly effective type of business that is highly profitable and is becoming increasingly widespread in Russia. To obtain a stable income, worms can be bred in “home” farms, which are quite easy to organize in a country house or garden plot. But if the goal of the enterprise is to obtain high income and increase business profitability to 700%, then it is worth creating a full circle of production, when worms are bred on farms for growing vegetables and fruits, and also drawing up a competent business plan.

The resulting products (live worms and biomass) can be sold in your own network of stores selling fishing goods, pet stores or points of sale of fertilizers for gardening and summer cottages.

An excellent home business idea for lovers of fishing, wildlife, owners of private houses, summer cottages and rural residents. Although, even a 12-year-old girl (Greta Johnson) from the American state of Wisconsin achieved success in this business. What kind of business is this?

Your own worm farm! Who could benefit from such goodness? The fact is that in the process of life, worms produce vermicompost - an ideal, ecological fertilizer, for which there is great demand in agriculture, but the supply on the market is still tight. The worms themselves are a necessary product in stores for fishermen, so many of them are constantly looking for reliable and high-quality suppliers.

How to organize a worm farm? It looks quite simple. All you need to start is plastic containers or boxes with soil, a room with a temperature of 15-25°C and an air humidity of 75-85%. To begin with, you can even use your home balcony if you don’t have a garden plot, and you don’t yet have money to rent a warehouse or premises. Almost any decomposing objects, from grass to ordinary paper, serve as food for worms.

In gardening, the Californian worm is most valued - the vermicompost with it is of higher quality, and the "prospector" worm is more suitable for fishermen, since it reproduces several times faster than the Californian one.

But a business that seems so simple to organize turns out to be not for the faint of heart. The special material you have to work with, the specific smell emitted by worms, constant work with the soil - all this makes organizing and maintaining a farm hard work.

How much can you earn from farming worms? First, let's look at the initial capital. Provided that you already have your own premises, you can start a business by literally investing $100 in it - that’s roughly the cost of a box of worms. This will be enough for a start, and after the first income you can already think about expansion.

A small jar of worms in a fishing store costs from 50 rubles, let alone large volumes. The profitability of a worm farm is estimated to be as high as 300%. In monetary terms, as a rule, it is from 2 to 7 thousand dollars per month. Much in this business depends on seasonality. By summer there begins a rapid rise and in winter there is complete calm. To increase the profitability of your enterprise, breeding worms can be combined with growing vegetables, herbs, strawberries, and also expand the sales market. In winter, for example, there may be a demand for worms in pet supply stores - where birds are fed earthworms.

Who should I sell worms to? Look for clients among farms, gardeners, eco-villages, fishermen, stores with fishing goods, and pet stores.

In this video, Andrey and Vasily talk about how they organized their worm farm(beware, there are unappetizing shots).

The long-term benefits of vermicompost in increasing crop yields are undeniable. Vermicompost not only conditions the soil, but also saves many gardens and farms from destruction. Vermicompost improves soil structure and increases the yield and quality of fruits and vegetables. You don't need to buy chemicals to give your farm soil these properties. Your land is being occupied by an army of hard workers - dung worms.

This substrate looks like rich, dark compost. It contains five times more nitrogen, seven times more phosphorus and eleven times more potassium than regular soil. This is a “super-soil”, vermicompost (vermicompost), which is formed as a result of the digestion process of an earthworm ( Eisenia fetida).

Vermicompost can be produced directly in a city apartment or in a large farm. In Sonoma County (California), specifically for this purpose, Jack Chambers built the Sonoma Valley Worm Farm, which today generates a profit of 35,000 pounds a month. In 1992, Jack started farming worms on just one acre of land, and since then he has used them to process 1.8 million tons of agricultural waste per year annually, selling Eisenia fetida for home vermicomposters.

Chambers gets his manure from a nearby dairy farm. Here, manure is composted at high temperatures to kill weed seeds and pathogen spores. The farmer says that in the process of preparing compost, it is necessary to remove some of the thermal energy so that the worms do not “cook”. These worms are dipped into chilled compost twice a week in 12 troughs with a continuous flow of substrate - each tank 24.4 meters long and 1.5 meters wide.

Jack Chambers estimates there are 10 to 12 million worms working on his farm every day. When the process of vermicompost formation ends, the blade cuts off the lower finished layers of compost. Of course, there is a chance to “chop” a couple of worms, but most of them stay in the upper layers, at a distance of 15 cm from the surface where there is food, Chambers explained.

Worms are regularly collected for sale. Then Chamber operates the “worm separator,” a giant spinning disk that pushes both worms and compost through a long rotating screen. This heavy substrate goes into a tank where the worms are sifted out of the compost and then into a bucket. The farmer laughs: “They look like spaghetti! - and seriously adds: “When we sell two pounds of worms, the customers receive exactly two pounds of worms, and no soil.”

As we have already said, anyone can create their own worm farm.

What you will need

• Worms: Dung worm is the most common type of worm used for vermicompost. These worms are sold by weight at garden centers and bait stores. You don't need many worms to start a home production. Buy half a kilo - that's about 1000 worms. They reproduce very quickly, and their numbers will need to be adjusted based on the amount of food available.
• Two plastic containers: We used 18 plastic containers with lids. The container should be opaque (worms love the dark) and be at least forty centimeters deep.
• Drill
• Small pot or brick
• Old newspapers
• Household food waste

It's very easy to do everything

1.Mark holes on one of the containers. Using a pencil, mark a row of holes around all four sides of the top of one container. There should be approximately 20 holes in the base of the container. Do not touch the second container. Take one of the lids and mark enough holes so that there is some air exchange in the container. We made our sample lid holes in the shape of a worm.

2. Drill the holes. For the lid and walls we used a drill with a diameter of 2-3 mm. For the lower holes we used a larger diameter, 5 mm.

3. Combine your containers. Place a brick or flower pot in an undrilled basket container and place the holey one on top. This will create a kind of buffer for the flow of liquid from the upper receiver to the lower one.

4.Prepare the bedding. The substrate in the bucket serves the same role as the brown mat of rotting leaves in the garden. Shredded newspapers and pieces of corrugated cardboard along with dried leaves work well. Most importantly, avoid paper and cardboard with glossy color printing or leaves with a lot of essential oils and a strong aroma. Once you have prepared the bedding, dampen it with a damp sponge.

5. Place a small amount of worm food. The best thing is food waste, the more varied the better. Just make sure there are no animal products (any dairy, bones, meat, lard). It's good to eat citrus fruits - the natural blue mold on citrus peels introduces beneficial substances into your container that help the worms do their job. Coffee is great too.

6. Add worms. Once your container is prepared, place a small amount of food waste in it and let your worms crawl through it. Worms instinctively strive for darkness, so they will hide in the waste themselves. Don't worry, they usually can't find a way out of the container and escape - neither the worms nor you want that.

7. Close them. To prevent fruit fly infestations, take some wet newspapers and place them on top of the bedding. Then take some wet cloth (pieces of sheets), fold them and tuck them in the corners of the container to form a seal - now everything will stay in place and the worms will be protected.

8.Watch the worms begin to work. Don't expect much the first few weeks. Your employees need to recover from moving to a new home. When they get used to it, they will consume a lot of food - as much as their own weight. So if you put about 1 pound of worms in a container, try putting about a pound of food in there per day. Don't worry if you put too much in too little, just make sure you put in a variety of food scraps. You can feed the worms every few days or occasionally, such as once every two weeks. Just replenish the volume of disappearing food. You will find that some foods are eaten quickly (ripe fruits, for example), while others just sit there (like root vegetables and cabbage). To avoid unpleasant odors, cover your food waste with a sheet of newspaper and move the food around in the container.

9. Harvest vermicompost. After the worms have done their job, you will see vermicompost in the container. It is dark brown and looks like wet ground coffee. To extract vermicompost without using complicated machinery, lure the worms to another corner of the container with ripe fruit. After a few days, most of the worms will have moved in and you can carefully dig out the finished compost. It's okay if you take a few worms with it, just make sure that most of the animals remain in place to work on. You can also detach the top container and empty the accumulated liquid from the bottom one - keep in mind that it is like an energy-dense drink for your plants. You can dilute it and feed indoor plants.

Today, almost every person is trying to start their own business. However, not everyone succeeds. Often, competitors do not allow you to break into a large market, or you don’t like the job. Have you considered breeding worms at home as a business? No? Then this material is for you.

Which worms are best to choose?

First of all, remember that breeding such animals does not require breed selection. To start, you can use a local variety. For example, dung worms, the breeding of which does not require special expenses, adapt perfectly to life in nurseries. Such individuals begin to reproduce much faster. This leads to the first conclusion: it is better to collect worms yourself. The simplest of them are rain ones. Breeding worms as a business in this situation will not require large expenses.

Where to get worms

If you decide to start breeding worms as a business, you should collect them. To do this, dig a shallow hole and place some rotting leaves or manure in it. Be sure to moisten the filler. The main thing is not to overdo it. After this, simply cover the hole with a board or a layer of cardboard. A week later, the first residents will appear in your “house”. Transfer the individuals to the box along with the soil in which they lived. For worm breeding as a business to generate income, at least a kilogram of invertebrates is required per square meter. This is about 1000 individuals.

Choosing a room

When you have collected worms, you need to think about the place where they will live. A specially equipped room is not required for their breeding. It is important that its area matches your desires. Of course, it is best to breed Californian worms (or any other) in a heated building. A garage or cellar is perfect for these purposes. If you are going to raise your pets in a regular barn, then get ready for the fact that a decrease in air temperature to 4 ° C will affect the activity of the worms. They will simply hibernate. In this case, you will have to forget about breeding worms in winter. If you want to do this throughout the year, then you should take care of heating and, of course, a large farm. After all, the number of individuals will increase. For example, on large farms where breeding is considered a business, their number can reach 100 thousand or more.

Special nursery boxes

Breeding the California worm as a business does not bring much trouble. The main thing is to create optimal conditions for its reproduction. It is best to keep worms in special nursery boxes. You can make them yourself. However, remember that everyone needs a box of a certain size. In such nurseries, the most comfortable conditions for invertebrates are created. Boxes can be made from plastic or wood.

Wooden nursery

To make it you will need boards. Their thickness should be 25 millimeters. If you are breeding earthworms, then it is better for you to make a nursery box that meets the following parameters: 100X20X50 centimeters. When the box is ready, turn it over and drill holes in the bottom. After this, place the box on the bars so that it stands at a slight angle. This is necessary so that the valuable liquid ("worm tea" - the waste product of these animals) drains away carefully. Cover all seams and corners with tin tape. This will prevent rodents from entering the nursery. Don't forget the roof. You can simply make it from boards. If they are not available, then you can use a sheet of plywood. Be sure to make holes in the roof. They are necessary for normal air circulation.

Plastic container

If you have achieved positive results, and breeding Californian worms as a business brings you income, then you can purchase special containers made of plastic. You should not buy such products if you are just starting out. Since such acquisitions are quite expensive. Agree, if you don’t like breeding dendrobene or ordinary earthworms, then such a purchase will simply be in vain for you, and you will throw your money away.

If you nevertheless purchased such nursery boxes, then first make holes in them. After all, such containers are completely airtight. Make holes in the roof and on the sides. In addition, there must be a hole to drain valuable liquid.

Old refrigerator

You can use an old refrigerator as a nursery. To do this, install it with the door facing up and remove all contents. You won't need it. Make holes in the walls of the refrigerator and on the door. Place it on the bars so that it is inclined. Don't forget to make a hole in the bottom to allow the liquid to drain.

Cardboard boxes

If you have just started this business, and earthworm breeding is something new to you, then you can use cardboard boxes as nurseries. Their dimensions should be approximately 40 by 30 centimeters or more. Cardboard is an environmentally friendly material that allows air to pass through well and is often used by worms as food. The only disadvantage of such a nursery is its short service life. If the box gets damp and starts to fall apart, you can put it in another one.

Let's discover the secrets of the worm business

Recently, many have been attracted to worm farming. As a business, this business is quite profitable if you approach it correctly. In order not to get burned, you should know some simple secrets. First of all, you need to take into account the characteristics of the worms’ natural habitat, what kind of soil they live in, and what they eat. Their “house” can be roughly divided into three floors. On the top, worms feed on organic remains of animals and plants. In the lower tier of habitat, the product of their vital activity accumulates, in other words - humus, as well as a liquid that many call “worm tea”. Between these “floors” your pets will feel most comfortable and will mostly stay there. It is important to fill the nursery correctly. Then the worms will multiply well and increase your profits.

How to properly fill a nursery

If we consider worm breeding as a business, then first of all you should carefully study all the nuances of such an activity. Many novice breeders make many mistakes, the first of which is incorrectly filling nurseries. How to do this correctly?

Fill the prepared container halfway with humus. If desired, you can mix it with shredded cardboard or pieces of newspaper. Be sure to moisten the finished mixture. However, do this with caution. If, when you squeeze the lump, no free moisture flows out of it, then you did everything right. You shouldn't introduce worms right away. The compost filler will release a substance such as ammonia for the first few days. When it has completely evaporated, you can begin populating the nursery.

Make a hole in the prepared filler and place part of the soil with worms in it. Carefully level this area, moisten it and cover it with a piece of cardboard. Do not disturb the residents for several days. They must adapt to their new habitat.

If the worms have spread throughout the nursery, this is the first sign that acclimatization was successful. After which you can add food. Remember, the place where worms breed should be calm and quiet. Therefore, install the nursery where there is no strong vibration or noise.

Soil moistening

The soil of the nursery needs to be moistened regularly. However, you shouldn't overdo it. Remember, they breathe through their skin. This explains why they crawl to the surface of the soil when it rains. They simply need it to saturate their body with oxygen. If the soil is too wet, your pets will simply die.

What and how to feed?

Business does not require special expenses. This also applies to their food. You need to create a compost pile. Manure, grass, leaves, tea leaves, coffee grounds, egg shells, vegetable and fruit peelings are perfect for these purposes. You should not throw into the compost heap waste products of cats and dogs, manure if the animals have undergone treatment for worms, peeling of onions, garlic, citrus peels, fats, oils, dairy products, meat and fish waste.

When the food is ready, lay it in a small layer - 10 centimeters thick. You need to feed the worms once every 7 days. To determine your pet's satiety level, you can use a piece of newspaper or regular toilet paper. Place it on top of the food and moisten it a little. If the worms have started eating this paper, then it’s time to feed them and add a new layer of compost.

How worms reproduce

Earthworms can begin producing offspring at 2-3 months of age. Over the course of 4 months they lay cocoons. They ripen within a few weeks. From one such cocoon no more than 20 individuals emerge, which after 2 months already begin to actively reproduce. The exception is the prospector worm, the breeding of which is a more complex process. If you do the math, in about six months the number of pets in one box will increase 50 times. Remember, if there are 50 adult individuals per liter of soil, then you urgently need to either sell them or plant them in new nurseries. Otherwise, their reproduction will stop naturally.

How to make a profit

Sort the worms every 5 months. To do this, carefully remove the top layer of soil and remove the soil where your pets live from the nursery. After this you can remove the humus layer. Send small worms back to the nursery, and adults - either for further expansion of your enterprise or for sale.

The product can be sold as fishing bait or in a pet store as food. This product is in demand by fish farms. You can sell not only invertebrates, but also worm tea and humus. The latest products are in demand among summer residents.

To collect worm tea, you made a special hole in the bottom of the nursery and a drain. This product is very valuable as an environmentally friendly and natural fertilizer. As you can see, there are a lot of opportunities to make money by breeding worms. The main thing is to know the right approach.

Fishing enthusiasts know well that an indispensable condition for a good bite is the right bait, which today can be purchased in specialized stores. Professionals use Californian worms for this purpose. However, not everyone knows that they can be used not only as bait.

Earthworms: varieties

Worms are the most common type of invertebrate animals. Their habitat excludes only Antarctica. There are many species and subspecies of these creatures.

Depending on behavior in the natural habitat, biologists distinguish three types:

• Epigeic.
• Endogeic.
• Anecic.

Worms that belong to the latter type live on the surface of the soil. They dig burrows only vertically and feed on organic matter. The activity of this category immediately fades away if it moves from its usual habitat. This is why they are difficult to breed. This type of worm plays an extremely important role in the process of soil formation. Their practical use is limited to soil formation. They can also be used as fishing bait.

The second type of worms live in soil rich in minerals. They require less organic matter to support their life. They dig holes horizontally, but do not like to be on the surface. They process the soil and thereby saturate it with various nutrients, and also enrich it with oxygen.

Epigeic worms tolerate artificial living conditions well, so they are most often used for breeding for economic gain. This type of worm prefers the top layer of soil, rich in organic matter. They thrive in the remains of bark, trees and leaves. The conditions for breeding the California worm provide for a number of subtle points.

Worm breeding business

To understand the basics of worm breeding, you must first understand the main concepts used by professionals. Compost is a fertilizer made from organic waste. It is obtained with the participation of microorganisms. The most common sources for the production of this fertilizer are manure, peat, foliage and bird droppings. The product of compost processing by earthworms is called vermicompost. The California worm can be used at home to improve the quality of fertilizers.

Worm breeding: main areas of activity

One of the main directions of the California worm breeding business is the creation of vermicompost. This product is in high demand both among farmers and private households. This type of fertilizer is in demand even abroad. Agree, there is something to think about if you are planning to expand your business in this area. Vermicompost today is a fairly profitable investment.

Vermicompost

This fertilizer is actively used for growing various vegetable crops. This applies not only to greenhouse vegetables, but also to root vegetables, such as carrots or potatoes. When using vermicompost, you can increase productivity by 40%. Vermicompost is incredibly effective when growing berries such as wild strawberries. This fertilizer is in high demand today. This means that you can make a good business selling it. Importers of vermicompost are currently quite rich countries, such as the United Arab Emirates.

The use of this fertilizer makes it possible to obtain high yields several times a year even in fairly aggressive climatic conditions. High-quality fertilizer is valued. Today they can offer about $2,000 for a ton of products. Of course, in Europe it does not cost so much, but the price of 600 euros is also quite good. This means that with the right approach you can make good money selling vermicompost. In order to not only get into this market, but also to gain a foothold in it, you will have to try hard.

Economic expediency

This review mainly discusses how to breed California worms. First of all, you should study the main advantages of using this type from an economic point of view.

Many believe that Californian worms have some incredible characteristics that distinguish them from other varieties. It is believed that they can live 15-16 years. This is wrong. Life expectancy is exactly the same as that of their domestic relatives, and the maximum is 6 years. There is also an opinion that Californian worms are able to survive in extreme temperatures (from 2 to 40 degrees). This is also not true: worms begin to die when it gets below 4 degrees outside, and in hot climate conditions above 35, they lose activity. However, despite the huge amount of unreliable information, this type has certain advantages.

Positive points

The real advantages that distinguish Californian worms include the fact that they remain active even in the cold season. It is also worth emphasizing the compactness of populations and the high level of reproduction compared to simple earthworms. Here the numbers indicated in the advertisement do not lie at all. So there are obvious advantages to using this type.

Breeding

Why are California worms so good? Breeding at home usually takes place on the territory of a simple garden plot. In this case, this work can be a good source of additional income. To properly breed worms, it is necessary to organize activities in a certain way and strictly follow directions. Let's consider the main features of creating a business within a private sector.

How to breed worms in your summer cottage?

Many people today are interested in such a topic as breeding Californian worms. Households will be quite sufficient to start this type of business. You must first purchase adult worms or fry. This mostly depends on your financial situation. For breeding on the site, it is necessary to prepare a square-shaped pit. Its depth should reach approximately 70 cm, and its dimensions should be one meter by one meter. To prevent the worms from spreading to the rest of the dacha community, the lower part of the pit is covered with boards and compacted well. After this, the nutrient medium is dumped into the pit. To obtain vermicompost, worms should be extracted. It takes several weeks for them to process the nutrient medium.

Extraction means adding a layer of substrate and loosening it. The worms will then crawl out to the top layer. This saturated material must then be transferred to a new pit to continue the vermicompost cycle. On average it takes approximately 3-4 weeks. The compost processed in this way is sifted and dried. In this form it can be sold. At the same time, the worms can calmly continue their work in the next pit.

What is the substrate made from?

Any waste on hand is suitable for this purpose: straw, paper, tops, organic filler. This mass must be placed near the worm pit and watered with liquid manure. Loosen the substrate once every two weeks.

The California worm, whose photo is probably familiar to many, has a special investment appeal. Breeding it does not require large investments. It is enough to show a little patience and interest in this activity. After all, not everyone will like to deal with unpleasant odors and creatures crawling in the ground.

Industrial breeding

When it comes to preparing vermicompost in large volumes, a number of nuances arise. If for a private farm you need Californian worms in a volume of 10-20 thousand individuals, then on an industrial scale a population of at least a million is usually taken. Also in this case, you will need a room with an area of ​​10 to 15 square meters, with artificial lighting and a constant temperature of 15 to 30 degrees. It is also desirable that the room have a natural water supply system. Particular attention should also be paid to protection against rodents. To accommodate worm colonies, you will need to organize shelving.

Conclusion

Breeding Californian worms is a profitable business that has a number of features. Although it requires a minimal investment, you will still need some degree of preparation and a desire to be directly involved in the production process itself.