Garden white worms

[ashash]

Hi Everyone

This thread is to document what could be abit of a mistake on my part, so if anyone has any input I would more than welcome it.

I bought a grindle worms starter culture online, they are not doing so good at the moment.

I decided to go poking around the garden to see if I could find any small worms.

The first slab that I lifted I saw a few small white worms, ranging from 5mm up to 30mm in length

I took a sample of the soil and picked out all the worms that I could find with a tooth pick.

It is note worthy that inside this soil sample were the odd mite and other creatures.
I was sure to pick around these and quickly dispose of the soil.

I ended up with about 6 worms

5 of them I have put into a tub of coco coir (this may not be suitable, after about an hour in the tub with some fish flake they are looking pretty lifeless)
the last one is currently sat in a tub of aquarium water to see how long they survive under water

he has been in there close to an hour now and still going strong

I am going out now so I will update progress some time later

if anyone is interested this is an image of the little sacrifice
https://imgur.com/24QXWoN

[Vale!]

Although your garden-combing returned some white worms, I'm fairly sure that they aren't whiteworms (if you see what I mean!). If they were whiteworms then coir would be too dry a substrate for them (they like damp but not wet) ; and I expect mine to live for 24-48 hours when dropped into an aquarium - assuming they're not eaten first, of course! 

Also, whiteworms are much more opaque than yours seem to be, and adult whiteworms are rather fatter compared with their length. I've just wrenched a few out of my bin and attempted a couple of photos, one with flash and one without. Hopefully you may be able to see what I mean :

                                                               



Mine are in a normal wormery (i.e. earthworms) and are normally distributed through the vegetable scraps that get chucked in it.  I see there are some fruit flies and their eggs/larvae in there at the moment, which means that Mrs V! has recently evaded my instruction to keep carrot and parsnip peelings separate from potato peelings and green veg trimmings! 

Anyway, they love bread and the yeast it contains, so to concentrate them into easily-harvestable clumps I tear up a slice into pieces and lay them on top of the bin's contents. Here's a pile that have gathered to party on a bit of bread that I put in two nights ago :

                                                             


The most efficient method that I've found is to put a bit of bread, laced sometimes with Spirulina, into half an eggshell. Next day the bread has turned miraculously into worms and the shell can be lifted out :

                                                                 


I'll gladly send you a starter culture of whiteworms if you'd like.  Otherwise, if you have a compost heap in the garden then that's probably the best place to look.

[ashash]

Although your garden-combing returned some white worms, I'm fairly sure that they aren't whiteworms (if you see what I mean!). If they were whiteworms then coir would be too dry a substrate for them (they like damp but not wet) ; and I expect mine to live for 24-48 hours when dropped into an aquarium - assuming they're not eaten first, of course! 

Also, whiteworms are much more opaque than yours seem to be, and adult whiteworms are rather fatter compared with their length. I've just wrenched a few out of my bin and attempted a couple of photos, one with flash and one without. Hopefully you may be able to see what I mean :

                                                       



Mine are in a normal wormery (i.e. earthworms) and are normally distributed through the vegetable scraps that get chucked in it.  I see there are some fruit flies and their eggs/larvae in there at the moment, which means that Mrs V! has recently evaded my instruction to keep carrot and parsnip peelings separate from potato peelings and green veg trimmings! 

Anyway, they love bread and the yeast it contains, so to concentrate them into easily-harvestable clumps I tear up a slice into pieces and lay them on top of the bin's contents. Here's a pile that have gathered to party on a bit of bread that I put in two nights ago :

                                                         


The most efficient method that I've found is to put a bit of bread, laced sometimes with Spirulina, into half an eggshell. Next day the bread has turned miraculously into worms and the shell can be lifted out :

                                                         


I'll gladly send you a starter culture of whiteworms if you'd like.  Otherwise, if you have a compost heap in the garden then that's probably the best place to look.

Hi Vale

thanks for the response

I see what you mean, mine almost seem like common worms apart from the colour.

I have had another look at the grindle worm culture and I was able to find a few worms, so I am hopeful that they can be saved.
I have been out and bought proper supplies to take care of them right, so fingers crossed.

I hadn't expected them to live 24/48 hours, I am going to free this little guy as he is still going strong.
I will keep hold of the others and see what comes of them, I am sure when they get bigger I stand a better chance of identifying them.
The coir is damp by the way and I will be misting daily, and also feeding wholemeal bread with low fat yogurt.

Still the coir may not be suitable I guess we will see.

Now that I have seen grindal worms alive these will be my main focus.
through  if they don't pull through. I would love to purchase a starter culture of white worms from you, if it is still on the table at the time.

thanks again

ash

[Annie]

Just one word from me.....eeeewwwwwwwwwwwww :/