For example, if your worm bin internal temperature is at 60 degrees Fahrenheit your worms will be less active, hence eating less food. This is also a reason I do not recommend refrigerating red wiggler worms, African nightcrawlers, European nightcrawlers or Alabama Jumpers. As they become less active and eat less they begin to get thinner and leaner, which is not what fishermen and women want.

Moisture and pH levels will also affect your worms and how much they will eat.

Red wigglers can eat half their body weight per day in decomposed food scraps, shredded paper products… under the correct conditions. So one pound of red wiggler composting worms can eat half a pound of food a day under ideal conditions in a homeowner style worm bin. In a larger style bin, 32 square foot continuous flow system for instance, under ideal conditions; red wigglers have been known to consume more food per day.

Now your African nightcrawlers and Alabama Jumpers are probably your most ferocious eaters. The ones on our farm indoors are fed daily under ideal conditions. Now I do not feed these guys food scraps but have shifted to Purina Worm Chow as their main diet. I do not have to run out constantly to pick up scraps and manure from local vendors some of which is smells pretty bad. African nightcrawlers are not as big a composting worm as the red wiggler on food scraps; however are excellent manure worm. I do not recommend chicken manure, however rabbit manure is superb as it does not require the process of heating. Horse or cow manure is also excellent however be sure the manure has been heated prior and that the animals have not been on de-wormer.

Now grain mix differs from food scraps as you do not want to feed your worms ½ a pound of Worm Chow per one pound of worms. You simply sprinkle on the surface area and do not mix in or the bin will become sour and begin to kill off your worms. Not only do the African nightcrawlers devour the chow, but damp shredded newspaper which we keep on the surface area and replace as needed. This ends up turning into the dark, rich worm castings known as “Black Gold”.

European nightcrawlers one of the favorite worms by those that fish, are also another good manure worm and are not as great on food scraps as the red wiggler. They also do not have the ferocious appetite as the African nightcrawler. I feed them with the grain mix by Purina, however anywhere from once every day or two while maintaining less feed in each bin compared to the African nightcrawler. The European nightcrawler bin is probably the easiest to sour by adding too much food. Do not expect these worms to eat as much, however they are extremely prolific and do produce a nice worm castings.

This should give you a good basis as where to begin feeding your worms, however keep in mind the conditions of your worm bin due play a large role in how much to feed your worms.

African Nightcrawlers are raised by some just for the castings. The African Nightcrawlers worm castings are darker in color and fluffier than other composting worms. There is no difference in the microbes or quality of the worm castings other than the looks and feel.

The macro photograph below does not really do the worm castings justice; however you can make out the African Nightcrawlers castings on the left, which are darker. The worm castings on the right are red wiggler worm castings.

Both worms were fed the same diet and were raised in the same bedding materials.

Some worm farms and brokers sell African Nightcrawlers in counts of 600 to 1,200 per pound. These are bed run, usually very small African Nightcrawlers which are still good for composting; however do not make a very good fishing worm as many are the same size as red wigglers at these counts.

Many others offer a 200 to 300 count per pound African Nightcrawlers. These are approximately eight month old worms which run about 6 to 7 inches in length without being stretched out. These make an excellent fishing worm in the warmer weather as African Nightcrawlers are a more heat tolerant worm.

Organic Worm Farm offers the latter, 200 to 300 count per pound as well as the super large African Nightcrawlers, 180 to 225 count per pound! These monsters are approximately 10 months old and run up to 10 inches before being stretched out. If you are looking for the largest, active worm to fish with, these are the worms you want. The Canadian Nightcrawler will run larger, however is not nearly as active as the African Nightcrawlers.

The below photo shows an average 200 to 300 count African Nightcrawler on top with the super large African Nightcrawler, 180 to 225 count per pound below it.

The monster, super large African Nightcrawlers were raised by feeding them Purina Worm Chow. It is a food formulated especially for worms which is fortified not only with grains but minerals and vitamins as well. To raise the largest, fattest worms as well as the most prolific worms, there is nothing that beats using Purina Worm Chow as either a diet supplement or as a sole diet for worms.

Bruce “The Worm Expert” Galle