Catch Your Own Bait Worms!
Wanna try worms instead of minnows eh? Well that can be easier or harder, depending on one's point of view. The easiest and time tested way of catching your own worms is to go out in your backyard(assuming you have grass) after it has rained at night with a flashlight. Go barefoot and go quiet! Those buggers are really skittish! Shine the light, find the worm and grab quick. You'll be amazed at how many you can catch this way. No grass? Try the neighbor's or your local park. Just need it to be dark, wet and grassy. It works.
Or you can find an old mattress and toss it in the backyard in a dark corner. Wet it enuff to get damp all the way thru. After a few days whenever you lift the mattress worms will be there. But watch out for the occasional other buggers that like dark,damp places. Like snakes! Use at your own risk. But it works!
Another neat trick to try is also fun. Grab an old inner tube(filled with air), a piece of plywood and your kid or the neighbor's brat. Find you a nice grassy area that's flat. Place the tube on the ground, put the plywood over the tube and coerce the child to jump on it like a trampoline. Believe it or not they love to do this! BTW, It does work better if you attach the plywood to the inner tube with string or whatever. Also saves on doctors bills as well. After about 10 minutes or so pick up the tube. Where the middle was you'll find a number of worms. I guess the vibrations bring them to the top. Again, it works.
Now you have your worms. Wanna keep the extra and make more? Make yourself a worm bin! Here's one simple one to make and it also makes great compost for the garden. Buy yourself a plastic bin or make a box out of plywood. Not too big. Three to four feet square should do fine. Just make sure it's about a foot deep. Drill a few holes(small!) in the bottom for circulation and drainage. Put it off the ground on bricks so it won't rot quickly. Now remember all those papers you collected for recycling? They'll come in handy now. Shred the newspaper into strips about an inch long or less. Corrugated cardboard from boxes works well too. Don't use the funnies or ad pages tho as the ink is bad for the worms. Fill your box with the strips and moisten(do NOT soak) the mass with a fine mist from a hose. I use a garbage bag to do this with the strips as I make them. The mess should feel kinda like a sponge when you get it right. Don't pack your bin too tightly. Fluff it up some in fact. They gotta breathe too! Scatter a little potting soil or good topsoil over the paper lightly to start them off with nutrients. Now cover with a screen or lid to keep the birds and beasties out. Feed your worms any kind of vegetable waste from the kitchen. Coffee grounds,eggshells,banana peels, old bread, etc...Stay away from meat or dairy products. Start slow till you get the amount right as it'll start to stink if the worms get so much they can't eat it. DO NOT put manure in your bin!! I tried this. It starts cooking and gets too hot and kills the worms. Now providing you don't get greedy in harvesting your worms you now have a working worm farm! After 3 or 4 months the worms will turn the bedding into a thick, black compost that you can mix into the garden for great veggies and do it again with the leftover worms you get out of your box. A little practice and you can have a few of these and provide for your buds as well! Give it a shot and you'll never buy worms again.
Or you can find an old mattress and toss it in the backyard in a dark corner. Wet it enuff to get damp all the way thru. After a few days whenever you lift the mattress worms will be there. But watch out for the occasional other buggers that like dark,damp places. Like snakes! Use at your own risk. But it works!
Another neat trick to try is also fun. Grab an old inner tube(filled with air), a piece of plywood and your kid or the neighbor's brat. Find you a nice grassy area that's flat. Place the tube on the ground, put the plywood over the tube and coerce the child to jump on it like a trampoline. Believe it or not they love to do this! BTW, It does work better if you attach the plywood to the inner tube with string or whatever. Also saves on doctors bills as well. After about 10 minutes or so pick up the tube. Where the middle was you'll find a number of worms. I guess the vibrations bring them to the top. Again, it works.
Now you have your worms. Wanna keep the extra and make more? Make yourself a worm bin! Here's one simple one to make and it also makes great compost for the garden. Buy yourself a plastic bin or make a box out of plywood. Not too big. Three to four feet square should do fine. Just make sure it's about a foot deep. Drill a few holes(small!) in the bottom for circulation and drainage. Put it off the ground on bricks so it won't rot quickly. Now remember all those papers you collected for recycling? They'll come in handy now. Shred the newspaper into strips about an inch long or less. Corrugated cardboard from boxes works well too. Don't use the funnies or ad pages tho as the ink is bad for the worms. Fill your box with the strips and moisten(do NOT soak) the mass with a fine mist from a hose. I use a garbage bag to do this with the strips as I make them. The mess should feel kinda like a sponge when you get it right. Don't pack your bin too tightly. Fluff it up some in fact. They gotta breathe too! Scatter a little potting soil or good topsoil over the paper lightly to start them off with nutrients. Now cover with a screen or lid to keep the birds and beasties out. Feed your worms any kind of vegetable waste from the kitchen. Coffee grounds,eggshells,banana peels, old bread, etc...Stay away from meat or dairy products. Start slow till you get the amount right as it'll start to stink if the worms get so much they can't eat it. DO NOT put manure in your bin!! I tried this. It starts cooking and gets too hot and kills the worms. Now providing you don't get greedy in harvesting your worms you now have a working worm farm! After 3 or 4 months the worms will turn the bedding into a thick, black compost that you can mix into the garden for great veggies and do it again with the leftover worms you get out of your box. A little practice and you can have a few of these and provide for your buds as well! Give it a shot and you'll never buy worms again.