The dendrobaena worm has almost as many names as it does purposes – eisenia hortensis, European nightcrawler. Some may have come across dendrobaena as simply an earthworm, as it falls under that broad category.
Dendrobaena worms serve many purposes – they make great fishing bait and live food for reptiles. In this post, we’ll be exploring the benefits of keeping dendrobaena worms as composting companions.
What Will Dendrobaena Worms Do for My Compost?
The dendrobaena worm can consume large amounts of fruit and vegetable matter, up to half their body weight a day. Worm compost contains high levels of the three nutrients most necessary for healthy plant growth: nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. Put simply, dendrobaena worms turn your food scraps into high-quality plant food, perfect for the avid gardener, or those who simply want to reduce food waste.
See our dedicated guide to starting a wormery to get started.
What will Dendrobaena worms eat?
Dendrobaena worms will eat almost any food waste – with a few exceptions. You can feed them most fruit and vegetable scraps, and they love coffee grounds and tea leaves (even tea bags, provided they’re biodegradable).
Onions, garlic, and other aliums, as well as citrus fruits and peels are okay in moderation, but can irritate the worm’s skin. Worms will eat meat, dairy, and eggs, but these give off an unpleasant smell as they biodegrade, so you may want to leave them out.
How Do I Care for Dendrobaena Worms?
Dendrobaena worms require very little maintenance. Ideally, you should add food waste to your worm bin in small, chopped-up pieces once or twice weekly to keep them fed. After a few months, sort worm castings from undigested food scraps, reline it with damp newspaper, and then place the worms back in with some digested compost to start the process again.
Where Can I Get Dendrobaena Worms?
Yorkshire Worms supplies quality dendrobaena worms at competitive prices. When you buy dendrobaena worms from Yorkshire Worms, you don’t just buy our worms, you also receive our first-class service and advice – we are always here to help and advice where possible in a friendly manner either by phone or email.