An Insiders Secret to Worm Corralling

Okay, maybe it’s not a big secret.  However, corralling your worms before harvesting is a good idea for the home worm rancher.

For those who live in cattle country, you can usually tell when round up is going to start in an area by the open corrals in the pastures.

The cowboys lure cows into the corrals for a week or two before going in an searching out the stragglers.  Not so dramatic as herding a stampede, but a lot more practical.

Do the same with your worms.  Once the bin gets going, pile up the compost with worms on one side of the bin.  And then feed in the empty space.  Continue to feed in the same space.  After several weeks, don’t expect this process to happen quickly, the bulk of the worms will congregate where the food is.

When you’re ready to harvest, you’ll know which side to pull from.  That is, if you want to harvest worms, pull from the food side.  If you’re after compost, pull from the other side.  Corralling makes the harvesting process a little easier.

Below is an example of an open corral in one of my bins.  The left is the food side, covered with bedding.  The right is mature compost.