New to worms...

[Amanda Christian]

Ok, I am a freely admitted newby to this whole vermiculture thing, but my son wanted to have worms eat our garbage. Got to love six year boys! Anyway, we were at Renfrows Saturday after visiting the farmers market there in Matthews. Picked up what we thought were some red wigglers, but they seem to be "big reds". Since I have already released them into our worm box, OK to keep or what should I do with them? Hate to release them into my yard if they are not native. Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

Thanks, Amanda

[Carol Buie-Jackson]

Pretty much all the earthworms we have around here are non-native so don't worry about releasing more non-natives into the wild. And if they are not the right kind, they may not survive in your vermicompost bin, but its hard to know so I would let nature take its course. If you want some of my worms, I will be glad to share. They are very active these days with the warmer weather so I have plenty to share.

[Christopher North]

Are they eating any food? I have heard that there is a place in Matthews that is advertising they sell red wigglers but I do not think they are...although I have not seen them myself. Red wigglers will not get longer than a few inches.