Attention worm ranchers:

Would it be practical to adapt the principle of a rot basket to redworms or earthworms? Would they "volunteer" to drop into the water?

Hell, I'd volunteer to drop into the water filled with Tiger fish to get away from that rot thingy that was described.

That's a tough question, but my gut feeling is that it won't work.

I've been playing with fishing worms and crawlers for over 50 years. The only worms that really reproduce well in captivity are red worms/red wigglers, or whatever they are called locally.

The things that would kill the project would be light, air, and meat. As far as I know, they are mostly vegetarians. They ain't gonna like rotten road kill or fish guts. But-- they really hate light, and they are not real fond of dry air. And, unless you have a really huge rot basket, you just won't get enough worms to make it worthwhile.

I could imagine the first family of them dropping out of the rot basket in desperation, on the first rainy night, to get away from the stench. But, that would be just about as good as just throwing a handful of them in your pond.

I think you'd be better off starting a worm farm, and taking a handful down every couple of weeks.

Good luck,
Ken

Earthworms are just too hard to raise.

Mealworms may work better. They are prolific breeders, and eat cheap, good-smelling grain byproducts and scraps of bread. You would have to figure a way to take advantage of their behaviors to trick them into falling into the water. I bet it could be done.

catmandoo: I was thinking of something using the typical medium for worms, not flesh.

Mealworms sound good.

I've been reading about mealworms and it looks like they would need too much maintenance to be practical. I think fermentation of the substrate would be a problem.

edit: I found info on Soldier fly maggots that looks interesting. They may offer a carcass free alternative. It looks like the Soldier flies themselves would be nicer to have around than flesh eating flies.
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You're probably right. The container would have to be covered to protect them from sun and rain, and you would have to check it often to ensure the food is moist enough.

I think I'm going to try raising meal worms just for the experience. Not with an automatic feeding box, but the normal way. I'll throw some to the fish 1-2 times a week and get them used to them, then use them for bait.

bobad, I added something to my post above that you might find interesting.

..and another.

Intriguing. But you would have to get some starter larva, pupae, or adult files.

I think I've seen the flies around. One of the articles said that they're common in the south. I think I'll put out some veggie scraps and see if I can attract some.

I guess one problem might be coons and such raiding the maggot food. Maybe catmandoo should try a raccoon basket to feed his big cats....

Red Wigglers shouldn't be to difficult. We use a 40 gallon plasic yard (trashcan) with 30 or so small holes drilled along the sides and bottom for drainage. About once a week add some garden clippings, manure, whatever is around (about 4 to 5 inches deep) and they will survive and multiply. We keep ours out by the pond and if anyone needs worms for fishing or feeding, there are plenty. Once the can is full in the fall, empty it out, keep the worms, and start again in the spring.
Only down side is that you would have to move them to a garage for extreme cold spells.
To avoid any smells dig down 2 inches and place new scraps then cover them up.

Marlcat: If a worm box was mounted over the water could worms be somehow encouraged to drop into the water setting up an automatic feeder?

DY, Red Wigglers do not like light, so you would have a hard time getting them to leave an enclosure. I would not count on them as a big food source. More of a dessert item.

Thanks Marlcat.

Ha!

I was at my computer doing more research about soldier flies and something kept distracting me. It was a bug buzzing around my head. (edit: It wasn't truly flying around my head. It was mostly going from window to window in the travel trailer I use as my office.)

Here's a photo I took of it:



Here's a black soldier fly from a google search:

I started a new thread concerning using Black Soldier Fly larvae as fish forage and for household waste composting.

Black Soldier Fly thread