Are Night Crawlers Good for the Garden?

Burrows

• Night crawlers are deep-burrowing worms that build vertical burrows as deep as 6 feet. They pull leaves and other plant debris from the surface of the soil into their burrows, where it decays. This benefits gardens by creating deep channels for water, air and roots to penetrate and pulls nutrients deeper into the soil, where they are available to roots.

Castings

• Night crawler castings are rich in nutrients, which are more available to plant roots because they have been decomposed during their passage through the worm. Castings contain phosphate, potash, nitrogen, magnesium and calcium, all of benefit to plants, in much higher concentrations than soil alone. Night crawlers also eat bacteria and fungi that may harm plants but are rendered harmless by passing through the worm's body.

Activity

• Night crawlers are most active when the weather is cool, in spring and fall. When the weather is too hot or too cold, they retreat deep into their burrows. Along with feeding at the surface of the soil, the worms mate above ground at night also, making them easy prey for fishermen with flashlights.

Encouraging Night Crawlers

• A mulch of wood chips, dry grass clippings, chopped leaves, straw or compost will encourage night crawlers because it provides food and regulates the soil temperature. Avoid using synthetic fertilizers, pesticides and fungicides in the garden, as they will affect earthworms as well as pests. Because tilling disrupts the soil structure, till a garden bed only once to establish it, then dig and weed by hand.