Nice! How did you do it? Compost?

Jim

That's great! We didn't start out with quite as bad soil, as you. But I was digging Jerusalem Artichokes, yesterday, and marveled at how the soil is getting softer and darker with constant mulching.

George

I didn't really do anything except try to build my soil up the way any gardener would. I have huge compost piles and I add that to the beds but I also collect leaves and grass clippings and use that for mulch. I have added the occasional bad of soil/compost/hummus/dirt and a friend once gave me some worm castings but it was a small bag so I don't thing that cold have done anything in a large area like my garden..so it just happened without a lot of thought into earthworms.

Not to be a contrarian (and I don't dispute the value of earthworms in the garden), but they are not an unmitigated benefit. They are having an unwanted impact on our forests. Here's an interesting article.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Trouble With Worms

WTG Ruthie! It does take time and effort to build good soil. I keep telling myself that this AM as I moan and walk hunched over from hauling huge loads of fresh compost to the gardens yesterday and spreading it all. ;)

The time needed to build good garden soil is one reason why so many new gardeners get discouraged unfortunately.

Dave

Ah, Ruthie, so glad you have "friends" in the garden! We have earthworms and I smile everytime I see one. They are just beginning to show up in the herb gardens. Leaner soil and less compost makes the herb gardens less attractive, I suppose.

Susan

I read the article, and it's certainly interesting.

I think the only thing the article mentions that they do which has a negative effect is to denude a forest floor of its natural mulch, the leaves that are shed, and then the soil dries out and compacts. So if earthworms end up being the cause of compacted soil in forests and they have nothing left to eat, I'd think the ones that could not escape the forest would die, that the effects would eventually balance out.

According to the article, they also change the pH of the forest floor to a more alkaline condition; they change the nitrogren in the soil to a form more available to invasive species; and they change the fertility of the first few inches of soil making it more hospitable to invasive species at the expense of native species, which also results in a reduction of the native insect population.

Did you see the thing at the end that says that worms can jump a foot? Kind of freaked me out. I think I saw that movie and it didn't end well.

They have never done anything to my garden but I always have had a better garden when earthworms were present...I also have ants and thanks to a gardener here, I left them and let them take care of other pests, but then I have a cat to so who knows.`

The earthworm also leaves amazing amounts of worm castings and loosens deep into the forest to give the tree roots space to grow, maybe the roots are not as close to the surface of the litter anymore because they dug so deep, they are better kept below.

I have worms and hope to get more, but thanks to that article, I know to use both types now and not just run for the gold, worm casting worms. It takes one type to dig deep and the other to create better worm castings. They can create beautiful soil together.

I would imagine an infestation of anything would cause problems. In New York, they are probably just happy they don't have to rake those leaves up!

Susan
...they also change the pH of the forest floor to a more alkaline condition;

Wouldn't this be temporary, until they disappear from the soil (which I believe they would when conditions drive them away)? they change the nitrogren in the soil to a form more available to invasive species;

Wouldn't this be temporary, too, until they disappear and the canopy leaves compost at their own rate again? and they change the fertility of the first few inches of soil making it more hospitable to invasive species at the expense of native species, which also results in a reduction of the native insect population.

Wouldn't this also be temporary because the soil will return to its inhospitable (to them) conditions and native species will return?

When possible, it's a good idea to look at a process long-term to see what the probable consequences will be!

I didn't know worms could "jump", but slugs can arch over impediments (like copper mesh which can kill them because of the electrical charge) for unbelievable distances.