top of page
Search
Writer's pictureCrone

What attracted me to the stupid idea

The photo shows the place where my garden sweepings get swept. On digging into this pile, the underneath is new soil. Worm shit? I use it for compost. That's what the poplars live in. Each trowel-full seems to be about 40% worms. Some huge and some tiny. I have to be very careful not to slice them with the trowel.


Entomologist Tim recommended I Google OPAL, soil and worm. Which I did. And downloaded a great citizen science project about worms. Do it for yourself and you can see. To do the project, all you need is PH strips, a magnifying glass, mustard and vinegar. I now have these things and can do this experiment at home. There's another download that shows different worms. I think I have a variety in the garden.


They also live under plant pots.


One of the poplars was sitting on this. The maybe-not variegated one. I worry about the worms. Will they drown?


Anyway, I also have another odd habitat. This upturned stool has been on my mini tool shed for a year and it has its own lifeforms swimming around in it.


The one 'habitat' that doesn't seem popular is...


No one has made this their home. At least, not that I know of.


But, I went out with the bat detector last night and heard, in the trees just south west of my garden, a hunting pipistrelle. There was a moth in the garden. When I went in, maybe the pip pipped it.

3 views2 comments

Recent Posts

See All

2 Comments


maplekey4
Sep 09, 2022

Guffawed when I read your last sentence in the post!!! Life and death and drama in your back yard garden ...


Like

maplekey4
Sep 09, 2022

I read through the OPAL material. Looks great.


I'd forgotten about the use of mustard. Many years ago I'd been reading about worms and we almost did a survey at work but then concentrated on springtails. So I remember about mustard but never tried it.


I think from what I recall that worms will eventually "drown" if stuck in water. Oh look at this -


https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/why-earthworms-surface-after-rain/


Yeah, I've checked a few sites and they say worms can stay alive for awhile in water but eventually they will suffocate due to lack of oxygen.


Like
bottom of page