I have written many a posting on the Diary of the Worm about worms and even a few by worms. I have even been called the ‘worm man’ by some due to my enthusiastic talking about worms. Since worms naturally multiply I have been able to give worms out to others to start a compost pile or to make castings. So when a friend asks for some worms to start a compost pile last week I surprisingly and regretfully had to say no.

Over the winters our worms stay warm outside in a worm depository, a hill full of compost and covered with leaves and wood chips to keep in the heat. I also keep some inside the sun room in the GP Box full of compost for worms to eat under the growing soil. There usually is plenty of worms in both places to put in the ‘worm condo’, wood box, in the spring for worms to make castings to give some away some worms.

This year the worms in both places were scarce. I am not exactly sure why, cold winter, late spring, lack of food in box and depository or maybe I just gave away too many worms last year.

I checked around for local sources for red wiggly worms. Growing Power, where my original worms came from, is now selling the same five gallon pale of worms and compost they gave me free for $25. A friend that I gave free worms to in the past now has an urban organic growing center and is selling worms for ten cents apiece or $10 for 100. I guess there are no more free worms in Milwaukee and now worms have become profitable for local urban growing centers.

My friend wanted to purchase worms locally not by the Internet but when I checked the cost of red wiggly worms out on the Internet they were much less expensive. So I advised my friend to check the web for worms. Where did all the free worms go?

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