CATDOLL : CATDOLL: How to raise earthworms in the north

How to raise earthworms in the north

All parts of the country are suitable for raising earthworms

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The influence of temperature on its life activities

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Earthworms are cold-blooded animals, and their body temperature changes with the changes in the external environment. Therefore, earthworms are generally more dependent on the environment than warm-blooded animals. The environmental temperature not only affects the body temperature and activities of earthworms, but also affects the metabolism, growth and development, and reproduction of earthworms. In addition, the temperature also has a great impact on other living conditions, thereby indirectly affecting earthworms. Therefore, temperature is one of the most important living conditions for earthworms.

Generally speaking, the activity temperature of earthworms is within the range of 5-30℃, they enter a dormant state at 0-5℃, and die below 0℃. The most suitable temperature is around 20-27℃, at which they can grow, develop and reproduce well. At 28-30℃, they can maintain a certain growth; growth stops at above 32℃; activity becomes sluggish below 10℃; they die at above 40℃, and the optimum temperature for earthworm cocoon hatching is 18-27℃. It can be seen that the highest lethal temperature of earthworms is lower than that of other invertebrates. In Liaoning Province, it is best to have the breeding farm indoors, with ventilation and moisture in summer, and closing windows to keep warm in winter to achieve normal production throughout the year (the temperature here refers to the temperature of the base material, because the air temperature is different from the base material temperature, for example: when the air temperature is 0℃, the base material temperature is about 12℃; when the air temperature is 38℃, the base material temperature is only about 28℃, this is because the manure contains extremely high moisture).

Humidity 60

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Earthworm Problem

Although earthworms do not have eyes, they have many light cells scattered all over their bodies, most of which are located at the front (preoral lobe) and back. Blue light is irritating to earthworms, but red light is not, and ultraviolet light is harmful. Therefore, the breeding site should avoid direct sunlight, and it is best to breed them indoors and light a red fluorescent lamp.

The normal growth, development and reproduction of earthworms require suitable ecological conditions. Different earthworms also require different conditions. This technology only focuses on the living habits and ecological conditions of Daping No. 2 and the new generation of hybrid earthworms in our base.

In order to obtain high yields when breeding earthworms, it is necessary to study and be familiar with the living habits of the earthworms and the required ecological conditions, and understand their impact on the earthworms.

1. Temperature

Earthworms are cold-blooded animals, and their body temperature changes with the temperature of the external environment. Therefore, earthworms are generally more dependent on the environment than warm-blooded animals. The environmental temperature not only affects the body temperature and activities of earthworms, but also affects the metabolism, growth, development and reproduction of earthworms. In addition, the temperature also has a great impact on other living conditions, thereby indirectly affecting earthworms. Therefore, temperature is one of the most important living conditions for earthworms.

Generally speaking, the activity temperature of earthworms is within the range of 5-30℃, they enter a dormant state at 0-5℃, and die below 0℃. The most suitable temperature is about 20-27℃, at which they can grow, develop and reproduce well. At 28-30℃, they can maintain a certain growth; above 32℃, growth stops; below 10℃, the activity is sluggish; above 40℃, they die, and the optimum temperature for earthworm cocoon hatching is 18-27℃. It can be seen that the highest lethal temperature of earthworms is lower than that of other invertebrates. It is best to have a breeding farm indoors in the southern region. In summer, ventilation and moisture retention are provided, and in winter, just closing windows to keep warm can produce normally throughout the year (the temperature here refers to the temperature of the base material, because the temperature of the air is different from the temperature of the base material, for example: when the air temperature is 0℃, the base material temperature is about 12℃; when the air temperature is 38℃, the base material temperature is only about 28℃, because the manure contains extremely high moisture).

2. Humidity

Earthworms do not have special respiratory organs, they breathe through their skin, so the body of earthworms must be kept moist. If earthworms are placed in a dry environment, their skin will not be able to stay moist after a period of time, and thus they cannot breathe normally. The earthworms will immediately go into spasms and die soon. The water content in earthworms is very high, accounting for more than 75% of their body weight, so preventing water loss is the key to their survival. Of course, too wet soil is also not good for the growth and development of earthworms.

Earthworms also have the ability to temporarily tolerate unfavorable humidity conditions. In order to survive, they sometimes move to a suitable environment through exercise, and sometimes reduce water consumption through hibernation, diapause, or reduced metabolic intensity.

3. pH value

Earthworms are very sensitive to acid and alkali, because the chemical receptors that can sense acid and alkali are scattered on the surface of earthworms. Earthworms cannot survive in strong acid and strong alkali environments, but they have a certain ability to adapt to weak acid and strong alkali environmental conditions. Daping No. 2 earthworms grow best in the pH range of 6-8, and produce the most cocoons in the pH range of 7-7.5.

It should be noted that strong acids such as sulfuric acid, hydrochloric acid, and nitric acid cannot be used to adjust the pH value of earthworm culture, nor can strong bases such as sodium hydroxide and quicklime be used. Only the following weak bases and acids can be used as neutralizers:

Alkaline neutralizer: calcium carbonate, etc.; acidic neutralizer: organic acid (acetic acid, citric acid, etc.);

For specific testing methods, please refer to the fly maggot breeding technology content.

4. Salinity

Some people have conducted experiments on earthworms' tolerance to salinity. They placed William's ringworms in 0.02%, 0.1%, 0.4%, 0.8%, and 1.6% salt solutions, and in 0.01%, 0.02%, 0.04%, and 0.08% copper sulfate solutions, and observed the time of death of the earthworms. The earthworms in the solutions with salinity of 0.8% and 1.6% died in 145 minutes and 52 minutes, respectively. The earthworms in the remaining salt solutions did not die for 24 hours, which showed that they had a certain tolerance. All the earthworms in the four copper sulfate salinity solutions died, and the death times were 50 minutes, 76 minutes, 75 minutes, and 57 minutes, respectively. This shows that copper sulfate solution has a strong toxic effect on earthworms. Therefore, in the cultivation of earthworms, attention should be paid to the impact of salinity on earthworms, especially to prevent the poisoning of earthworms by harmful pollution such as certain pesticides and fertilizers.

5. Ventilation

Earthworms breathe through oxygen diffused from the atmosphere into the soil. The better the soil is ventilated, the more vigorous their metabolism is. Not only do they produce more egg cocoons, but they also have a shorter maturation period, so box-type breeding has the highest yield. Because the box can be ventilated on all sides. Earthworms cannot live in an environment with high carbon dioxide, methane, fluorine, and hydrogen sulfide content. If there is excessive hydrogen sulfide and methane in the habitat, the earthworms will flee or even die in large numbers. For example, in some places in the north, in order to keep warm, stoves are burned in earthworm farms and breeding rooms. Due to smoke leakage from pipes, a large number of earthworms die. This is because the smoke contains harmful gases such as sulfur dioxide, sulfur trioxide, and carbon monoxide. During the fermentation process of feed, harmful gases such as carbon dioxide, ammonia, hydrogen sulfide, and methane will be produced. When the content of these gases reaches a certain level, they will poison earthworms. Experiments have shown that when ammonia exceeds 20 parts per million, it will cause increased mucus secretion in earthworms and cluster death; when hydrogen sulfide exceeds 15 parts per million, earthworms will develop neurological diseases and die. When the methane content exceeds 15 parts per million, the earthworms will bleed and die. Therefore, the feed should be fully fermented before feeding. It is best to stir the fermented feed and let it sit for a period of time before feeding.

6. Lighting

Although earthworms do not have eyes, they have many light cells scattered all over their bodies, most of which are located at the front (preoral lobe) and back. Blue light is irritating to earthworms, but red light is not, and ultraviolet light is harmful. Therefore, the breeding site should avoid direct sunlight, and it is best to keep them indoors and light a red fluorescent lamp.

7. Density

Density refers to the number of earthworms per unit area or volume. The size of the breeding density will greatly affect the changes in the environment, and thus have a great impact on the overall earthworm production and cost. If the density is small, although the individual survival competition is not fierce, each earthworm has a large multiplication multiple, but the overall area of ​​earthworm multiplication multiple is small, the yield is low, and more manpower and material resources are consumed; if the stocking density is too high, due to insufficient food, oxygen, etc., excessive accumulation of metabolic products, causing environmental pollution, crowded living space, and intensified competition for survival among earthworms, slow weight gain of earthworms, reduced reproductive capacity, spread of diseases and pests, increased mortality, and escape of survivors. Therefore, mastering the optimal breeding density is a key to creating the best benefits.

The stocking density of earthworms is closely related to the type of earthworms, the growth period, the breeding environment conditions (such as food, breeding methods and containers), and the technical level of management. The highest stocking density is in box-type breeding. In a medium with an area of ​​one square meter and a height of 25 cm, the stocking density can be as follows: 15,000 to 20,000 seed earthworms, 80,000 to 100,000 earthworms can be stocked from hatching to half a month old, and 30,000 to 65,000 earthworms can be stocked from half a month to adulthood. If the breeding density is increased, the normal growth, development and reproduction of earthworms will be restricted, and the yield will be reduced. Therefore, when breeding earthworms, it is effective to expand the breeding bed in time, adjust the breeding density, and remove the adult earthworms. This is a measure to increase the yield.

8. Food

Food is a long-term and key ecological factor that affects earthworms. Insufficient food will lead to fierce competition among earthworms, especially when the stocking density is high. The competition for food between individuals will intensify, often leading to decreased fertility, the spread of pests and diseases, increased mortality, and the escape of some earthworms. The impact of food on earthworms is not only reflected in the quantity of food, but also in the quality of food. For example, earthworms that feed on animal manure produce dozens to hundreds of times more cocoons than earthworms of the same species that feed on roughage (such as weeds); rotten or fermented organic matter from animals is better than plant organic matter; for example, feeding nitrogen-rich food (such as animal manure) makes earthworms grow and reproduce better than feeding nitrogen-poor food (such as orange stalks).

The soilless culture referred to in this technology is actually all earthworm food, which replaces some of the soil that is not necessary, reducing a lot of material replacement management. The entire breeding box is full of food, so it can reduce competition and increase the breeding density.

9. Natural enemies and diseases

① The natural enemies of earthworms include two categories: predators and parasites. Predators include rodents, birds, poultry, snakes, frogs, ants, mantises, spiders, centipedes, etc.; parasitic enemies include parasites, parasitic flies, mites, leeches, etc.

② Interspecific competition: Although some animals are not predators or parasites of earthworms, they invade earthworm breeding beds and compete with earthworms for feed and habitat space, thus causing harm to earthworms. For example: termites, coleoptera, fusinidae, quiscidae, stink bugs, crickets, millipedes, and some non-parasitic fly larvae and nematodes. In the rainy season, snails and slugs also appear in breeding sites.

③ Diseases. Earthworms rarely have diseases. The most common disease is when the feed is acidified (the pH value is lower than 4), which often causes protein poisoning or hyperacidity. The symptoms are: spasmodic nodules appear all over the earthworms, the rings are red and swollen, the mucus secretion increases, and the earthworms often crawl in circles on the breeding bed, or drill under the bed without eating. Finally, the earthworms turn white and die. Some sick earthworms also have intersegmental fractures before death, and some earthworm cocoons rupture. According to foreign studies, feed acidification is not only the key cause of earthworms suffering from diseases such as protein poisoning, but also an important cause of insects, bacteria, and natural enemies. Therefore, it is extremely important to prepare the feed reasonably and manage it properly in the future. Prevention and control measures: Test the pH value frequently to prevent the pH value from falling below 6; if poisoning is found, separate the earthworms from the acidified feed immediately, rinse the earthworms with 25℃ water, and then put them into the standard feed.

Linear, arthropod, eats plant branches and leaves, rice bran, fish meal, bean meal, at night, touch it with a pen, it is beneficial, can eliminate garbage.

Go grab one and you'll know.

Go grab one and see for yourself.

Go grab one and you'll know.