How to Care For White Worm Cultures
Instructions upon receiving culture
Evenly spread 2-3 inches of soil in the culture container
Add enough water to keep the soil moist, but not wet
Add the white worm starter culture
Add a ¼ teaspoon of food
Cover the culture with a non-airtight lid
Place the culture in a cool dark place
Once the culture is set up, it should be monitored regularly. Check to make sure that the culture is not drying out and there is enough food.
White worms dislike bright light - the container should be placed in a dark place. A cover can be placed over the container as well.
White worms thrive in a cool dark environment. The optimum temperature for white worms are 55 – 68°F. The higher range of the scale will result in faster maturity. However, production will slow down past 69°F and the population will decrease with temperatures nearing 86°C. During the summertime, wine chillers and refrigerators can be used to control the culture temperature year round.
Since moisture is critical for the white worms, a cover can be very helpful. A clear material that can be lightly placed on top of the culture is ideal. Any flat material such as a thin piece of glass or plastic can be gently placed on the surface of the culture. The cover can make harvesting white worms easier later on as well.
Regularly monitoring the moisture level of the culture is very important. If the culture surface pgets too dry, the white worms will burrow deeper into the soil and stop feeding. This will significantly slow down reproduction. If the entire culture media gets too dry, the entire culture can crash. If the culture media is too wet, this will create an anaerobic environment which will also cause the culture to crash very quickly. The culture must remain moist, but aeration must be maintained as well.
In order to harvest white worms, lightly place a flat material on the surface of the culture. By placing a source of food under the flat material, white worms will gather in the area and climb on the surrounding flat surface. In order to harvest, lift the flat material and scrap the worms off the surface. Alternatively, if a mesh surface is placed on the surface, the white worms will gather in a mound on the top of the mesh where the food was placed. This method is highly efficient since it makes it possible to collect a large amount of white worms without the soil.