Dew worms in your lawn

My lawn is also infested front and back but haven't bothered doing anything about it. Went out after a rain last year and figure I got about 25 bucks worth if I were to go and get them from the store, big juicy buggers 2

[WCTHEMI]

I think its a hopeless battle to try and get rid of them.

[thumper]

In southern Ontario there's an army of Italians that 'worm pick' the golf courses in the middle of the night and sell them to bait shops. The golf courses are happy to allow them on their fairways. When I was a kid they taught me how to pull a worm out of his hole without breaking him in two. - same way as the robins do it - a long and steady pressure!

[redneck posse]

fill a sprinkler can full of hot soapy water and water your lawn. the soap eratates there soft skin they will be gone pronto

[sharrozap]

Dew worms do not like vibration and noise. Get a drum and start drumming in the middle of the lawn at 12 AM. In 20 minutes the worms are gone to the neighbors' lawns and all neighbors are on your.

[Bushmaster]

Did a little google on them and found this info.....not too promising, though....

I too have dew worms and this will be my year to see if I can get rid of them. I did find this article. Also I was told that a frequent and extensive aeration would help.

Dew Worms create small mounds in your lawn, making it uneven. Some dew worms are beneficial as they prevent the ground from compacting. If you are overrun with them, apply carbolic at the recommended rate (mixing it with water), using a watering can to prevent chemical drift. Water your lawn and surrounding area thoroughly for 1-2 hours in the early evening, then apply the chemical. Remember to read the directions first before you apply the carbolic soap. Remove any dead worms seen, as they are poisonous to birds. Repeat this treatment several times at 2 week intervals and have your neighbors treat their lawns as well to lessen the chance of recurrence. This is only a temporary solution; the best method is to live with them and use gypsum to break down clumps and mounds left by dew worms.

[eagle]

I can't imagine why any one would want dew worms in their lawn when
you can buy them for $2.00 a bag. I have them so bad in my yard I'm thinking of spraying it with diesel fuel . We can't walk on it with out nearly bracking
an ankle.

Please help ,thanxs Eagle

[Tumbleweed]

Originally Posted by eagle

I can't imagine why any one would want dew worms in their lawn when
you can buy them for $2.00 a bag. I have them so bad in my yard I'm thinking of spraying it with diesel fuel . We can't walk on it with out nearly bracking
an ankle.

Please help ,thanxs Eagle

We have the same problem - and I suspect that many of the previous posters who want them, really don't know what dew worms are. And no, you can't dig them up with a spade; they live 6' down (which is why re-sodding doesn't help) and only come up at night. They're not cute little earthworms; they're a foot long, as thick as a pencil, and leave a mound half the size of a golf ball every two feet. I hate the damn things.

I've tried Bug-B-Gone with temporary success (also known as Carbaryl or Sevin) by flooding the ground until they rose, and then applying the chemical at double the prescribed rate. Too much and it will kill the grass as well, so be careful. It seems to help if the chemical is carried down into the holes by flooding with water. The downside is that you kill ALL the bugs, both good and bad.

I suspect the application would have to be repeated several times, to catch the eggs as they hatch. The trouble is, as long as your neighbors have them, you'll keep getting them back over and over again. They're about as much fun as sapsuckers in your birch trees - which we've also endured this summer. Maybe I'll put some poisoned dew worms out for the sapsuckers....hmmmmm!

[HunterDan]

We had them in Rocky and the best way to get rid of them is to pour bleach down every hole. This should work if you only have a few worms. Would be impossible if your whole lawn was taken over. And even if you get rid of them, if your neighbours have them then they will be back. Unless everyone in the area gets rid of them, you will be constintely fighting them off. The only way I got rid of them for good was when I sold the house.
Good Luck.

[bsmitty27]

I am sorry guys but I have seen this thread on here so many time, and I have not said anything. but now I have to. come on, they are dew worms I had them on my acerage in ontario I have them on my lawn in alberta. they are here to stay. cut your grass roll it if you like, water the hell out of it and pick all night, but dont dump bleach down every hole. They are great for the soil. As for the lumps I walk everywhere in barefeet and I do all right.
some of the nicest grass everywhere is on golf courses and they are full of them.

My 2 c

I am not trying to offend any one, but I don't think there is any way to keep them away for good.
(ok mabey by buying a 1200.00 wind mill from UFA)

[conan]

Have you ever watched Caddyshack?

[bobinthesky]

My brother in law's father in law used to elecrocute his dew worms. He made a mistake one day and the worms had the last laugh... We buried him 3 days later!


I'm planning to areate my lawn and then apply sand. I figure that the holes left by the areator will let the sand penetrate the surface somewhat makeing it more effective on the worms.

[eagle]

caddy shack was funny this is a mess. I can't believe how fast they
invaded my yard and took over.

Eagle

[Unregistered user]

There used to be a product called "Crawler Caller" you mixed it with water and it irritated the worms so they'd shoot to the surface. If I remember it was formaldehyde and was taken off the market.

[pikergolf]

OK, that just gross. I went out to check my lumpy lawn hopping to find the motherlode of night crawlers, it's covered in thousands of inch long pastey white slugs, they're making babies.

[gilbertslake]

Originally Posted by redneck posse

fill a sprinkler can full of hot soapy water and water your lawn. the soap eratates there soft skin they will be gone pronto

x 2 on the soapy water. That's how we gathered worms for fishing with when I was a kid. I doesn't need to be hot, just warm.

[great white whaler]

water the hell out the lawn it drowns the worms.

[Jimboy]

Originally Posted by BUD

LEAVE THE GRASS CLIPPINGS ON THE LAWN , THEY HATE TO MUCH NITOGIN , after a while they will leave.

EXACTLY , thats what l did , worms gone in a year.

[Gordo1]

You folks have it all wrong. I am waiting for all of the bumps to come together. Sit back, relax - your lawn should be level and 1 1/2 inches higher by the year 3000!

[huntinstuff]

You'd think that after 6 years, those worms would be dead.....

As Donkey Oatey said "holy necrophelia thread batman"!!!!

[416 Ultramag]

Aerate your lawn. It wont get rid off them over night. But worms are natures way of aerating your lawn for you. If you do it twice a this year and once next spring you will see a difference.

[waterninja]

i love collecting dew worms from mine and the neighbours yard. if stored properly they can survive for at least a year. very tricky little buggers to catch though. was thinking of doing a video about catching and storing them.
one thing i found surprising is that dew worms are not native to canada.

[Popik]

Id love to harvest some from my lawn but unfortunately i also have 6 pairs of Robins on the property and they wake up much earlier than i do.

[Leeper]

Sometimes I see things on internet forums which are just short of amazing. Does it seem strange to anyone that we have a bunch of guys, frequenting a site dedicated to outdoorsmen, who are sniveling about how the bumps in their lawns hurt their ankles and bruise their feet? My oh my. Leeper

[Sundancefisher]

Originally Posted by Leeper

Sometimes I see things on internet forums which are just short of amazing. Does it seem strange to anyone that we have a bunch of guys, frequenting a site dedicated to outdoorsmen, who are sniveling about how the bumps in their lawns hurt their ankles and bruise their feet? My oh my. Leeper

Fishing forum. Worms are used for fishing. Therefore good connection.

Anyone else hear that earthworms in Calgary are non native?

http://worms.biology.ualberta.ca/spread/

While this is another old thread revisited...seems like worms are more of a problem that I realized.

Who knows. Maybe worms will no longer be sold for fish bait.

[hayseed]

Originally Posted by Leeper

Sometimes I see things on internet forums which are just short of amazing. Does it seem strange to anyone that we have a bunch of guys, frequenting a site dedicated to outdoorsmen, who are sniveling about how the bumps in their lawns hurt their ankles and bruise their feet? My oh my. Leeper

Its called a discussion, in the general forum. The best thing is, you don't have to read it, and/or even be here for that matter.

Lots of good info to exchange or share around here. My oh my.

[Jimboy]

Originally Posted by sturgeonhound

I noticed a few small mounds of dirt in one area of my lawn last night. I think they are dew worms. I would like to get rid of them before they destroy my whole lawn. Does anyone know of a way I can get rid of them?

lts easy , just leave the clippings on the grass , they dont like nitogen .

[Sushi]

When I was a kid growing up in NB, we used to take a flashlight to the local golf course around midnight and slowly walk across the fairways nightcrawlin'. Direct light and vibration would cause the nightcrawlers to quickly retreat back underground. As kids we'd dive for them and put them into a chokehold pulling with just enough tension to get them out of the hole and not snap them. Once we got good at it, we'd get em before they knew what happened. We'd have a bucket of half slime, half wriggling nightcrawler after about half an hour.

We'd put those nightcrawlers to work over the next day or two down at the town bridge where the Meduxnekeg emptied into the Saint John catching small mouth bass, perch, and pickeral like no tomorrow.
Funny, back then, we'd throw perch into the woods to reduce the junk fish...had never heard of anyone eating them until I moved to AB...turns out they're pretty good.

We'd also have good luck with brown trout further up into the headwaters. Throw a big gob of nightcrawlers on your hook and let it sit on bottom.

[waterninja]

Originally Posted by Sundancefisher

Fishing forum. Worms are used for fishing. Therefore good connection.

Anyone else hear that earthworms in Calgary are non native?

http://worms.biology.ualberta.ca/spread/

While this is another old thread revisited...seems like worms are more of a problem that I realized.

Who knows. Maybe worms will no longer be sold for fish bait.

"nightcrawlers/dew worms" are an invasive species brought to canada with plants imported by european settlers. biologist told me they can migrate about 1-2 kms. a year. pretty amassing that you can find them pretty well anywhere.

[Unregistered user]

The next glaciation will wipe them out again.