Worms - and the lack of them.

[Primrose]

Yesterday we had to dig out a number elderly dying azaleas from a border in our front garden. They were all more than 20 years old and I'm unsure whether their demise was accelerated by the considerable root invasion we suffer from my next door neighbour's shrubs.

However, what we did notice, in digging out most of that border, was a complete absence of worms. Not a single one did we find and I'm curious to know how much their absence denotes unhealthy soil. I plan to leave the border fallow for a few months while I decide what next to plant in it but wonder what I can do to encourage the worms back on a permanent basis. Would the lack of them have contributed to the death of our plants?

[Nature's Babe]

Hi Primrose, was the soil dry? I suggest water well, then mulch well with compost/ manure, worms need decaying matter to feed on. Then top that with, straw,leaves, grass clippings, and weeds that have not seeded, dried on the paths first. The worms will come given the right conditions. Also don't rotovate as that just chops them up. You probably have worms in your compost which should start them off, eventually they will eat the top layer too. keep mulching and you will keep your colony of worms too.