Blackworms

My intention in joining this forum was to give my side of the story in regards to blackworms [Lumbriculus Variegatus] I am not trying to convert you to using them, but I would like to clear up some of the false information available about them. I guess I should first introduce myself. I have been growing blackworms and distributing them throughout Australia through wholesalers now for over 18 years, and it was me who introduced the term "blackworm". I did that to signify that they were different to tubifex or the red worm that was sold at that stage.
I read somewhere that blackworms were grown on trout farms in their waste, and at the very beginning that was true. However it is impossible to grow and market 200 kgs of worm per week by that method, so after a lot of experimenting and trial and error, the Australian Blackworm farm at Beechworth came into being and the Beechworth Trout farm was closed down[ the drought had also a bit to do with it ] Instead of me trying to write a lot about the worm farm, please visit the web site
If there is enough interest in the subject, I will post info on how to keep worms alive at home and how you can set up a system that will produce small amounts of worms. By the way, at this stage I know of no other commercial grower of blackworms in Australia.

A very warm welcome to the forum Malcolm.

I'm sure many of the members will be interested in what you have to say, myself included.

It will be great to get the facts direct from the man involved, instead of second hand information on the net.

Please feel free to tell us the real blackworm story :P

I'm all ears too Malcolm.

Me too. I have heard a lot of conflicting information both on the internet and verbal.

Glad you decided to actively involve yourself to improve the industry Malcolm.

thumbs up all the way!

Hi Malcolm

Any further information would be much appreciated.

My fish love the little things.

i usually only feed blackworm to fish that are not eating normal foods cause they usually cant resist eating live blackworms and i use them to keep the food going into them till they do start eating properly. i buy them from my lfs as they buy them in bulk and i'm usually able to keep them in the fridge in a lunch box just covering them with water for a week or so till they run out, changing the water daily with pura tap water.

i would love to hear how to keep them for longer and or breed a few extra's

hi malcolm....my lfs in Bundaberg has never stocked blackworms, even bloodworms are hit and miss, get them when i can. do you only wholesale or would a smaller order, say to begn a breeding program at home, be available?

great to have you on board Malcolm!

I use 1kg per week on all of my fish so i know how good they are!

Cheers,
Ben

G'day Malcolm

I have long had an attitude about learning and this is "there 'ain't nothing like learning from those who know". Any contributions you are generous enough to make to this forum I am sure will be greatly appreciated by all concerned. Having said that I would like to know more, much more, about yourself and your life with regards to your aquatic adventures. I am sure a great many here will arm themselves with the information you may provide. However, there will undoubtedly be those of us who's lives are such that the purchase of live or frozen foods will always be a far more appealing option than breeding food for their livestock. As such I would also like fo know if purchasing supplies from yourself may be an option in the future :?: I am very interested yet very busy.

sincere regards
Glenn

Hi Mal
Good to see you finally got onto the forum.

Brad.c