It was noticed long
ago: on those plots where there are a lot of earthworms that work more actively,
the crop of fruit, berries, vegetables and other cultures is always abundant.
These worms do not cause any harm as some people think, but on the contrary,
they are very useful as they enrich soil with organic chemistry, aggregate and
loosen it.
Earthworms eat
various plant residues, tightening blades and leaves laying on soil surface in
their burrows. Firstly, they soften rough vegetative mass with a special liquid
and then swallow it together with lumps of ground and tiny pebbles necessary for
crushing food. Secretions contain a lot of humus readily assimilable by plants
and also calcium. In a compact ground worms "eat" a road to themselves, passing
through themselves a plenty of soil and enriching it with organics. Moving,
making passages and burrows, they promote better penetration of water and air
into soil. Earthworms are very durable: even if to split a worm into some parts
with a shovel, each part will not be lost and is able to develop in an adult
individual. But worms suffer very much affliction from drought and high
temperatures, therefore maintenance of soil in a damp condition and mulching of
vegetative mass are favorable not only for plants, but also for vital activity
of earthworms. There are always more of them under heaps of peat and humus that
can be specially used for reproduction of worms.