Question
I have noticed something very strange in my gardens. I have lived here in this house for three years now. I am in zone 5 and have dirt that is a combination of sandy soil and forest type loam. I have a fairly large yard, the back is bordered by english walnuts, the side by one very old and very tall pine tree and the other side by a wild poplar tree. Neighbors on both sides have cottonwoods. The back of my yard, sitting about 10 feet below my yard line (an embankment of wild raspberries), is a large field of corn and another field of soybeans. I have a septic system that is in working order and the leech field is in the way back, close to the embankment. The problem I am having is that there is not one single worm anywhere I dig. Not one. I have dug all over the place looking for them. I have amended my soil with compost (again, worm free) and shredded leaves, wood mulched beds from an old boxwood tree we took down and cocoa hulls on the front gardens. We have plenty of giant slugs (I think they are called banana slugs) and spiders galore, frogs and snakes have come into my new garden along with hordes of crickets, and everything seems fine, but I can't explain the absence of worms! My gardens are completely organic, though I am sure in the past the yard was not. Occasionally when digging I come across old piles of trash long buried (the house is over a hundred years old) and also old coal remains in tiny areas along the side and back of the house. Both neighbors have lived here a long time and also garden organically, and the front across the street is a large county owned forest with paths, that is not sprayed. I have not tried purchasing worms and adding them to the soil, partly because of the cost and partly because I am sure they will die (though I have no proof of this, just a feeling). My gardens grow well and healthy and all of the other wildlife seems healthy. I do have a few voles, but no moles. Have you ever heard of anything like this before?  

Answer
I would first test the soil, there is a link on our website: http://www.avant-gardening.com on the "soil building" page, where you can send in a soil sample, to have it tested. It may just be that you do not have enough organic matter yet to support a worm population.  Given enough organic matter, and a layer of rich mulch, worms will come.

It does not sound like there is any toxic problem, since you have other creatures.  Frogs are really sensitive to toxicity, and would be the first to show signs of a problem.

In the past we have had good luck with shredded alfalfa hay and manure, as a mulch.  If you put it on about 3 inches thick, and work it in at the end of the growing season, and then add another layer for the winter and work it in again in the spring, and then mulch with it for the spring planting, worms will come.  You can usually rent a shreadder for a day from a equipment rental store.

You could also make a worm bed, instructions for this process is on our web page under "composting".

Worms love alfalfa, and seem thrive in it.  You could also ask someone who has some garden worms if you could have a handful to put under this mulch, they rapidly multiply under the right conditions.  We usually shread bales of alfalfa with sheep or goat manure (a cold manure)for about a half/half mixture for a good mulch. If you can't find sheep or goat, you can buy composted steer manure or chicken manure.  Or you can just shread cow manure with the alfalfa and let it set for awhile until it breaks down.  You should find worms in this as well after a year or so.

So, test the soil, balance the soil, and add a good layer of ground up alfalfa/manure mulch.  See what happens then.

For other garden related questions, visit our website:  http://www.avant-gardening.com

Good Luck!