Live and dead plant material can accumulate at the soil surface and reduce the penetration of water and fertilizer into the soil. Nightcrawlers get rid of this layer and help aerate the soil.
How to identify nightcrawlers
- 4 to 8 inches long and reddish-brown.
- They tunnel in the soil and may come up to the surface on rainy days especially during spring.
- Are seen during early to mid-spring, but can remain throughout the summer.
Damage caused by nightcrawlers
Nightcrawlers and other earthworms are considered invasive species and damage forest floors. Never release an earthworm in a natural forest. If you use them for fishing bait, throw away any unused worms in the trash.
Nightcrawlers are beneficial to lawn health but can leave behind a waste product called castings.
- They deposit castings at their burrow entrances forming cone-shaped mounds at the soil surface.
- Mounds do not harm the turf but this lumpiness can be a nuisance to home lawns, athletic fields and golf courses.
- Mounds are most common in early to mid-spring when nightcrawlers are first active.
- In late spring and summer, when the weather becomes warmer, nightcrawlers move deeper into the soil and are not normally seen.
You may see nightcrawlers moving away from the lawn when the lawns are overwatered or after heavy rainfall.
They become a nuisance when they are found in large numbers on sidewalks, driveways, patios, pools and other places where they are not wanted.
How to manage nightcrawlers
Nightcrawlers keep lawn and garden soil healthy and offer more benefits than problems. Control methods should be used only when needed.
- Wash or sweep off nightcrawlers into the lawn, if you see larger numbers on sidewalks, driveways, etc.
- If you ignore them, they will eventually move off on their own or dry up and die.
- Never use a pesticide on nightcrawlers.
Vertical mowing
This method removes the lumpiness of mounds and reduces the amount of food available for nightcrawler development.
- Vertical mowing is best done in late summer, mid-August through September.
- Do not do vertical mowing in hot weather as it causes stress to the lawn.
You can also power rake in spring once the ground is firm underfoot and before hot weather sets in.
If you power rake in spring, apply a pre-emergent herbicide to prevent annual weeds from sprouting.
