Also, earthworms are very attracted to the cardboard and are great for the garden, since their movement through soil increases aeration, nutrient cycling, and water infusion. The earthworm 'castings' manure (worm poop) provides an organic type of fertilizer that offers many beneficial nutrients for plants.
Worms eat shredded paper and paperboard too, so the glue can't be the only reason worms enjoy feeding on brown cardboard. Theory 2: There is actual food found in cardboard. Cardboard collects and houses many species of fungi due to the fact that it's a material that's high-carbon and nitrogen.
In more typical garden conditions — when a piece of cardboard is used as mulch or specifically shredded and soaked to decompose efficiently — biodegradation occurs quickly, with the majority of cardboard completely broken down within three months.
Mulches keep the ground cool and moist and provide worms with food—not only from the organic material itself, but from the fungi, bacteria and other small creatures which it supports. Mulches also discourage weeds and prevent soil compaction caused by overhead watering and driving rain.
A layer of cardboard left in place for a season smothers out grass and weeds, creating a ready-made garden plot, no tilling required. It's free, and you can feel great about reusing a product that would otherwise go to waste.
Landscaping fabric adds no nutritional value to the soil, and it doesn't decompose. And over time, the fabric can be detrimental to your soil's health. Biodegradable alternatives like shredded leaves, cardboard, and compost are healthy foods for the soil –– and the hungry earthworms!
Termites were found to prefer cardboard over wood chips as a food source, and rodents such as voles often nest underneath mulch sheets. 2) Newspaper and cardboard sheet mulches were often not as effective as other organic mulches (e.g. wood chips or bark) in preventing weed growth or improving yield.
Improve Soil Conditions for Worms
If you can't find any, it may be that your soil is very dry. Worms like moist soil, so thoroughly water the ground before applying mulches then check soil moisture periodically and water if it does get very dry.
Worms play an important role in the health of your garden. If you don't have many worms in your garden soil, it could be due to compaction.
Add to that, many cardboard products also contain man-made ink compounds that can also soak into the soil as well. Some even contain small amounts of plastic that won't decompose. What is this? Not only can these compounds and chemicals contaminate the soil, but they can also soak into the roots of your plants.
Yes, the cardboard method works nicely for raised beds. It's the same steps used for preparing open, in-ground garden beds. Line the bed with plain cardboard, dampen it, add 6-inches (or more) of good quality soil, compost, or other organic mulch.
Cardboard and Paper Concerns
The glue used in cardboard boxes can contain chemicals, but the glue used to form the cardboard itself is derived from starches found in plants like rice, wheat, potatoes, and other tubers. This is perfectly safe to use in your garden and will eventually decompose.
Worms hate: meat or fish, cheese, butter, greasy food, animal waste, spicy and salty foods, citrus.” The food-to-worm ratio is not precise, nor is the amount of castings they will produce. The rule of thumb is that a pound of worms will eat one to two pounds of food in a week.
Food is not the only main attraction for rodents. Just as we believe our homes to be safe spaces, some rodents may also find that to be true in the cardboard boxes tucked away in our attics. By storing cardboard boxes in your attic, you could be unintentionally inviting rats, mice, and other rodents into your home.
Earthworms. Worms aerate the soil, allowing better circulation. They also eat organic material, so a big worm population means your soil is rich in nutrients. Look for earthworm casts or burrows on the surface of damp soil.
Earthworm castings are full of nutrients that plants need, such as nitrogen and phosphorus. This natural fertilizer can be very helpful for a garden's health, as these nutrients are essential for plant growth. In addition to their soil-improving properties, earthworms also help to control pests.
Earthworms need moisture to survive and move more freely above the ground when it's wet and dark. So, look for your worms during or after rain in the dark using a flashlight. If you have a hard time locating them, try using a shovel to dig into the ground and break the wet soil with your hands to find them.
Earthworms are probably the best healthy soil amendment you can introduce to a garden. They improve garden soil not only through soil aeration and loosening but also because they increase nitrogen levels in the soil. So, composting worms is a no-brainer!
The answer is undoubtedly a resounding yes. Worms create the very soil that the plants live in, they do this by digesting all the organic matter left on the surface through dead plants, leaves etc (without them doing this the planet would now be miles deep in decaying vegetation!).
You'll need cardboard, mulch and/or organic matter, and manure (but that's optional). At a minimum, you just need enough cardboard to cover the earth and enough mulch to cover the cardboard. From the there the sky is the limit: You can pile up as many layers of manure and organic matter as you want.
Cardboard is susceptible to moisture and humidity and attractive to many types of insects. Use plastic bins with lockable lids. Not only are these more secure, but using clear boxes allows you to see what is stored inside and can reduce the number of times you are opening and closing them when not in use.
But there's one area where cardboard is tops compared to every other mulch material tested. Termites. Termites LOVE cardboard.