IF the leaves were in place since fall I would be surprised if there are not some under the leaves. Have you taken another look after moving some leaves back?

gumby,

the beds are 4x4x8" deep. I broke up the base soil, then layered leaves, shredded paper, compost, old mulch and have added all veggie scraps for a year.

I have lots of tiny white wiggling things any time I add some more scraps.

My question is...are these new worms or something else?

How fast do tiny worms turn red and get bigger?

thank you for your insight.

Sounds like your beds are rich in organic matter, which means you definitely have worms. The ones likely to hang out in garden beds are probably deeper under the surface most of the time.

It also sounds like you want to try to turn your beds into a worm-bin-like environment. Why? The conditions that make composting worms happy are not necessarily the same conditions that make plants happy.

And I personally would not put veggie scraps in the beds all year long.

d b: "I have lots of tiny white wiggling things any time I add some more scraps.

My question is...are these new worms or something else?"

Many organisms that feed off of rotting things are tiny, white, and wiggly. "Lots" is also not really precise, but in general, baby worms don't form swarms, if that's what you mean. A picture would help.

<I have lots of tiny white wiggling things any time I add some more scraps.

My question is...are these new worms or something else?> I think those are indeed your worms. You called em white I called em clear. I think we are talking about the same thing. Don't panic or try to kill em - give em time to mature. You are on the right track.

gorbelly,

I appreciate the comments...is there a reason to not add veg scraps to a garden area throughout the year? I have done this for many years, please explain.

I am not looking to build a worm bin, I just appreciate the added value of some earthworm presence to keep the soil loose and healthy.

gorbelly, thanks for the reply

Lots = 5 in a handful of soil. No swarms, just individual tiny wigglers. clear/ white yes that sounds about right.

How fast does an earthworm mature...go from white to pink and get fatter? 30 days, 6 months or what?

I have tried to search this out and just can't get the answers. This board is very helpful and I appreciate the knowledgeable feedback.

I think those details will depend on what kind of worms you have.

Well where on this glorious planet are you located? Do you have a State Agriculture Dept. where you live? Where you could bring the babies and a mature worm for identification? Even a Master Gardener office?

d b: "is there a reason to not add veg scraps to a garden area throughout the year? I have done this for many years, please explain."

IMO, veg scraps are actually more of a pest draw than they are worth, and while they are decomposing to a form that is usable by plants, you take the risk that they can create imbalances with the molds and other organisms in your soil and even pull nitrogen, etc. away temporarily until they are broken down. Also, if you're trying to attract worms to your beds, the veg scraps may actually attract ants and other animals that will prey on the worms.

A lot of people get away with doing it, and I suppose if the quantities are small, it's probably no big deal. But it's not considered an ideal practice. If you don't want to vermicompost, there are other strategies that can make use of vegetable scraps--maybe using that material as a deeper layer in a lasagna type bed or devoting a small, rotating, fallow area of the garden to burying scraps, as long as that doesn't cause an unwanted critter or odor problem.

d b: "Lots = 5 in a handful of soil. No swarms, just individual tiny wigglers. clear/ white yes that sounds about right."

Could be worms. Could be something else. Hard to tell without seeing them. Even if those specifically are not worms, I bet you have plenty of worms around.

d b: "How fast does an earthworm mature...go from white to pink and get fatter? 30 days, 6 months or what?"

Depends on species, environmental conditions, available nutrition, etc. I wouldn't worry about it. If you have moist soil rich in organic matter and haven't nuked it with some kind of toxic chemicals or steam sterilized it recently or something, I can't imagine that you don't have plenty of worms.