Worms

[Jamie Beard]

What iis the best way to hook worms, do you hooks them twice, do you hook them just at the tale? Please help.

[Anthony78]

What iis the best way to hook worms, do you hooks them twice, do you hook them just at the tale? Please help.

 

It depends what worms I am using at the time. If I am using small redworms or dendrabenas then I will snap it in half and hook once through the broken end. However if I am using a Lob worm for chub or perch then I will hook it once lust above the saddle(Pink ring near the head) . Everyone has their favourite method and that is mine. Hope it helps.

Ant

[Jamie Beard]

thanks for te advice. I have heard that if u cut abit off the bottom of the worm it helps it helps becasue of the scent or something?

[Andy Macfarlane]

Word of advice to all you worm users.

The saddle is where the highest concentration of blood vessels are. Hooking through the saddle will kill your worm faster than stamping on it with a size 10 Doc Marten boot. I used to hook through this bit myself. I don't know why either, it just seemed to be the right bit. I was told this by a friend who studies biology and since then I've hooked through the tail somewhere and to be honest, he was right. My lobs do in fact last that bit longer.

Also, the story about halving worms and both ends growing into a 2 worms is also a myth. The head end may survive but the tail end withers and dies.

Did you also know you can 'beef' up your worms by adding mashed potato to them over a period. We do this with both Dendrobes and Lobs and we grow some right big snakes. Even the 2lb Perch are scared of them. You can add a handful of freshly mashed potato or a liberal sprinkling of Smash/Mr.Mash..whatever. Potato peeling done in the blender works well too as does a lot of household waste. Just don't use anything from fruit because they don't like it and it alters the PH of the medium. Fresh leaves fallen in Autumn are a big favourite of the old Lobs. Just leave them on the surface and the lobs will drag 'em down into their lair.

If you must keep them for a period, make sure the soil is PH neutral or they can can die of pretty fast. Also make sure you ventilate the tub from all sides.

Um...if you add a handful of sharp sand and moss to a tub of Lobs you can toughen the skin, which makes them extra hookable and if you soak them in a few mm of water on the night before you go fishing, they absorb the extra water to save themselves from drowning and bloat right up. Even fatter still.

You can give all your worms names but don't get too attached or you,ll never use them for bait.

You can reuse worms if you put them back into a nice medium after 20 mins or so. Any longer and they drown. I leger big Lobs and I rotate them often. Even if they catch fish, as long as they are still kicking, they'll survive if you look after them. A bit of mash and they soon spring back to health. Change them into fresh medium after a session and you can keep the same bunch of worms for ages.

Err...that's about it on the subject of worms.

Oh yea...did you know that worms are an excellent source of minerals and protein. If you go fishing for a few days and you break your pinkie, you won't die as long as you have a tub of fat lobs. Yum Yum.

Um...worms can't climb trees without crampons......

[teebee]

Interesting what you say there about returning used lobs to your stock - I`d always assumed that having been punctured, they`d poison their fellow inmates.

 

My preferred method for keeping lobs is in a sealed bucket in wet, shredded newspaper. They seem to last well - six or eight weeks isn`t unusual. They`ll happily eat their way through the newspaper, as can be seen by their droppings. I check them every couple of days and return any poorly looking worms to the garden. I occasionally treat them to half a dry weetabix.............but only if they`ve been good

[teebee]

But that wasn`t the original question was it ?

 

I usually hook the worm once, anywhere, and slide it up the line. Then nip on a BB about three inches above the hook. Slide the worm back down to the shot, then hook it again. Then nip off both ends of the worm so that it can`t hide. For chub, one worm on hooks 10 or 8, or two worms on a 6 or 4.

 

Lovely.

[Chris Plumb]

I usually hook my lobs just once in the very tip of the head - gives a much more natural presentation...

 

 

C.

[John S]

As you say Jamie, hooking the worm once through the head and then snipping off the very bottom (or cutting it in two if it's large enough) will allow the juices to leak into the water. As has also been said, hooking through the saddle itself is not recommended.

 

If you use barbless hooks, you'll often find that the worm has wriggled off. To prevent this, put a small square of rubber (I use a piece of elastic band) on the hook after the worm. That's about all I can really add to what has already been said, but if you want to start keeping your own worms instead of buying them or digging the garden up, check out this thread