A bag of compost worms from Ferme du Moutta in a 250 g format, with a pile of live red worms in front

Cupped hands holding live compost worms above a compost heap, with pictograms on the worms

Open micro-perforated bag filled with red worms in their transport grow medium, with an ice block in summer

Illustration of the uses of earthworms: wormery, compost bin, vegetable garden and garden, with children

Live earthworms for worm composters and composters

$36.00

Weight	Price	Price per kg	vs 250 g
250 g	$36.00	$144.00	—
500 g	$54.00	$108.00	−25 %
1 kg	$99.00	$99.00	−31 %
2 kg	$152.00	$76.00	−47 %
5 kg	$364.00	$72.80	−49 %

This living blend of three Eisenia species, andrei, hortensis and fetida, will start or boost a worm composter or garden compost bin. It is available from 250 g to 5 kg, roughly 500 to 10,000 worms, and comes with a mini-guide in French; shipments are adapted for hot weather conditions.

Ref. 46c45d41-7637-460f-aa25-043e72ef0b3b·Compost worms

Weight : 250 g

250 g

500 g

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Delivery within 2 to 15 business days

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The summary

What you receive: a living mixture of Eisenia andrei, hortensis and fetida, sorted and weighed without grow medium.
Which quantity: 250 g for 1 to 2 people, 500 g for 3 to 4, 1 kg beyond that, up to 5 kg for a garden.
What they eat: vegetable peelings, coffee grounds, brown cardboard; no meat, dairy, or citrus in quantity.
What they produce: worm castings and worm tea, two fertilisers for your crops.
The parcel: the worms, their travel bedding, and a 12-page mini-guide in French.
How it arrives: live, with ice packs in summer and delayed dispatch above 35 °C.

Living blend of three Eisenia worms, from 250 g to 5 kg, to start a colony

The live earthworms from La Ferme du Moutta are a mix of Eisenia andrei, hortensis and fetida, sorted and weighed without bedding, to start or boost a worm composter or a garden compost bin. They are sold from 250 g, about 500 worms, to 5 kg, about 10,000 worms, with the quantity chosen to suit your household.

Sorted and weighed without their grow medium for every order, these Eisenia compost worms form a living colony that blends three complementary species. You choose the weight, from 250 g, or about 500 worms, to 5 kg, or about 10,000 worms, and the worms travel in a transport bedding that weighs twice as much as they do, so that they arrive in good condition in your wormery or your garden compost bin.

⚖️ What quantity for which household

A compost worm eats, on average, the equivalent of its own weight in waste every day, so the starting mass directly sets the amount of peelings your composter can handle from the very first weeks. For a household wormery, allow 250 g of worms for a household of 1 to 2 people, 500 g for 3 to 4 people, and 1 kg or more beyond that. A colony then multiplies on its own according to the food available: the larger the initial mass, the quicker the start-up, and the less peelings pile up untransformed during the first few weeks.

If you are starting a larger project, the heaviest quantities, 2 kg or 5 kg, are for setting up a garden compost heap, a large communal bin or several wormeries on the same day. The number of worms follows the weight at roughly 2,000 worms per kilo: 1,000 worms for 500 g, 4,000 for 2 kg. If you are torn between two quantities for a first bin, take the larger one, since the colony then adjusts its population to what you give it and you will not have to buy more, barring accidents, a hard frost or waterlogged bedding.

A tray bin for a large colony

The tray worm composter with tap is designed for households of up to 6 people, that is, for quantities of 500 g to 1 kg of this mixture. Its stackable trays house the colony as it grows, the worms migrating of their own accord towards the fresh material in the top tray. You draw off the worm tea, the liquid fertiliser the bin produces, at the tap, without taking the trays apart.

Open the parcel on the day it arrives

The worms travel alive: in summer they are dispatched with cooling blocks, and orders are held back when the temperature exceeds 35 °C. On receipt, open the bag straight away, place the contents on the surface of a moist bedding material, and allow the worms to burrow in on their own, in a cool room if the heat persists.

🧬 Three complementary species

The three species in the mix live in decomposing organic matter and coexist without difficulty, but they do not react in the same way to food or to temperature. This diversity gives your colony good adaptability, whether you compost indoors or outdoors. Over time, one or two species often become dominant in your bin: they are simply the ones best suited to its location, to your climate and to what you put in it, and it is a sign that the colony has settled in.

Eisenia andrei

The California worm, very red in colour, prefers fresh organic matter and is less tolerant of extreme temperatures.

Eisenia hortensis

Larger, it handles tough materials more effectively and is more resistant to both cold and heat.

Eisenia fetida

The brandling worm, red striped with grey or yellow, prefers material already in decomposition.

In the first few days, a few Eisenia hortensis worms, which are more adventurous, may crawl out of the bedding before settling into it, which is nothing to worry about. The colony is most active between 15 and 25 °C, in material that is as damp as a wrung-out sponge and well aerated; below 5 °C or above 30 °C, the temperature can be fatal to it. The 12-page mini-guide in French, enclosed with the packet, details the worms' diet and the solutions to the most common difficulties.

🌿 To the garden composter

These worms will also settle in a garden compost bin or an existing compost heap, whose decomposition they speed up, provided you introduce them to a part that has returned to ambient temperature. If your compost bin is in direct contact with the soil, some of the worms may also move into the mulch and organic matter of the neighbouring vegetable patch. The vermicompost guide explains how to use the material they produce.

🐟 A colony for aquaponics

Part of the colony can also populate the grow-medium culture beds of an aquaponic system, where the worms break down the fish's solid waste and dead roots. For this use, take worms from a bin fed only on plant waste, never from a manure heap: worms intended for a system with fish in it must not have eaten meat or animal waste. The guide to vermiponics explains which grow media and systems are suitable.

Technical specifications

The essentials

Species: Eisenia andrei, hortensis, fetidaThree surface-dwelling worm species with complementary preferences, both in terms of food and temperature.
Worm mass: 250 g to 5 kgSorted and weighed without grow medium; it regulates the speed of start-up.
Number of worms: Approximately 2 000 per kgApproximately 500 worms in the 250 g bag.
Bedding for transit: Twice the weight of the wormsIt keeps the worms in good condition during transit.
Dispatch: Suited to high heatCool packs used in summer; shipments held when temperatures exceed 35 °C.
Activity temperature: 15 to 25 °CBelow 5 °C or above 30 °C, the temperature can be lethal to the colony.

To budget for separately

A tank: A stacking tray worm composterOr a garden composter, or a buried pot: worms will settle into all three.
Carbon-based material: Coarse wood shavings or uncorrugated brown cardboardThe bedding on day one, then a handful after each wet addition.

In the box

From 250 g to 5 kg of live worms, depending on the pack chosen
Their transport bedding, at 2 times the weight of the worms
1 mini-guide of 12 pages in French

Species, weights, number of worms, bedding, guide and dispatch conditions: La Ferme du Moutta producer sheet, checked on 07/10/2026. Temperatures and consumption: technical sheet 18 from the Réseau Compost Citoyen.

Estimate your
delivery time

Shipping of live organisms: shipments are adapted during hot weather to limit stress on the colony. Please make sure someone is present at delivery and open the parcel the same day. The exact charges are shown in your basket once you have entered your address. Plant or live organism: this product is excluded from the right of withdrawal (article L221-28, 4° of the French Consumer Code), as it deteriorates quickly.

Frequently asked questions

8 questions

6 key questions, 8 in the detailed view

Can I use earthworms from the garden instead?

How much should you order for a first raised bed?

Weight	Worms	Suitable for
250 g	approx. 500	a 1-2 person household
500 g	approx. 1,000	a 3-4 person household
1 kg	approx. 2,000	a household of more than 4 people
2 and 5 kg	4,000 and 10,000	a garden composter or multiple bins

Do you need to buy new ones every year?

What do they eat, and what do they refuse?

How do you set them up on the day they arrive?

What if the parcel arrives during a heatwave?

Can they be placed in a standard garden compost bin?

Is there any risk to a neighbouring fish pond?

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Live earthworms for worm composters and composters

The summary