Dish-soap trick for geting worms and crawlers

[JimP]

The beauty of this trick is it works in daylight and in no time at all, just a few minutes time and you're done. These days, we use Ajax dish liquid. Warning: Not all brands of dish soap will work! First, fill a five-gallon pail with cool, clean water (don't put soap in first). Then add several good squirts (about 1/4 cup or so) of dish soap into the water and stir slowly to mix, but not so much as to form suds. Pour the entire mixture out in about a three foot diameter circle on the lawn, where you know there to be crawlers. Have a coffee can or other small pail handy with clean "rinse water" to heave the crawlers into as they emerge. Within a couple minutes, all the crawlers and worms in that area will surface rapidly. Pluck them and heave them into the clean water immediately. Just do one small section at a time. Out of direct sunlight works best or preferably, early AM or after the sun sets. Best is right after a spring rain. Once you have the worms all picked and in the rinse water, pour out on a clean section of lawn, pick up and place into your soil, leaf mulch or worm bedding. Check the next day for any dead ones. Try to remember which spots on the lawn you have already treated and do no treat that spot again for a few weeks. Will not harm the lawn or grass, by the way.
 -Jim

[Pikeguy]

Cool. Thanks Jim!  I know you mentioned it, but will Dawn soap work? If not..why? Thanks

[JimP]

Dawn USED to work great, then they changed the formula or something and now it doesn't work. Who knows just which chemical in the soap is the "active ingrediaent"? Never figured that part out. All I know now is that Ajax currently works for me. -Jim

[JimP]

I've heard Lestoil works too, but haven't tried that. -Jim

[ifishhi]

i use laundry soap

[crowkiller]

i dont like using the soap trick they dont live as long n you catch less fish on them just my opinion

[Capt.Shay]

I've heard Lestoil works too, but haven't tried that. -Jim

I don't  know if it will draw out worms but as a guy who (tries) to
grow grass for a living, I wouldn't suggest Lestoil.  I had a local fast
food chain that had a relatively small grass area just in front of there
front door and for the life of me I could not get the grass to grow.  I tried
every little trick in my landscapers book and still it would turn yellow and
die.  Finally I got ticked off and removed the entire lawn, underlaid some
expensive composted loam and laid down cut sod.  In a week I had large
yellow spots developing   One night shortly there after I stopped by
late just to take a look and try to figure it out.  As I was standing there
a kid in his take out uniform opens the front door and dumps the mop
water out on the lawn

Needless to say they don't do that any more and they have a nice green lawn

Just my $.02

[JimP]

I've never used Lestoil, as I stated and I've been using this trick for about 20 years now.  If you follow the directions stated it works and the worms live a lot longer (for the most part) than those that have been picked at night, as half of them don't have their head squeezed half off! There is no undo odor added to the worms either, despite what some might claim. You know, I could put a recipe on here that would make new 20-dollar bills appear out of thin air, and someone on here would b***h I bet??? Always someone ready and willing to debate and whine, no matter what the heck you post on this or any other d**n website, it seems. Anyone with half a brain will try this and see for themselves!  Oh, if you find 20-dollar bills on your lawn, burn them immediately, as I heard the ink in the bills, if allowed to get washed on the grass, might kill it! Plus, if you don't "kill" crows, you'll probaby never have to eat any!

[Tom Leitz]

Chlorine also does the trick.  If you have a pool throw out a few 5 gallon buckets of water and wait.

[bassjunky]

Wow..JimP...you really need to calm down. Everyone here is entitled to their opinon, just because somthing has worked great for you does not always mean that everyone will have the same success.

The best thing about MFF is you get to hear all these opinons.

[daffydone]

I don't know what all the who ha is about?  if it works cool! if not, oh well !  it works for him and he was trying to lend a helping hand. 
 it's just like that gulp bait, it says it out fishes live bait, it hasen't worked for me that well, but I have buddies that swear by it. 


                          TO EACH HIS OWN     I use what works, if you experiment, you find what works.   just my two cents

[JimP]

No, I don't need to calm down. The people who are always blasting someone else or trying to sound like big-shots are the ones who need to calm down or shut-up, either one. Why do I even bother coming here anyway? You try to be helpful and get a bunch of crap in return.....

[Pikeguy]

Jim, is Ajax a powdered soap or a liquid?

PS. Hope I didn't say anything to p*ss ya off

[JimP]

It's a liquid

[Robb]

Good info, I never heard of it before and I'm going to try it!! Better than spending $2 a dozen. If it sucks no harm done............

Robb