Worms primarily eat organic matter that was once living, making them detritivores. Their diet includes:
- Dead plants and leaves, rotting vegetation
- Some living plants
- Dead animals and animal waste (poo)
- Fruits and vegetables such as pumpkin, squash, cantaloupe, banana, mango, and leafy greens like spinach and kale
- Microscopic organisms like bacteria, fungi, nematodes, and other tiny soil animals
Worms do not have teeth; instead, they grind their food with the help of soil particles in their gizzard. Their digestive system breaks down the food to extract nutrients, and the waste they excrete, called castings, enriches the soil and helps plants grow
. Worms avoid acidic fruits, spicy foods, oily or fatty foods, meat, dairy, salty foods, and foods with preservatives as these can harm them
. In summary, worms eat a wide variety of decomposing organic materials and some living plants and microorganisms, playing a crucial role in soil health by recycling nutrients
