An experimental setup to assess earthworm behaviour in compacted soil

A new experimental setup for studying the behaviour of earthworms in compacted soil is described. The main features are (1) the soil column containing the earthworms is surrounded by repellent soil, (2) a compacted soil block is placed on top of this column, (3) the soil block can be prepared with different attributes (e.g. amendments), and (4) the soil block can be removed for further investigation. The experimental setup was tested using adult individuals of the anecic Lumbricus terrestris and two different kinds of compaction (bulk density, 1.3 and 1.7 g cm −3 ). At the end of the experiment (15 days), earthworm activity at the compacted soil was recorded on transparency film. Soil blocks of 1.3 g cm −3 bulk density were penetrated within 1 day whilst blocks of 1.7 g cm −3 had not been penetrated by 15 days.