HOW I FEED MY CHOPPED WORM

FEW baits are as attractive as worms, but unfortunately this can pose a problem if a lot of small fish are present.

You can get through a lot of bait trying to feed off the tiddlers to get to the bigger fish, especially if you are feeding chopped worm. If this happens, try feeding whole worms, or chop them roughly to leave big chunks. I remove any soil from the worms by rinsing them in a maggot riddle before chopping. This makes them much easier to chop, and the cutter blades last longer. Add a handful of maggots to bulk out the feed. The colour is up to you, but reds are favoured by perch and skimmers, and stand out well in clear water.

Feeding finely chopped worm can also be a problem, as the bait is very slow sinking.

A good way to overcomeg this is to feed the worm in a small amount of molehill soil, just enough to bind it together.

If you use groundbait then only add the chopped worm as and when you need it, because the salt in the feed will quickly dehydrate the worms. Use a pair of choppy scissors to cut a handful of worms into bite-sized chunks. It’s well worth investing in a pair, which makes the job of chopping far quicker. Use a small bait dropper to introduce the bait, even on stillwaters, to ensure it all gets down to the bottom and doesn’t bring the fish up in the water.