Mealworm farming

[Chaneys Ranch]

Finally have seen my first baby mealies! I'm glad I read a post saying something like just when you're ready to give up, there they are - which is about what happened to me. Just in time too since my first batch of worms that I bought is almost gone now (as in they are pupaes and/or beetles already).

YAY! Wee wormies make the whole thing make you feel like, "hey its really working!" I did some cleaning and beetle moving over the weekend and was just amazed by the beetle population. My worms are big chubby things, gotta get more fed out. I may start giving some daily now. Won't the chickens be disappointed to hear that!

 

[Chicks Galore3]

Ok- HELP!

There is some worms in my colony that are different from the rest. They are the same body shape and same leg formation and everyhting, but instead of brown stripes, they have a gray and whitish strip going on. There is also a beetle or two that looks like that. Is this mealworms or some other bug?

 

[WestKnollAmy]

They are just immature beetles. Give them a week and they will look like the rest.

 

[DurbanGirl]

I'm having trouble with grain moths. I froze the substrate for 2 weeks in the freezer prior to starting this colony - but it seems that some moth eggs must have survived - as I keep wire mesh across the top of the container. Do you think it's safe to transfer beetles to a non-infested container? I'm just not sure what to do with it - I've ignored it for several weeks - and the substrate is starting to get all "webby" (is that a word??). I have 2 colonies going - and I'd hate to lose one of them...

Any suggestions appreciated!

 

[showbarnmom]

Is there such a thing as *too* much room for the 3 drawer system? Trying to use what I already have (love this thrifty forum!) and I have 2 3 drawer systems. One is a desk top one that holds pens, so 2 in deep, 6 in wide and long, and the other is for cloths, its like 6 inch deep, and 2 ft long/wide. I think the small one is *too* small, but will the other one be too big? I dont want to over whelm my worms with space.........never thought I'd say that

 

[Mavrk]

I'm having trouble with grain moths. I froze the substrate for 2 weeks in the freezer prior to starting this colony - but it seems that some moth eggs must have survived - as I keep wire mesh across the top of the container. Do you think it's safe to transfer beetles to a non-infested container? I'm just not sure what to do with it - I've ignored it for several weeks - and the substrate is starting to get all "webby" (is that a word??). I have 2 colonies going - and I'd hate to lose one of them...

Any suggestions appreciated!

I don't see why there would be any problem transferring the beetles as long as you don't take the grain too. I have read that freezing doesn't always work, so I opted to bake the grain instead.

 

[Mavrk]

Is there such a thing as *too* much room for the 3 drawer system? Trying to use what I already have (love this thrifty forum!) and I have 2 3 drawer systems. One is a desk top one that holds pens, so 2 in deep, 6 in wide and long, and the other is for cloths, its like 6 inch deep, and 2 ft long/wide. I think the small one is *too* small, but will the other one be too big? I dont want to over whelm my worms with space.........never thought I'd say that

The bigger the container, the more mealworms/beetles you can hold. The only thing is that it will take more grain to fill the larger container. I use a 10 gallon aquarium that is 20" long x 10" wide. I used 5 lbs of grain to fill it about 3 inches deep or so. So 10 lbs in your larger drawer would probably be enough (or maybe 15 depending on how deep you want it).

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

I'm having trouble with grain moths. I froze the substrate for 2 weeks in the freezer prior to starting this colony - but it seems that some moth eggs must have survived - as I keep wire mesh across the top of the container. Do you think it's safe to transfer beetles to a non-infested container? I'm just not sure what to do with it - I've ignored it for several weeks - and the substrate is starting to get all "webby" (is that a word??). I have 2 colonies going - and I'd hate to lose one of them...

Any suggestions appreciated!

I have seen suggestions to try lowering humidity, they can't survive. Maybe DE sprinkled under and around your mealie farm will work, remove the farm and treat the location. After the dust settles a few hours later, return the farm and see if the problem goes away. I am afraid to try this myself because meal worms are "bugs" too. I know there's been posts in the thread for this problem, most just fed the box out to their flock. If i have this occur, i will try the DE first then feed out. I hope this gives you direction.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Is there such a thing as *too* much room for the 3 drawer system? Trying to use what I already have (love this thrifty forum!) and I have 2 3 drawer systems. One is a desk top one that holds pens, so 2 in deep, 6 in wide and long, and the other is for cloths, its like 6 inch deep, and 2 ft long/wide. I think the small one is *too* small, but will the other one be too big? I dont want to over whelm my worms with space.........never thought I'd say that

LOL never! Space means more mealies which is great, more space means they will reproduce faster.

 

[onafixedincome]

Space--the final frontier... The more surface area, the better, generally speaking--the bins needn't be very deep, just large length-and width-wise.

Webby substrate -- I don my mask and 'fork' through the bedding with my fingers, fluffing and sorting out any deads I find, and keeping my eyes open for the little grey mealy looking things with legs, which are promptly pinched out and dropped into a small container of soapy water. Anything not a mealie gets the same treatment, and the webby little balls of bran are ejected for the chickens to eat or stomp on. DO THIS OUTDOORS!!! or you'll really, really, REALLY regret it.

Odd colorations -- Dunno. I have dark worms and light worms, but they're all fairly well marked and the beetles aren't showing stripes/spots as a general rule. It's normal for beetles to have a darker brown head and lighter body--that will even out to black in the next couple of days. The dark worms are a bit more 'buff and dark chocolate' than 'gold and orange' like the more usual sort, but they're all still mealies.

Grain mites -- drop that humidity quick! Bake a new batch of substrate and place it in a clean new box; sort out your live mealies and beetles, transfer to a colander/screen thingie and gently rinse with barely tepid water. Dump onto thick paper towels, blot gently, and slide them into their new digs. Keep the new digs as dry as possible--feed small amounts of veggies less frequently, and make sure there's plenty of ventilation.

Good luck!