Consolidated Kansas

[HEChicken]

HEChicken-that cleaning part is what I'm trying to figure out. I'm not sure how I'm going to do it. I am planning on using the "one container" method just for simplicity. If you scoop as many worms, pupae and beetles out as you can to put in the clean bed, aren't you throwing away all of the eggs and many of the newly hatched, tiny worms?

Yes, you definitely are, and I hesitated to go that route for a long time because of it. I finally did, for simplicity's sake. What I used to do, is set up a new container, and transfer as many as I could to it manually. Then everyday, I would transfer the worms that came to the surface...and so on. Eventually I would end up with a container that appeared to be nothing but dust. But if I left it a couple of months, it would repopulate with worms from all of those eggs (I never could figure out what they were eating to get as big as they did in a container that appeared to be nothing but fraas, but apparently they found enough). The problem with that method is that a) it was an extra container sitting around most of the time and b) by the time I finally got them all transferred from Bin A to Bin B it was time to start all over. So I decided to go simple and not worry about the eggs and babies, so that I can really only have one container. It does mean my population has to start over every three months, though so if you want a continuous supply, you should probably count on multiple containers.

Funny story though....last spring I was digging a hole in my vegie garden to plant a seedling and came upon a large mealworm. I think it must have grown from an egg left in the fraas when I dumped it out there once the year before and survived the whole winter in the freezing ground.

 

[HEChicken]

Shotah-I've never done the earthworm thing. It sounds kind of interesting. Where we live we have tons and tons of nightcrawlers. In the spring the chickens run around in the yard on a wet morning and have a feast with nightcrawlers all over the top of the ground. How hard is it to rasie them? Is it very costly to get started? Can you start it from ones you get out of the ground? Is it a seasonal thing?

You can probably raise any kind of worms but it depends on your goal. I started years ago with a colony of red wigglers and they are hands down the best if you are looking for them to compost. I had a small dark-colored, rubbermaid-type container that had holes drilled for ventilation and then covered with screen (because worms, unlike mealies WILL escape if they get a chance). For bedding we started with a bunch of shredded newspaper. On a quasi regular basis, I added in things that you would ordinarily throw into your compost. They love coffee grounds the best. But we also gave them fruit and vegie skins and that sort of thing. You want to avoid onion and meat products. They'll eat citrus but its not their favorite so they'll leave it to last.

As long as you don't overwhelm them with food, it doesn't get a chance to mold - they are really pretty efficient. And they reproduce like nobody's business. I can't remember how many I started with - either 500 or 1000 purchased through the mail - but in no time the bin was crawling with them and I had to relocate most of them to my flower bed (where to this day they continue to nourish my garden).

Worms are easier to transfer than mealies. When the bin is full of worm castings, you simply get another container with holes in the bottom, put some food for them in it, and place it over the first. The worms will migrate to the new container, in search of the food. Once the majority have moved, you take the container full of castings and work it into your vegie garden. It contains so many nutrients - your vegie garden will really thrive. And any eggs or babies that are left will live happily in your garden and continue to help you cultivate your garden.

The nightcrawlers may not do so well. I did try them once but they didn't live very long - I don't think they're as well suited to the container system as the red wigglers.

 

[Hawkeye95]

Agreed! This is a really great price and it's adorable! And obviously, they are making it to hold up to anything. Great workmanship, it looks like! I'd say spring for this and then you don't even have to build a run!

Thanks Danz for the heads up-- think I'm going to file this and maybe I could make a silkie condo like this one later on down the road! LOL!

That is really cute!

Tweety, maybe that is perfect for you!!

 

[Hawkeye95]

OH yeah, I wouldn't be out there in this cold either! Take a pic when it warms up! I want to see both! Thinking of starting little brothels... LOL!!! Black lace over the windows??

Hawkeye- I was just looking through my pictures and I don't have a pic of my chicken tractor. I will have to get one, and maybe I can get some pics of the bookcase turned brooder that I'm working on. It won't be today. It is cold, windy, rainy and now snowing and generally miserable outside. I hope it is nicer tomorrow. I want to get that brooder done! I just discovered one of my little tiny rosecomb bantams dead. I am thinking he probably got smashed by the bigger chicks. They have a tendency to want to run underneath the big chicks like they would a momma hen. I want to get these chicks separated out!

 

[Trish44]

Those really are cute tractors, I just don't have a place for one of those & it doesn't meet my needs, but I agree tweety that might be perfect for you.

Well I just ordered some chicks, I really wasn't planning to & then once I got to looking I decided to order some more for egg production & there you go, chicken math again. DH will probably kill me when they come, but there's not much he can do about it once they're here. I did split my order with someone, so shipping was less & that was nice for once not to get killed on the shipping.

Danz, I'm sending you a PM.

 

[tweetysvoice]

I keep my mealworms inside, under our bearded dragon cage. They like it warm and dark. Don't need to keep it unusually warm, room temp is good. As for them freezing - they are kept in refridgerators to slow growth and are just fine - so i'm sure that they will be fine. I just bought 1000 worms from a pet store (cost like 10 bucks) and ya, you kinda just leave the beetles alone - they will do all the work. As for cleaning it out - I used to raise these for my bearded dragons till they moved on to superworms (different breed of worm) and I never once cleaned it out - just added a few handfuls of wheat germ or oats in there every few months. The worms actually eat all the dead skins and stuff they leave behind. I guess if you really wanted to clean it out, you could just set the old stuff out of the way for a few weeks in another box and then sift the worms out once they get bigger and before they turn into beetles. Here's a couple pics of my current setup.

 

[tweetysvoice]

That is really cute!

Tweety, maybe that is perfect for you!!

These are very cute, I do have to agree - but I know i'm going to want more than just 4 in the future and i'm afraid they aren't going to be big enough.. hehe I'll definitely look into it a bit more though.

 

[ChooksChick]

These are very cute, I do have to agree - but I know i'm going to want more than just 4 in the future and i'm afraid they aren't going to be big enough.. hehe I'll definitely look into it a bit more though.

I definitely think you could keep more than 4 in there if they had a separate run. Look at this pic- that top part looks like it's at least 4x4', and I have 8 LF Chanteclers that sleep in an area that size at night. They have tons more room for their daytime activities, including a covered part, but for night time sleeping safety, it's perfectly adequate.



I think I'm going to consider this design a bit in the future... my last one was a bit similar, but not nearly as cute:


The whole thing is hardware cloth enclosed and divided to serve 2 breeds, 2 covered runs. The overhang in the front is 4 feet deep, 2 feet overhang on the sides. It has ramps and has banty Cochins on one side, d'Uccles on the other, about 15 of each. There are wooden doors on the back of the underneath area, which are hinged at the top so I can flip them up to put feed and water below without entering the runs. There entire back of each is a hinged hardware cloth door during the summer, and plastic covered in the winter, so I only use a small door for access to prevent letting in so much cold.

My roof is a 14 mil white vinyl from my friend who works for a sign company. I built this in a weekend.

 

[Hawkeye95]

I definitely think you could keep more than 4 in there if they had a separate run. Look at this pic- that top part looks like it's at least 4x4', and I have 8 LF Chanteclers that sleep in an area that size at night. They have tons more room for their daytime activities, including a covered part, but for night time sleeping safety, it's perfectly adequate.



I think I'm going to consider this design a bit in the future... my last one was a bit similar, but not nearly as cute:


The whole thing is hardware cloth enclosed and divided to serve 2 breeds, 2 covered runs. The overhang in the front is 4 feet deep, 2 feet overhang on the sides. It has ramps and has banty Cochins on one side, d'Uccles on the other, about 15 of each. There are wooden doors on the back of the underneath area, which are hinged at the top so I can flip them up to put feed and water below without entering the runs. There entire back of each is a hinged hardware cloth door during the summer, and plastic covered in the winter, so I only use a small door for access to prevent letting in so much cold.

My roof is a 14 mil white vinyl from my friend who works for a sign company. I built this in a weekend.

Love this Renee!! What a neat idea!! More great designs! Are your nest boxes inside, or are they external?

Tweety-- I agree, I think you could get more than 4 chickens in that coop. How many are you wanting? I'm starting to second guess my 13 pullets out in the layer coop. My turkey is keeping me in eggs just by herself... What the heck will I do with so many extra?! LOL Honestly, if I have any casualties or something, I won't replace them. I think I'd be happier with right around 8 hens. That's not counting my new silkie obsession, though. It's supposed to be my son's 4-H project... (smothers giggles..)

 

[tweetysvoice]

Love this Renee!! What a neat idea!! More great designs! Are your nest boxes inside, or are they external?

Tweety-- I agree, I think you could get more than 4 chickens in that coop. How many are you wanting? I'm starting to second guess my 13 pullets out in the layer coop. My turkey is keeping me in eggs just by herself... What the heck will I do with so many extra?! LOL Honestly, if I have any casualties or something, I won't replace them. I think I'd be happier with right around 8 hens. That's not counting my new silkie obsession, though. It's supposed to be my son's 4-H project... (smothers giggles..)

I can have up to 20 chickens, but next year I want to add at least another 4-6. My plan (and we all know how plans usually pan out...) is when I have a hen go broody, to get some fertilized eggs and let her hatch some. I know i'll run into the issue of getting a roo, but I have a friend that said she'd take any roos that I don't want.

I showed that to my hubby and he does think those are really cute and nice. He's considering them and the one that we were looking at was the same that Renee posted with the hale bale on top. We'll have to give this guy a call, find out the dimensions, and try to figure out a way to transport it if we do get it. I just wish it were already spring and he had the greenhouse built so we can get a better idea of what we already have to work with. I know once the chicks come I'll have more leverage to get started on it! LOL