Mealworm farming

[WestKnollAmy]

So happy to see someone using a Sportsman. I've been looking at the bottom of mine and wondering. Since I don't hatch in there it would be perfect.


So had to run to KMart last night and saw shoe box sized plastic containers. I think I'm going to paint the outside to make it darker. The coffee container really was working and it was red. So I have 2 $1 containers and when my mechanic calls and says my car is ready, I'm taking my grand daughter to get more worms. I think since there are so many bait shops around, I'll buy some there and more at PetSmart if they have them. Then I can see which ones grow fastest.

I love my Sportsman. It has been running pretty much non stop for years. I keep saying I am going to stop hatching so many but I can't. i did slow down this winter though and it has been great. Only about 7 brooders to clean and care for with around 30-50 chicks in each one.
Now my Sportsman can help with the meal worms.
I checked on them a few minutes ago when I opened it to check eggs and refill the water container. there is a LOT of shed skins on top of the substrate and one wormie was on top basking in......cooler air, I guess. I dunno. It has only been 24 hours and I will check on them every day. My control group looks about the same as always.
This is one of my more cool experiments!

 

[OkChickens]

I put my Large worms in there and of the 50 i put in there 5 have pupated in my Bator and only 1 has at room temp (about 70 degrees) This is a cool idea Amy!

Nate

 

[WestKnollAmy]

I am definitely doing this in my hatcher! I only usually use one on the 3 trays! I will put a batch in the hatcher once i find a container to put them in! Do you think the dust from the chicks hatching will affect the meal worms! I would need to keep mine on the top shelf because I hatch on the middle and bottom shelf. so 100 degrees wont hurt them?

Nate

I don't use my Sportsman as a hatcher if I can help it. I move my eggs up into my Genesis 1588 for hatching and it sits right on top of my Sportsman. This bottom shelf is not easy for me to hatch in with my LF and my bantams hatch right along with them so I just use the Styrofoam as my hatcher. easy to care for and clean between hatching, too.

I am not sure that dust will bother the meal worms. They live in all kinds of dusty areas in farmers wheat bins. But I won;t be able to update you on that since my experiment is without the eggs hatching.
So far so good on the mealies today but I am running my bator down around 99 right now. They develop and hatch just fine as low as 98 so I am leaving the setting where it is. We shall see how this progresses as the days roll by.

If you are using the top shelf your humidity and heat will be higher probably. The only thing to do is try.

 

[202roosterlane]

@ WestKnollAmy, I went to check on mine after reading the thread. OMGoodness. I have them in 2 large Christmas wrapping paperRubbermaid totes and they have gone wild. I tried at one point taling out the new worms and putting them in their own tote. But today I noticed a gabillion

tiny baby worms. So I decided to leave them till they get bigger so I don't damage them trying to pick them or scoop the up. The worm bin had a handful of beatles, so I moved them. Everyone is doing nicely. It's been months but that's normal. They stay about 72degrees for the last few months. But truthfully I am ready for the weather to warm up so the can go outside.

Thank you for helping me get started!

 

[WestKnollAmy]

You are so welcome!
I am thrilled that they are doing well for you.
And your chickens and anything else you feed them to will certainly love you for it.
It is about time to put them out for the bluebirds here. Mine have been looking in the kitchen windows at me. I think they know I have worms.

 

[OkChickens]

I have them on the very top of my incubator. I decided not to use my hatcher as it is not always running. Here are a few pictures. I am using 2 baby wipe bottoms with about 1 1/2 of wheat bran in the containers. The ones in the incubator has quite a few skins on top of the wheat bran.




Nate

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Cool, Nate!
So you run your humidity lower? Mine is around 45 to 50%.
Since we have started around the same time this ought to be fun!

 

[ElioraImmanuel]

Subbing! This is one cooool idea! This must be one of the longest threads on BYC!

 

[Emily1220]

UNBELIEVEABLE!!! I got my very first beetle......yippee!!! I opened the drawer, saw the beetle and looked up to tell my DH and just that fast, it was gone!!! My goofy puppy ATE it!!! I grabbed her and told her to drop it but it was to late. She just looked at me chomping her jaws like ....." what's wrong??? That was a tasty treat!!" Oh well, I have over a hundred pupa in the drawer now so there will hopefully be many more beetles to come very soon. Note to self......never open the drawers when the pup is within tongue range. And remember she has a very long tongue!! LOL!!

 

[Kassaundra]

UNBELIEVEABLE!!! I got my very first beetle......yippee!!! I opened the drawer, saw the beetle and looked up to tell my DH and just that fast, it was gone!!! My goofy puppy ATE it!!! I grabbed her and told her to drop it but it was to late. She just looked at me chomping her jaws like ....." what's wrong??? That was a tasty treat!!" Oh well, I have over a hundred pupa in the drawer now so there will hopefully be many more beetles to come very soon. Note to self......never open the drawers when the pup is within tongue range. And remember she has a very long tongue!! LOL!!

Hummmmm, sounds suspiciously like "My dog ate my homework."