Mealworm farming

[kwol]

Anyone using mesh/screen on the bottom of the drawer witht the beetles in it? I would like to incoorporate this into my farm and I was wondering what size screen/mesh openings are that seem to be working well for you.
Thanks.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Anyone using mesh/screen on the bottom of the drawer witht the beetles in it? I would like to incoorporate this into my farm and I was wondering what size screen/mesh openings are that seem to be working well for you.
Thanks.

yes, and it works good. I keep saying i will take a photo of it, will try to tonight. Use metal window screen, not the plastic they eat it. Hot glue it after you cut the bottom out. Be sure to leave at least a 1/2 inch or so of the bottom so you have something to glue to.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Quote:

I don't know how i did it, i was like 11 or younger. I always did a 2 handed thing and came from opposite sides lol! Gramma has told me they were poisonous thinking i would leave them alone. I knew she was fibbing

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

The mites are back in the one tray of eggs and teensy baby worms that were too small to sift out and rinse. By the way, the larger worms withstood rinsing under warm water very well, and the pupae, also. After their bath, they were placed into microwaved bedding. (People all think I'm nuts when I tell them I wash my chickens. What will they say when they hear I wash my worms?)

But I couldn't microwave the bedding in which the eggs and baby worms were. I tried letting the bedding air out for several hours, thinking it might help desicate some of the mites, but it didn't help.

So I still have the question: is there anything one can do to get rid of mites without killing off worm eggs and babies?

Yes but it will take time, you have to dry them out. put them on a warming pad, or under a heat lamp. don't feed till the mites are all gone. as you see worms or pupa, get them out and just keep checking. If you keep moving the new ones, the bin will be clear in 2-3 months.If you get tired of waiting, you can feed out the whole thing to the chickens. Most mites are species specific so they won't bother the chickens.

 

[azygous]

Won't drying out the tray to try to get rid of the mites cause the teensy baby worms to also dry out and die?

I see hundreds, maybe thousands of rice-sized wigglers. There's an awesome population of new worms. I sure would hate to kill them all trying to dry out the mites.

What I've been doing is scooping out the mites that surround the carrots I've placed in the tray. I rinse them off the carrots and replace them in the tray. i wash the mites off the lid and I wipe down the sides of the tray inside above the bedding with alcohol.

I could move the tray with the mites over beside the wood stove. It's a lot warmer and dryer there, and maybe that would hurry up the process. Maybe leave the lid off?

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Won't drying out the tray to try to get rid of the mites cause the teensy baby worms to also dry out and die?

I see hundreds, maybe thousands of rice-sized wigglers. There's an awesome population of new worms. I sure would hate to kill them all trying to dry out the mites.

What I've been doing is scooping out the mites that surround the carrots I've placed in the tray. I rinse them off the carrots and replace them in the tray. i wash the mites off the lid and I wipe down the sides of the tray inside above the bedding with alcohol.

I could move the tray with the mites over beside the wood stove. It's a lot warmer and dryer there, and maybe that would hurry up the process. Maybe leave the lid off?

That may be enough to do it, give it a try. The mealies can go a long time without any moisture. Several people on the thread have "forgotten" their farms, some even for months. the mites will die out way before the worms will.

 

[azygous]

Thanks! You've given me encouragement!

I left the tray with the mites by the wood stove over night, and the bedding is certainly a lot dryer. But the mites were crawling up the sides of the container, and they were pooled around the carrots. I'm going to remove the carrots, as you reassure me the worms won't die over the next few days without the moisture.

I'll report back in another couple days after the tray has been uncovered by the wood stove getting further dried out.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Thanks! You've given me encouragement!

I left the tray with the mites by the wood stove over night, and the bedding is certainly a lot dryer. But the mites were crawling up the sides of the container, and they were pooled around the carrots. I'm going to remove the carrots, as you reassure me the worms won't die over the next few days without the moisture.

I'll report back in another couple days after the tray has been uncovered by the wood stove getting further dried out.

Awesome, I really think that will solve the problem for you!

Be waiting to hear, good luck!

 

[azygous]

The mites appear to be gone! I checked some samples under a magnifying lens and saw nothing that was moving. I dumped the contents into a tub and washed the tray, then restored the worms to their tray with some baby carrots. I checked again an hour later to see if there were any mites on the carrots. None.

So now we know how to get rid of grain mites in meal worm trays : starve the mites of moisture by drying out the bedding. The worms appeared to survive, at least the large, visible ones. And they sure were thirsty! The carrots were host to many worms in no time after being put into their tray!

Thanks for the help, Jchny!

 

[kwol]

The mites appear to be gone! I checked some samples under a magnifying lens and saw nothing that was moving. I dumped the contents into a tub and washed the tray, then restored the worms to their tray with some baby carrots. I checked again an hour later to see if there were any mites on the carrots. None.

So now we know how to get rid of grain mites in meal worm trays : starve the mites of moisture by drying out the bedding. The worms appeared to survive, at least the large, visible ones. And they sure were thirsty! The carrots were host to many worms in no time after being put into their tray!

Thanks for the help, Jchny!

Thanks for posting your trials and efforts. Good to know that info for the future just in case...
It amost reads like a science experiment, like Bill Nye the Science Guy!