Mealworm farming

[Stacy Ann]

This is the beetle drawer and second drawer that the eggs should sift into
Bottom of beetle drawer

 

[Richard Pryor]

I don't have a screen on the bottom of my bins, so I can see the eggs on the bottom. Once I see a decent amount I remove the beetles. Usually that takes about 2 weeks.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

https://video-lga3-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t42.1790-2/20381595_769349906600741_3692352082649546752_n.mp4?efg=eyJybHIiOjc2MywicmxhIjo1MTIsInZlbmNvZGVfdGFnIjoic3ZlX3NkIn0=&oh=c62450e630b08bc69f628d476c7c785e&oe=5977BBF4

I started a mealworm farm with 1100 worms on June 9th. I used a 3 drawer system in which I placed the starter worms in the bottom drawer with wheat bran View attachment 1089450View attachment 1089451
I installed a self sifting bottom into the top drawer to house/breed the beetles. View attachment 1089452

As the worms started to pupate near the end of June I placed them into the top drawer with rolled oats. I move pupae to the top drawer with the beetles which had begun to hatch in the beginning of July. As of today we have this many beetles/pupae going on. I think I can see some movement now in the bran. I'm hoping it's babies hatching, although cant really see much of anything.

QUESTION:
How long should I wait before switching out this second drawer for grow out??

Hi, welcome to BYC!

Looks like you got a good start. I wonder, with that bottom you have, seems like a lot MIGHT not sift through. In which case you might get some hatched eggs in your beetle bin. But I may just be over thinking... and it probably won't matter too much anyways or at least not be a big deal.

Also, I wonder if anyone just feeds stuff from their garden for moisture instead of having to pay for extra carrots or whatever? I have used lettuce leaves, spinach, cabbage, carrots, broccoli stems, celery, watermelon rind (just have to remove before fruit flies start), the honey dew rind I put in my beetle bin was greatly enjoyed. But as it got dry it started curling around the beetles like a trap. Seriously though, why not use any sort of fresh vegetation, even leaves from a tree? Any reason not to?

 

[Kusanar]

Hi, welcome to BYC!

Looks like you got a good start. I wonder, with that bottom you have, seems like a lot MIGHT not sift through. In which case you might get some hatched eggs in your beetle bin. But I may just be over thinking... and it probably won't matter too much anyways or at least not be a big deal.

Also, I wonder if anyone just feeds stuff from their garden for moisture instead of having to pay for extra carrots or whatever? I have used lettuce leaves, spinach, cabbage, carrots, broccoli stems, celery, watermelon rind (just have to remove before fruit flies start), the honey dew rind I put in my beetle bin was greatly enjoyed. But as it got dry it started curling around the beetles like a trap. Seriously though, why not use any sort of fresh vegetation, even leaves from a tree? Any reason not to?

Anything that has moisture will work. I'm weird, I don't give mine veggies or fruit, I actually get an eyedropper and actually drop 4-5 droppers of water into the bin every couple of days. It's not super moist and it gets used so fast it doesn't have a chance to get anything moldy. I have also put wet cotton balls in there... they absolutely loved that and shredding the cotton into massive fluffs...

 

[Mraya]

Anything that has moisture will work. I'm weird, I don't give mine veggies or fruit, I actually get an eyedropper and actually drop 4-5 droppers of water into the bin every couple of days. It's not super moist and it gets used so fast it doesn't have a chance to get anything moldy. I have also put wet cotton balls in there... they absolutely loved that and shredding the cotton into massive fluffs...

With the cotton do you put it on something or just drop it into the container?

 

[Kusanar]

With the cotton do you put it on something or just drop it into the container?

I only did it once because they made such a mess with the cotton afterwards, but I set it on something in there, but they kicked bedding up against it and ended up dragging it off of the thing I put it on...

Next step is a reptile drip waterer.

 

[aart]

I only did it once because they made such a mess with the cotton afterwards, but I set it on something in there, but they kicked bedding up against it and ended up dragging it off of the thing I put it on...

Next step is a reptile drip waterer.

I put a small piece of sponge in a bottle cap in the bin once,
the larvae crawled all inside the sponge.
Didn't do that again.....I found that pieces of carrots the best in summer and pieces of apples in winter worked best for moisture.

 

[Temujin]

Just noticed the thread, but have not read it yet.
About 15 years ago, I had a building (14x15) full of pigeons. Used wood chips on the floor. Meal worms discovered the building and moved in. Have had them in there and in my work shop ever since. At times I view it as more of an infestation, especially when I find they ate something of value, like my Styrofoam incubator I had in the attic of my work shop, or the cases of Styrofoam egg cartons I had stored up there. grrr. My "farming": I have small pieces of plywood (18x18") I put these on the wire floor of my raised floor chicken brooders. On the bottom piece of wood I put an even layer of dried chicken manure and chick starter and then sandwich it with the second piece of wood. Put a handful of beetles on top, they immediately run for cover in between the two boards. Add live chicks. Once a week I raise the top board for maybe a minute or less and let them eat whatever they can get. lol nothing as technical as you guys, but the birds love it.

 

[Kusanar]

I put a small piece of sponge in a bottle cap in the bin once,
the larvae crawled all inside the sponge.
Didn't do that again.....I found that pieces of carrots the best in summer and pieces of apples in winter worked best for moisture.

Lol, yeah, that's what they did to the cotton. Now, I either soak some feed for them or I mist or drip water onto them. They got a couple handfuls of soaked horse feed for dinner last night... Looks like it's mostly gone. Toss in a handful of cheerios and they're gone in a few hours... pretty impressive. I have them on mesh now and it's actually raining frass under them, enough that it is visible.

 

[aart]

I have them on mesh now and it's actually raining frass under them, enough that it is visible.

Need video Just kidding(mostly)