Mealworm farming

[aart]

Very interesting reading and appreciated! I startd a small mealworm operation last week, and so far, so good. One thing has me wondering, though: do the pupae move? I've seen one or two wiggle, but most look lifeless. The worms themselves are very lively and doing well. I am using chicken scratch for their food, but I think I will switch to bran or oatmeal. Thanks for your help!

Pupae will wiggle, it's more of a spasm, if disturbed.

 

[Bugseye]

Hah, my pupae didn't wiggle. Probably protecting themselves from the great intruder. So I've been asking myself why I need to put window screen over the bin, as they're not prone to get out. Right now I'm putting 1/4" hardware cloth over it. Don't see why not.

 

[beverly evans]

What kind of sifter do you use to separate the worms, beetles, and bran from the frass?

I use one of those deals sold for wok cooking to sift out all the dried up potato slices, cucumber peelings, apple peelings, watermelon peels and whatever else I've thrown in there for moisture. The beetles and worms of all sizes fall through, but the pupae seem to stick so I have to pick them out of the sieve thingy. Works well. Found it in a restaurant supply store.

 

[beverly evans]

Quote: Failed to mention....I don't have any frass! BUT I WILL SOON! Hooray and halleluyah I HAVE WORMS!! Don't know if it was simply time for them to develop or the extra moisture from the wet sponge I rewet on a daily basis, but I have tons of them all of a sudden. All sizes of blonde worms. I am so thrilled and glad everyone encouraged me to not give up. Thanks to latestarter, dipstick, lavmoon, and kubotafoot!! Yaaaaaaay!!

 

[evemfoster]

Very interesting reading and appreciated! I startd a small mealworm operation last week, and so far, so good. One thing has me wondering, though: do the pupae move? I've seen one or two wiggle, but most look lifeless. The worms themselves are very lively and doing well. I am using chicken scratch for their food, but I think I will switch to bran or oatmeal. Thanks for your help!

Bran works the best. Oatmeal works slowly and you have to be extra careful to keep the humidity down. It can go bad quickly if it gets wet.

 

[evemfoster]

So I've been asking myself why I need to put window screen over the bin, as they're not prone to get out. Right now I'm putting 1/4" hardware cloth over it. Don't see why not.

The screen is optional and usually there just to keep pests out. Mostly grain moths.

On my worm farm I cut a couple large ventilation holes into the lid and hot glued a window screen covering the holes on the inside of the lid. And I still get the grain moths. The moths make a silk web in the bedding holding the grains of the bedding together in patches. The moths-worm lives inside the patch. I have found pulling the whole clump out and feeding it to the chickens along with the mealworms works just fine.

 

[zarafa121]

Thanks! This weekend I will switch the worms over to bran and not worry about the pupae that don't wiggle

.

 

[sillybirds]

Given my worms' voracious appetite, I'm always on the lookout for new fruits/veggies to feed them. I had some watermelon rinds that looked like the worms might like. I sliced them up and fed them to the worms. The worms devoured them!

 

[CrazyChookLady5]

hi mealworm farmers!

i've tried mealworm farming last year sometime, but failed!

i got about 300 babyish worms of ebay and they were going strong for a while. but after a while they started dying out. i think have the reason they died was becuase i placed them where for about 4 hours of the day the sun was shining on them, but i also reckon that its maybe too hot where i live. the hotness here is like a dry heat, and no moistre or humidity.

i would love the give mealworms another crack but am worried that they will all died out and personally i reckon that they are quite expensive, so i dont want to waste money.

so my question is: does anyone know how to raise mealworms in hot, dry climates? or even if its possible to do this?

thanks for any help

 

[estamets]

hi mealworm farmers!

i've tried mealworm farming last year sometime, but failed!

i got about 300 babyish worms of ebay and they were going strong for a while. but after a while they started dying out. i think have the reason they died was becuase i placed them where for about 4 hours of the day the sun was shining on them, but i also reckon that its maybe too hot where i live. the hotness here is like a dry heat, and no moistre or humidity.

i would love the give mealworms another crack but am worried that they will all died out and personally i reckon that they are quite expensive, so i dont want to waste money.

so my question is: does anyone know how to raise mealworms in hot, dry climates? or even if its possible to do this?

thanks for any help

Welcome! I'm in Southern California, also a dry, hot climate, and my worms are doing well. I keep them in a plastic bin under a tree outside, so they're in shade all day. Every few days, I leave the lid open so it doesn't get too humid in there. Beware, though - one day I found my chicken inside the bin! She had knocked the lid completely off and was helping herself to a snack.

Once you get a colony started, it will keep giving you worms, so the initial expense is worth it, I reckon.