Mealworm farming

[WestKnollAmy]

Quote:

You are going to really enjoy this!

 

[AyeUpChuck]

I'm so excited!!!! I'm getting some from Amy next week!

to farming these little bad boys. I mean seriously can you imagine buying Happy Hen Treats now?!?!? Not that I ever did bit even less so now!

Thanks again Amy!!!!

 

[hannakat]

emptynester ~ Yippie!! Now we have kingdoms!

Cakela ~ Congrats! Now to wait for them to morph into beetles. It won't take long!

slc ~ I opted not to dry them. They froze so well and are keeping so nicely...just gonna keep them there.

AyeUpChuck ~ Great choice! Let us know when your farm is settled.

 

[hannakat]

btw ~ Amy ~ your bins of colonies put mine to shame

I must get more.... I must get more.....

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Yes, you must get more, Trish! You must get more.....you must get more!
BTW, AyeUpChuck is the first to take the mealies in my swap page. We love the swap and it has helped us both to have these mealies in the offer. Can't beat that with a stick!
Not that I would beat my mealies.

They are very obedient creatures. They stay in their pens and eat all their supper and never sass me.

 

[emptynester]

Quote:
Wish I would have known about Mealies before I had kids..

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Does that mean you would not have had kids? Or that it would have been fun to show them how to grow them when the kids were growing up? Wait! I get it now!

Duh me!

Mealies are really simple to me. My kid has been a whole lot more difficult to raise!

Hannakat puts a lot more time into hers than I do mine. I enjoy them and hope I can spend more time watching them this winter but I don't see as well at night so I suppose I would have to use a flashlight and they don't like the light so much. Although my meal worm bin did well beside the sliding glass door this summer, they really took off (or so it seems) after I moved them into the corners of the room where it is much darker.

I am just wondering how they will do this winter next to those north walls and the den is much colder than the living room. I am thinking of moving a bin or two in here to put in front of the south windows as an experiment. Though I bet my cats would mess up the tubs by laying on them then. It is hard enough to keep them off the 'bators during the winter. They think I have them there as warmers for their buns!

 

[Chickangel79]

The wire mesh arrived for my second colony this morning. It's put together and has 300 pupae in it from my third purchase of worms. One beetle already !
The first bin, I was just sitting there watching the stuff fall through and onto the green paper two tiny wiggling worms appeared ! If I move the substrate the whole lot moves, I wonder how many babies that is ?!!

Last night my son set up a 'playground' for the beetles (there are a LOT ) and sat there with them crawling over his hand!
I Am enjoying this so much !

 

[peafowlmom]

HI, I have spent $70. plus on dried meal worms from Lowe's this summer. This is a lot of money and looking back seems like a big waste. It is just that before I felt my chicks were big enough to range I really thought they needed them. My husband said I can't buy more. They love them and they get so excited, it makes me happy. I tried to read through some back pages but it got all scrambled up for me. Is there anyone willing to write how to get started, what I need, where to keep, all that stuff that takes forever to type. Thanks ahead of time for helping me.


Summerville, SC 16 GL Cochin Bantams, 7 peacocks, 5 Ameracana, 2 dogs, and a stray chicken that I have no idea what it is.

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Sounds incredible!

And what a great experience for your son!