Mealworm farming

[Kassaundra]

Quote:
I use layer pellets and I feeze everytime. Mites can be in any grain product. Ounce of prevention vs pound of cure and all.

 

[peggyblue]

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[NightsInWhiteSilkies]

Okay Ill do that with all of it for sure!
So Im going to go bye some live ones for them today anyways so since all of the stuff to put into the tank will be in the freezer for a few days how can I keep the worms in the container I bought alive for the few days while waiting for the bran and stuff to kill the mini bugs?
Or should I just go rebuy more to start up in a few days after everything is defrosted?
Sorry for the silly questions if they are but this is all new to me with worms as of last night and Ive been feeding my chicks dehydrated meal worms and like this idea of live ones much,much better for them!

 

[Kassaundra]

Quote:
Just put them in the refrigerator for the few days, that will slow down the metabolism, or you could just put a piece of veggie in the container they are in, if it's just a couple of days until the container / substrate are ready they won't die in that short of a time.

 

[colonel sander]

Quote:
I keep my house cold - 62-64 - I've got the mealies in a plastic drawer a bit bigger and deeper than a shoebox. I'm using a reptile cage heater mat, the kind that sticks on to the bottom of the terrarium. it took about a week to heat my substrait, 3" of oatmeal and wheatbran. I've got a thermometer that lays on top of the wheat bran that shows daily high and low. temperature shifts between 74 and 80 degrees on some days, typically 76-79 on most. I think that amount of variation is probably not ideal, but the wormies are fat and happy, pupa popping up all over.

the mat is called "heat wave desert" (they come in desert and rainforest). and it covers all but a 3" strip of the bottom of the drawer. disclaimer - it says use only on glass terrariums and my drawer is plastic, however, it seems to work fine and is not damaging the plastic... your mileage may vary.

Thanks for the reply and I think I am going to go that rout. Going to set up a 10 gallon with the matt underneath it and see what happens. Just need to build a top for it to keep things out of it. Going to order from Amy and see how things go.

Thanks again

 

[NightsInWhiteSilkies]

Quote:
Just put them in the refrigerator for the few days, that will slow down the metabolism, or you could just put a piece of veggie in the container they are in, if it's just a couple of days until the container / substrate are ready they won't die in that short of a time.

Okay thats great then Im going to buy more than a container just to have on hand as a starter on growing them. Maybe I can put some oat in there since that wouldnt have the insects in it would it? Or do I freeze the oatmeal too? If you say yes then Ive been eating oatmeal with bugs in it? Yuuuum, yummmy, tasty! lol....

 

[StarLover21]

I have a lot of questions about this. (I'm too lazy to read through all 200 + pages

) I haven't really though of mealworm farming...but, well, I'm getting a hedgehog on the Tuesday, and THEY'RE favorite treat is mealworms, and my chickens favorite treat is mealworms- and I thought it was funny how they both like the same things, and how expensive mealworms are at our pet store and - then something clicked.

1. What do you feed them? We've done vermiculture before...is it similar? Do you keep them in dirt? Something else?

2. Can you just buy some live ones at a pet store and will they reproduce quickly?

3. Are there any other benefits besides treats for my animals?

4. Can you keep them outside? We also have a garage, and a greenhouse. Would those work?

5. Any other care requirements?


Thanks!

 

[happyhens120]

Quote:
I keep my house cold - 62-64 - I've got the mealies in a plastic drawer a bit bigger and deeper than a shoebox. I'm using a reptile cage heater mat, the kind that sticks on to the bottom of the terrarium. it took about a week to heat my substrait, 3" of oatmeal and wheatbran. I've got a thermometer that lays on top of the wheat bran that shows daily high and low. temperature shifts between 74 and 80 degrees on some days, typically 76-79 on most. I think that amount of variation is probably not ideal, but the wormies are fat and happy, pupa popping up all over.

the mat is called "heat wave desert" (they come in desert and rainforest). and it covers all but a 3" strip of the bottom of the drawer. disclaimer - it says use only on glass terrariums and my drawer is plastic, however, it seems to work fine and is not damaging the plastic... your mileage may vary.

Thanks for the reply and I think I am going to go that rout. Going to set up a 10 gallon with the matt underneath it and see what happens. Just need to build a top for it to keep things out of it. Going to order from Amy and see how things go.

Thanks again

I got my mealies from Amy and I was really happy with them! It's so much easier than I thought and my girls go nuts over the worms! I keep mine next to my radiator and they're doing really well. I'm waiting to see some baby worms pop up!

 

[onafixedincome]

Quote:
No such animal as a silly question, especially on THIS thread...

You can maintain the mealies almost anywhere until you are ready--they are quite hardy and will survive nicely as long as they have air, something to eat, and something for moisture (a baby carrot will do 500 nicely for a day or so, then change it). I gifted a friend of mine with a batch of carefully-chosen smalls to feed to her young Serama chicks and their parents, but she opted to grow them out (translation: she kept forgetting them when she went out

). They're doing fine in the plastic cup I bought my originals in, despite that she's got it what I would call way too wet wtih inappropriate moist stuff (she dumped some tea in there and some rose leaves, and orange peels...)....and they're growing and molting just as they likely would in an 'ideal' situation.

So wing it as you wish and see what happens.

It's a ton of fun, and you learn a LOT!

 

[HenCrazyMom]

So very excited. Starting my second bin of mealies today. When DS and I were exploring the first bin and looking at all the pupae, DH came over and looked at all the worms and declared that we needed another bin to give the mealies more room to move and grow and get ready for fishing in the spring.

The girls got a nice treat today!!

Update: 2nd bin is up and running. DS and I took 1/2 of bin one and simply transferred it to bin two. WE added more substrate and the bins both look so much better.
I LOVE MEALWORMS