Mealworm farming

[OkChickens]

What is the 'four drawer system'? (or however many)

I am going to put screen on the bottom of the 2 top drawer on each side and that is where I will have the Beetles with Rolled oats for bedding. This will allow the eggs and small worms to fall through into the 2nd drawer with wheat bran for bedding.


Nate

 

[Chicks Galore3]

OOOOOOOOH your so smart.

So this is what i'll need to get started: Plastic bin/drawers, worms, (duh) and ?rolled oats? or ?wheat bran? Which one?

 

[binders]

OOOOOOOOH your so smart.

So this is what i'll need to get started: Plastic bin/drawers, worms, (duh) and ?rolled oats? or ?wheat bran? Which one?

Some of us use rolled oats in the to drawer and wheat bran in the other drawers. The rolled oasts are bigger and won't fall through the screening as much as the wheat bran does. This way most of the oats stay in with the beetles and only the eggs and small worms fall through to the lower drawer.

 

[Chicks Galore3]

ok, thanks. yet another question (

) what temp do they need to be at? (or suggested temp)

 

[yankeefan]

ok, thanks. yet another question (

) what temp do they need to be at? (or suggested temp)

Everyone's temps tend to vary depending on where you keep the worms and what season you're in. Average household temps will suffice, though it seems that the worms grow faster when they're warmer. Some of us have them up to 80 or 90 inside incubators with good success.

You can answer a lot of questions and maybe get some good ideas for your mealworm farm by reading through the history of this thread. 339 pages and counting so far, lots and lots of great info to be had. Good luck, and keep us posted on your progress!

 

[WestKnollAmy]

Quote:
I just saw this. Awwww! Thank you!
I love dealing with everyone and answering any questions you may have. I have been in this less than a year but have learned so much, not only from my experiences but from experienced people here on this thread.

I need to go on my website and post a little sign at the top of my meal worm page because of all the nice folks that contact me...."Due to the large volume of orders I am receiving I am running a bit behind on filling orders. Please bear with me as I try to catch up and encourage the mealies to grow faster. Thank you all for your wonderful support!"

I added a paragraph to the bottom of my website and will go in soon and add more photos.

Thank you, hannakat, for those lovely shipping bags you make! You're a peach! (Hmmmm, better not say that too loudly or the mealies will be begging for some!)

 

[Chicks Galore3]

Ok.I'm all for mealworming! Now to convince mom....lol she's acually interested. Where should i order them? How many should i get? I am getting chickens in a little over a month so i thought i'd start now to get a suply up. How do i freeze dry them?

 

[OkChickens]

Ok.I'm all for mealworming! Now to convince mom....lol she's acually interested. Where should i order them? How many should i get? I am getting chickens in a little over a month so i thought i'd start now to get a suply up. How do i freeze dry them?

I Ordered 10,000 to start and I will let them reproduce. I have few some to my chickens and I gave them all of the ones that dies. I have quite a few chickens to feed that is why I am going to have so many. I ordered from nyworms.com and they were very easy to deal with.

Nate

 

[In2Ice]

Just a couple quick questions about the 3-drawer system. I put screen on the top drawer with oats for the beetles. The worms and eggs fall through into the middle drawer. I house the worms in the middle drawer until they pupate. When they pupate I move them to the bottom drawer until they turn into beetles. Then I move the beetles to the top drawer. Is this how the rest of you do it? Do the pupate and worms really need to be separated or can you house the worms, eggs and pupate together in 2 drawers and just put the beetles in the top drawer? Also, has anyone figured out a good way to separate the pupae from the worms besides just picking through them and removing them by hand? Any tips or tricks would be appreciated. I have 1200 worms in a 3-drawer system and they are starting to turn to pupae.
Thanks!

 

[galanie]

Just a couple quick questions about the 3-drawer system.  I put screen on the top drawer with oats for the beetles.  The worms and eggs fall through into the middle drawer.  I house the worms in the middle drawer until they pupate.  When they pupate I move them to the bottom drawer until they turn into beetles.  Then I move the beetles to the top drawer.  Is this how the rest of you do it?  Do the pupate and worms really need to be separated or can you house the worms, eggs and pupate together in 2 drawers and just put the beetles in the top drawer?  Also, has anyone figured out a good way to separate the pupae from the worms besides just picking through them and removing them by hand?  Any tips or tricks would be appreciated.  I have 1200 worms in a 3-drawer system and they are starting to turn to pupae.
Thanks!

When I was using this system I took the middle drawer out once I saw a good population of wormies and put it in the bottom, swapping bottom and middle drawers. Then I fed out the bottom drawer while the middle drawer is getting populated.

Not all the eggs and worms will fall out of the top drawer. You'll end up with worms and pupae in that top drawer and it becomes a self-perpetuating system without the hassle of messing with separating pupae, etc.