mealworm

[erkose]

I ask for patience-and this maybe already answered I cant find it
I started growing meal worms 2 days ago(18th September 2018 in Australia)
yesterday I notice flies(common house fly in the box-air holes too big )
now covered in some sort of cloth will allow air

will any common fly lava heart the meal worms?
my seller dose not know
any help appreciated Nigel

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Hi there.

Meal worms can be so much fun!

What is your growing medium and what are you using as a hydration source?

I've been raising meal worms for almost a couple years, never has a fly or their larva be an issue YET. And I've faced ants, moths, and a few grain mites. Even a rodent when I tried keeping them outside. And if they don't have enough moisture they will use each other or the pupa if they are present.

That being said, I recently discovered that flies are specifically attracted to apple when researching homemade fly traps... in addition to facing fruit flies if I tried to use that. So maybe the house fly was attracted to your hydration source? In which case I would simply switch it out before letting anything POSSIBLY hatch. But again that has never happened.

To answer your question... I do NOT believe a house fly or larva are a danger to your meal worms.

@azygous Can you share your experience or thoughts... since I believe you know things things up close and personal? (snort!)

 

[erkose]

tremendous answer-deeply appreciated
changing carrot now
to apple
deepest thanks

 

[azygous]

One time I found a strange cocoon in with my meal worms. I posted a photo and was told it was probably a moth that had snuck into the tray. It never morphed into anything.

I use only carrots as a moisture source. I've found that most other fruits and veggie sources are prone to mold, which is deadly for meal worms.

 

[erkose]

many thanks all useful info -I had carrots in it when posted to me-now apple?
I will change to carrot when I can-

 

[erkose]

o I am using old oats-uncle Tobey's in fact -lol
bought some turkey crumble stuff today
all good
ill give them some dead grass-tons of that we r in extreme drought
Thanks Nigel

 

[EggSighted4Life]

tremendous answer-deeply appreciated
changing carrot now
to apple
deepest thanks

I prefer carrot to apple... Carrots don't get fruit flies here and apples do.
Maybe my post came across wrong.

Cabbage and celery even broccoli work really well in my environment.

I'm not sure if dead grass will do anything for meal worms...

 

[Patinas]

I've been raising meal worms since March and learned some hard lessons! I had a MEGA grain mite infestation that I finally have under control. So here's my best advice for beginners:

1. Use wheat bran for your substrate. I've tried using oatmeal but noticed they eat the wheat bran and pretty much ignore the oatmeal. I know others use oatmeal but my experience is they prefer the wheat bran. I've also used oat bran (not oatmeal) and wheat bran in the same bin.

2. Moisture is your enemy! After my grain mite nightmare, I now use only carrots for moisture for the worms and the beetles. Wipe extra moisture off the carrots before placing in bins. Apples and potatoes have too much moisture and again, I noticed they preferred the carrots over apples and potatoes and apples attract fruit flies.

3. Be sure and remove old carrots before adding new ones. Don't let old carrots just sit in the bin and start to mold.

4. Ventilate! I had lids with holes on my bins but it wasn't enough and that's how the grain mites took hold. I now do not have any lids on my bins. Too much moisture and too little ventilation was all it took for the grain mites to explode and take over the bins...and I'm talking billions of the tiny things!

5. Freeze substrate before using! I buy my wheat bran in bulk and that's where the grain mites came from in the first place. I've since learned that you should always freeze the substrate for at least 3 days before using to kill any mites it may contain. You can also bake it in thin layers at 225 degrees for at least 10 minutes but that takes time to bake enough of it so I now just freeze it.

I have not had any issues with flies or moths or other bugs in my meal worms other than the nasty grain mites.

All I know is I wish someone had given me the above advice before I started raising meal worms. I could have avoided having to throw out bins of worms and pretty much having to start all over.

The upside is that my hens really do love eating the live meal worms which is what makes the trouble I went through worth it in the end.

 

[erkose]

I've been raising meal worms since March and learned some hard lessons! I had a MEGA grain mite infestation that I finally have under control. So here's my best advice for beginners:

1. Use wheat bran for your substrate. I've tried using oatmeal but noticed they eat the wheat bran and pretty much ignore the oatmeal. I know others use oatmeal but my experience is they prefer the wheat bran. I've also used oat bran (not oatmeal) and wheat bran in the same bin.

2. Moisture is your enemy! After my grain mite nightmare, I now use only carrots for moisture for the worms and the beetles. Wipe extra moisture off the carrots before placing in bins. Apples and potatoes have too much moisture and again, I noticed they preferred the carrots over apples and potatoes and apples attract fruit flies.

3. Be sure and remove old carrots before adding new ones. Don't let old carrots just sit in the bin and start to mold.

4. Ventilate! I had lids with holes on my bins but it wasn't enough and that's how the grain mites took hold. I now do not have any lids on my bins. Too much moisture and too little ventilation was all it took for the grain mites to explode and take over the bins...and I'm talking billions of the tiny things!

5. Freeze substrate before using! I buy my wheat bran in bulk and that's where the grain mites came from in the first place. I've since learned that you should always freeze the substrate for at least 3 days before using to kill any mites it may contain. You can also bake it in thin layers at 225 degrees for at least 10 minutes but that takes time to bake enough of it so I now just freeze it.

I have not had any issues with flies or moths or other bugs in my meal worms other than the nasty grain mites.

All I know is I wish someone had given me the above advice before I started raising meal worms. I could have avoided having to throw out bins of worms and pretty much having to start all over.

The upside is that my hens really do love eating the live meal worms which is what makes the trouble I went through worth it in the end.

 

[erkose]

again tremendous information

do you just use one level of housing?
Many thanks