Where can I buy wheat bran for mealworms?

[kuntrychick]

I had bought 100 mealworms and now I have beetles. I desperately badly need to separate the beetles from the mealworms, but I've got to get them some substrate.

For the mealworms, I put them in one of those plastic shoebox things with a jar of wheat germ, but it's way too expensive at over $4 a jar.

I read about wheat bran, but I can't find it anywhere. I've looked with the oatmeal, with the regular cereals and also with the flour and cornmeal and just can't find it around here in NE Alabama where I am.

Can I get cheap bran flakes and grind them up in the food processor or maybe mix that with oatmeal or baby oatmeal cereal or something?

Oh, and at a couple of stores I did see Oat Bran next to the Cream of Wheat, but it's pretty expensive too. Can the Oat Bran or the Cream of Wheat be used even though it's too expensive?

Thanks!

 

[My Little Sister's Farm]

have you looked in the bulk bins? I usually get mine from the big bins at the natural section. It's still cheaper than whatever jar you've been getting. I think I pay around $.50 a lb.

 

[HBuehler]

All feed stores carry it..I mean feed stores not TSC! It's a quite common feed I know for our horses and also buy it for our chickens.Here a #50 is about $8.00

 

[DaKid]

You can also use corn meal and or oatmeal or corn flakes all mix up , thats what I use to raise mealworms when I had my reptile shop back in the early 90's.


Alan

 

[sred98]

We always raised ours on oatmeal...nothing cheaper!

Shelly

 

[kuntrychick]

Quote:
Do you grind up the oatmeal and corn flakes like in the food processor? That would be WAY cheaper than the wheat germ!

 

[kuntrychick]

Quote:
So feed stores carry wheat bran? Hmm....LOL shows what I know!

 

[sred98]

Quote:
Do you grind up the oatmeal and corn flakes like in the food processor? That would be WAY cheaper than the wheat germ!

We never ground the oatmeal. Not sure about the corn flakes since they are harder. Maybe just crush them up?

Shelly

 

[DaKid]

I never ground them up I just hand crush them corn flakes that is oatmeal just as you buy them corn meal the same hand mix place in a tub -jar or what ever there will do just fine if you place then in a dark spot they will not turn into beetles as fast, also place a wet /damp paper towel over the mix from time to time ,this way they will have some moister.



alan

 

[jaylyne8]

I have about a hundred in a purina layena crumble feed and oatmeal... should I be worried that I find a couple of mealworms skins on the top eventhough I put potatoes and cantalopes on the top?