Were you a regular poster when you had "BBob"? I seem to remember someone having had a Bob. I know how you could miss these guys, they are just so great!
Anyway, on to the mealworms..........
I have a plastic drawer cart on wheels that I purchased at Wal-Mart. You can get them at any discount place. I chose the larger ones that are about 2' wide and 16" deep (just a close guess, not exact).
Most use bran or oatmeal for bedding but I prefer to use unmediated chicken layana or mash for layers. I feel that it is a better gut load because it has added vitamins, minerals, and especially important, Calcium. It is formulated for laying hens for optimal egg production. It is used by many worm breeders for both mealworms and for nightcrawler chow because it helps increase egg production, there for increased product. It comes in pellets or crumbles. I have the pellets currently and although it works fine it is easier to find the worms in the crumble.
Place a layer about 2” deep in one drawer and add mealworms. Depending on how many you will be using you can add anywhere from 200 to 2000. I started mine with 2000 so I could feed my animals from the bin while some larva were maturing and turning into pupae. When you find the funny looking pupae, place them in a second drawer with about ¼” of feed in it and wait for them to turn into beetles. The reason I do it this way is that the beetles will have chow to eat when they morph and I don’t miss feeding them right away. If they don’t have food and fresh veggies they will eat the other pupae and slow production considerably.
So, once you get beetles just feed them and let them do their thing. As the beetles get older, about 2-3 weeks, remove the dead beetles and move any remaining beetles to the 3rd drawer.
Leave the drawer the beetles were in for a while and you will eventually see the feed moving as the tiny new worms/larvae crawl around. At first you will see some movement in the feed but the worms are like little fine strands of hair and only 1/16 to 1/8” long. As these mature add them to the first worm drawer and continue to repeat the process. I guarantee you will have thousands of worms in a matter of months. Before adding new baby worms and eggs I sift the worm bedding to get rid of the feces and waste feed dust.
I haven’t purchased any mealworms for 1 ½ years now and have even sold some to others in the community.
Make sure, if you are using chicken feed, that it is unmediated and that it doesn’t get moldy. The worms and beetles will need moisture and this is most easily provided in the form of fruits and veggies. I find that carrots work real well and usually are eaten before the bedding absorbs the moisture. Other good choices are, apple slices, stems from leaf lettuce, summer squash, sweet potato, and celery. In a pinch when you don’t have any safe fruits and veggies you can put a piece of moist paper towel or newspaper and they will eat that for the moisture.
For more on foods check out Trace's web site. You can find it through the Leo Gecko family album on the kingsnake forum.
Good luck,
Marcia
