Tall Glass of mealworms

[osbain]

So i checked on my mealworm colony today to throw in a pupa that was in one of my feeding dishes, I had recently put in some carrots on a paper towel ontop of my bedding mixture for food and moisture and i noticed the oats and stuff was gone funny around the edge of the paper towel, when i lifted the paper towel it was green underneath. Obviously i got rid of all of it and transported the meal worms and pupa's to a new container. It wasn't all bad, i got my first beetle today meaning its looking good in the long run
So my question is, How do others avoid mold but still get them the moisture they need?

 

[herpencounter]

Whats the paper towel for?

 

[LizMarie]

i don't bother with all that added moisture I think it's over kill and will cause many more problems like mold. They just need some oats to eat and for bedding, some fruits/veggies for moisture, ie carrots, apples, potatoes, etc and they'll be fine. I did it that way and they grew just fine.

 

[mainelygeckos]

I have used cheerios and oatmeal ground up fine in blender for substrate and use carrots for moisture..so far I have 7 beetles, about 40 pupa and more every day and almost 700 mealies...I just got my first beetle less then a week ago and now have 7 with more every day so its going good i think..yes about moisture its very easy to have too much and carrots do not mold and mealies love em...I have noticed tho that some of my worms have surfaced and aren't moving a lot but i think they are getting ready to change all at once lol..mealy colonies are so easy in my opinion so be patient and watch out for apples and potatoes they mold real easy..carrots is the way to go ..good luck

 

[dewbert]

I ruined a colony of mealworms recently because of mold. I was putting carrots directly on the oats--big mistake. Now I have a plastic lid in there, sitting on top of the oats, and I put the carrots on top of the lid. I poked more holes in the lid of the container too. No more mold!

 

[mainelygeckos]

I have been doin my colony for 2 months now and no mold with carrots directly on substrate tho the carrots don't last long enough for mold anyhow..I was using apples at first but they molded real darn quick so opted out of those quick.

 

[dmuehl]

I only use carrots - whole ones for my colony. I've not had any mold issue and they sit on the surface. Make sure you have enough breathing in the container so that moisture doesn't build up.

Good luck on your colony.

 

[Pepper]

My mealies won't eat potatoes!!! I have to give them carrots, and the only time I've had a mold problem was when I put some slices of apple in there and forgot about them!!!!

 

[Beneath]

I have a little over 31,231 beetles right now. I started useing a mixture of wheat bran and oatmeal. I have 11,123 pupae. Currently, I do not know the mealworms. For moisture, I use potatoes. I have been trying to use a damp towel paper for my beetles since I just don't seem them really use the potatoe. Unlike my mealworms who just eat it all except the skin. By the way, those numbers are close to exact number of pupae/beetles. I count how many hatched each day etc.

 

[LizMarie]

I have a little over 31,231 beetles right now. I started useing a mixture of wheat bran and oatmeal. I have 11,123 pupae. Currently, I do not know the mealworms. For moisture, I use potatoes. I have been trying to use a damp towel paper for my beetles since I just don't seem them really use the potatoe. Unlike my mealworms who just eat it all except the skin. By the way, those numbers are close to exact number of pupae/beetles. I count how many hatched each day etc.

What are you feeding over there, lol..

the mealworms and beetles I've had will eat an entire carrot in a day or two, so you might want to consider them.

 

[Beneath]

What are you feeding over there, lol..

the mealworms and beetles I've had will eat an entire carrot in a day or two, so you might want to consider them.

I just have a glider. I plan on selling them in the future. Maybe I will try the carrots again.