Love the farm. Please make more videos! How do you move the beetles? A breakdown of your weekly tasks would be awesome. So fascinating. I appreciate the work you've put into your system.
Thanks Mike, looking at doing this setup. Note for others, these look like standard food service trays at 12.34 width. Any restaurant supply store will have many options in this width. They also have roll-able aluminum racks that will house them (although that is a nice welded rack!)
You just saved me from making a massive mistake, as I was going to use open-top trays. I had forgotten that my home is infested with moths who love grain. Big thank you :)
I started farming them with 10 beetles now I have around 50,000 worms I’ll be continuing to let them breed until I have stacks like you! Want to do to make some extra money !
hey I like your system Mike. Thanks for sharing the video. I was imagining something similar and you seem to have materialized on youtube right now haha I like the overkill durability. That is my style all the way. I realize you are probably busy but if you might be able to answer a question I've had about this type of thing. I can essentially free range my chickens 7 or 8 months out of the year and get about 4 to 5 eggs a week from them without feed since I live in a pretty lush forest and my chickens are good foragers. During the winter I take deer fat and scrap meat offal and make suet blocks from it and add some field corn I grow. I feed them that plus some sugar beets and winter squash thru the winter but still feel I need to get them a bit of commercial feed. They are pretty healthy but I figured farming insects and/or capturing them somehow en mass during the hot season and dehydrating them would be effective. I was thinking of putting bait items in a giant solar dehydrator. I'd have a little pluggable hole on the side and when the inside o that thing is humming on a sunny day I'd plug the hole and uncover the glazing to cook sterilize and dehydrate them all in one shot lol I'm not sure if that's going to work well enough to give me the volume I'd like to produce of insects so I've been looking into this too. I was just wondering if you know of a natural alternative to bran that I could use as a feed stock? I'm curious because I live in the woods and have a lot of things I could gather and store for feed stock. I just am trying to research what would work similar to bran in terms of what these beetles like? I already can grow 1000 lbs of root vegetables if I need to so throwing in a couple carrots here and there for hydration is cool. I'm wondering if something wilder like say putting a tarp under a locust tree and collecting a couple garbage cans full of seed pots and then tossing them thru the grinder might be similar to using bran? Just trying to brainstorm but no one is really wanting to take it this far so it's hard to find someone to bullshit about this topic with.
Hey, thanks for reaching out. I like the way you think, and your system sounds both efficient and economical (which I like). As far as a good wheat bran substitute, I don’t have personal experience with other food substrates, but I have heard others use rolled oats, chicken mash, cassava flour - basically anything with a high starch content (at least 40% starch). It is my understanding that seeds from plants in the grass family are a good source of starch. Do you grow anything like that during the spring/summer that you could harvest and store to use during the winter?
You can also put together a compost pile, and once it cools down in the winter, it will still stay warm enough for some insects and worms to grow inside. And chickens love pecking through a compost pile for extra protein!
@@TheRealRancherMike Nice thanks. I wasn't sure if roots would work but I grow lots of jerusalem artichokes which are not starchy. They're an inulin rich carbohydrate. I think it's similar to starch though. That would be awesome if those would work because they can fight against sod and with little care can produce about 1 or 2 tons in a 4000 square foot plot I have. I call it the guerilla plot not to be confused with my more refined kitchen garden. That is good to know though. I'll do more research on the nutrient profile of those feed stocks and see. Potato is very starchy. That would make things simple if I could just grate and dehydrate potatoes as feed. If cassava flour works I bet I could. Cassava is most likely more mineral nutrient dense than potatoes though. Hey thanks man that's got me pointed in the right direction I think. I'm going to focus more on that. I have a friend that is a biologist that can do tests so I'm going to see if he has a list of those things and see. Root crops grow way better in these parts than grain and way less labor so I'm hoping I can use all root crops and maybe collect things dropping from trees like I said since you can get a ton of wild seed pods and acorns out here off of one tree so I might be set. Do you have links to all the materials you used on your rack bin system there? Thanks for your quick response. Have a good day my friend
Not sure about Jerusalem artichokes, but might be worth a try. Mealworms are pretty hearty and can even digest styrofoam, so you would be hard-pressed to kill them. They might not grow as fast as on other food substrates, but you could certainly experiment with several things and see what works best. As for the items I use in my videos, I have most items listed under “Mealworm Farming” on my Amazon storefront. Hope that helps!
Love your set up. I want to do keep mealworms as well to feed my flock. I have 15 girls. Any recommendations of qty of worms and beetles I should start with?? Appreciate you sharing your knowledge. Hoping I can put it to use here soon.
Hi Jennifer. You might consider starting with 2000 mealworms (1000 in two separate bins) and see how it goes. That should produce plenty of mealworms for you on a sustained basis once your colony gets going. Thanks for watching, and best of luck with your mealworm farm!
@@shaker4891 This is an unlikely treatment for most. The target temperature can depend on the organism one tries to kill. Dust mites can be killed after being held at -15 Celsius for 48 hours. Most people will be unable to achieve a temperature, as household freezers do not get cold enough.
You should look into restaurant trays and holders. Idk what they’re called but it’s almost exactly what you have. It’s a stand just like your with trays just like yours and you can get trays that have slide on lids. Do a little modification on the lids and your good. You can find them on eBay for cheap.
I have now watched 2 of your videos and I find them informative and well done. I have been removing beetles from their bedding once per month, is that about right, too long or too short of a time?? I am now needing to up my production a bit so I need to fine tune by little "farm"?
I haven’t gone commercial yet, but you can check out www.mealwormfarmingsolutions.com for some great deals on live mealworms and other mealworm farming products!
I know I'm late seeing this video, but hopefully I'll still get a response.. Are you ever worried about your Frass having eggs in it? Do you keep it for a period of time to make sure that you have no new hatchlings that you weren't expecting, or do you use it right away on your plants?
Great question, Phat Mama! I didn’t explain in my video, but I actually keep my frass in the freezer for at least a couple of weeks before using to make sure that any eggs that might be in there die before I use the frass. Hope that helps!
Awesome set up. My basement humidity at times is above 60% even with the dehumidifier “old farm house dirt basement floor”. If I were to set a farm up down there for chicken and quail feed I apparently run the risk of mites getting in with the meal worms. What then? How bad are mites and would they infest my home or just meal worm set up?
Great show and info how long does it take for the Beatles to lay eggs and how long before you will be seeing the hatched little meal worms that look clear got some on wheat brand and screen had for about 1 1/2 weeks but not seeing any small meal worms yet what should we expect time wise thanks
Thanks! It takes about 2-3 weeks for beetles to start laying eggs. And it will take another 2-3 weeks before you will start to see movement of tiny mealworms (and even then, you’ll probably need a magnifying glass to see them). Hope that helps, and thanks for watching!
Hello Mike great vid, I wanted to know your final opinions on what is the best dimension for the pupae sifter, 0.125", 0.135",or something else? Thx a lot
That’s interesting the containers that you have for the grass and bran! Where could I find some like that? Also I was intrigued that you heat-treat your grain. I’ve heard of freezing but not heat!!
If you check out the bottom of my video, there is a link to my Amazon storefront. If you go to “Mealworm Farming,” you will find my store with all of the gear you see in my videos. As for heat-treating, it is WAY more effective at killing mite eggs. Freezing is no guarantee. Hope that helps!
Just discovered this great series! May ask; about how many mealworms per chicken per day to make a difference in egg production (Cups/grams or #)? I have a small flock and would like to transition to a less soybean based diet. Thank you, and I apologize if you already have covered the info on this feed ratio. Thank you and subbed :-)
Thanks for the sub, Debbie! I don't have a sense for how many mealworms per day would affect egg production because it depends on a lot of factors - the age of the birds, whether you are raising them for meat for just for eggs, etc. Having said that, if you have normal-sized adult laying hens, a good rule of thumb is feeding around 1/2 cup of feed a day per chicken (and the overall feed should be roughly 16% protein). So, if you are backing away from store-bought products, you could use whole grains like wheat, corn, flax, cooked rice (make sure it's cooked), raw oatmeal, cooked oatmeal, legumes, or even just table scraps. I also give my chickens treats (aside from mealworms), like plain greek yogurt and sunflower seeds, which are rich in protein. On days when I give them such protein-based treats, I don't give them mealworms as well. On days when I give mealworms, I usually provide around a teaspoon's worth of mealworms per chicken. You have to be careful not to give your chickens too much protein, because they need a balance of minerals and carbohydrates to stay healthy. Keep in mind that you want your chickens to forage for insects and other tasty items in the yard as well, so don't spoil them with too many treats. I hope that helps!
Hi! I don’t have a video on how to make those sifters, but keep an eye out for some of my new products launching soon - www.mealwormfarmingsolutions.com!
Another question for you, I have my 6 plastic bins stacked vertically in our home office and for the past couple of mornings I have noted the temperature is about 64 degrees and humidity about 53%. I am considering trying to find some kind of heater to raise temps into the 70s, any thoughts?
At the bottom of each of my YT videos, I include a link to my Amazon storefront. There, you will find a section called “Mealworm Farming.“ In that section, I list several bins, totes, and lids that you can use with your mealworm farm. Each time you purchase from my link, I get a very small commission, which helps me continue making these videos. For my system, I used these pans: amzn.to/3FoYtgg and these lids: amzn.to/384RNI5. For the lids, I cut the top with a router and added mesh for ventilation. The mesh I used is here: amzn.to/3KTc8NV. I attached the mesh with this two-sided tape: amzn.to/3FmRynV. I then placed this gaffer’s tape over top: amzn.to/3FmRt3B. Hope that helps!
I actually grow out my mealworms until they turn into pupae, and ultimately, beetles. I then let the beetles mate for a few weeks and lay eggs. Those eggs will grow up into more mealworms. That way, I always have mealworms, pupae, and beetles developing in my bins.
how do you quickly filter/isolate all the pupaes from the all of those wheat bran quickly? It seems to me like if you have to hand pick them out, that ould be quite a lot of work...
loved the video! thanks. I also have a superworm farm system in Israel. I wonder, how do you make sure that there are no insects in the wheat bran? I keep a big freezer and store all the wheat bran inside, do you have a different method for that?
@@TheRealRancherMike Amazing. Thank you very much! Sounds like you are extremely thorough. Is it because you had mites in the wheat if you did not heat it after freezing? Here in Israel, the main parasite I am dealing with is the Indianmeal moth; And as far as I know, it dies at very low temperature.
@@TheRealRancherMike They are saying that - compared to red meat of any kind - it takes much less land, less water, less feed, less refrigeration, and less machinery to farm insects if not mycelium meat. Of course, there is need for extra building space for insects or mycelium meat which require climate control and certain special needs.
@@TheRealRancherMike Yeah man! To each his own... For some people it is producing food for chickens. In some areas they are grinding up mealworms to make a food additive almost like nutritional yeast. Those who have gotten used to stir fried mealworms say they luv it. Mycelium Meat is looking real cool. Thank you
You started mealworm ranching to feed your chickens? How many mealworms before it's commercially viable and not just a hobby? The rack setup you have, how many mealworms would you estimate that handles?
Yes, I use my mealworm farm to feed my chickens. With my setup, I fill a 1 gallon bucket about every two weeks when things get going (that’s if I didn’t take some out of the bucket to feed my chickens). So, it’s not at a stage where I could produce enough to sell commercially. I would need at least one other rack system I think to be able to start selling some. Hope that helps!
@@TheRealRancherMike Thank you sir Your system is going to work great. So for me to produce a similar harvest on your number of trays I would need 200 beetles? 200 beetles @ 30 eggs a day
@@TheRealRancherMike OK thank you very much, I'll catch up in a few months and let you know If you have any other mealworm videos I wouldn't mind seen them too Regards
Hi, the carrots in my mealworm bin turned moldy. Is this normal? Should they be left in there until I sift my beetles into new substrate & containers? Frass - do you add it directly to your garden or do you mix with other things? Is it ok to add to veggie garden? Thanks for the vid... Great info:)
Hi Christine. If the carrots are turning moldy, the humidity in your room is probably too high. You might look into a dehumidifier. I put a link to the one I use (and the pump that I connect to it to push the water into a drain for my washer/dryer in my garage) in my Amazon storefront. You will find a link to that storefront at the bottom of each of my videos. Go to the “Mealworm Farming” section of my storefront to find all of the items I use in my videos (including the black pans and clear plastic lids that I cut and put mesh screen on). As for the frass, I mix it with water and then let it sit for an hour or so before mixing again and pouring in my garden. And, yes, you can use it with your veggies to make the plants grow healthy and strong!
I want to raise all my chicken food too. How many chickens do you have? Is the meal worm food cheaper than chicken food? I wonder if mealworms can eat dried leaves, or chicken poop!
Shai, this is impossible to do because the eggs are so tiny, and they cling to all surfaces. The best you can do is put the frass in the freezer after you separate it to kill any mealworm eggs and prevent them from running around in the frass bucket. Again, it’s not ideal to leave the beetles in the same tray as the mealworms for this reason, but when you are faced with this situation, it’s the best you can do. The frass will still be perfectly fine, but you won’t be able to harvest any mealworms from it. Hope that helps!
Mike Hi I am having a problem with my pupae although the worms are having good sources of humidity still from time to time I get the odd dry ones any thoughts on the issue Best.
Hi Taylor, both vary from week to week depending on how well my beetles have been laying (since it all trickles down from there). I would say I collect about 2 pounds of frass a week or more and about 1.5 pounds of mature mealworms at the moment. I hope that helps!
@@TheRealRancherMike if I'm not mistaken it's also good for adding "fluff" to the soil for allowing aeration to the soil. Here in Missouri until you work the land for a while you can have some VERY clay heavy soil so anything that can "add lightness" is welcome. I have tilled 4 ft deep about half an acre at this point of top soil with literally tons of compost and sad. Oh man it's glorious lol. But I ordered, I forget the weight but it was 5 pallets of 5 gallon buckets stacked 6 buckets high of insect exos to mix in with the compost after letting it rain on for a season my garden produces like freaking crazy and at least to me it seems the stalks are more firm than my neighbors. My main focus though is my greenhouse avocado orchard that is an obsession. Fully climate controlled soil and air along with ventilation system for the soil, CO2 generators I have an army of Silkies to harvest that poop and I get all the banana peels from the prison about 40 miles away for a small fee, read that as bribe to the kitchen manager guy, and a couple local schools. I make my own potash effectively. But I can grow lots of avocado year round in Missouri and it pays my bills supplying restaurants and few select small grocers and farmers market. Super high quality avocado are impossible to find year round in Missouri and I'm the only game around other than the mediocre stuff from the large grocery stores that drive stuff from Cali and it's all bruised or super under ripe or ready to be pitched by the time you get it home lol
Does it add nitrogen like chicken poop? I only have chicken for their poop and these seem like a great way to get more fertilizer and feed my beloved Dinner Doggos. I have a *Herd* of Silkies that is about 50 strong at this point to keep poop supplied for my avocado orchard
Love the farm. Please make more videos! How do you move the beetles? A breakdown of your weekly tasks would be awesome. So fascinating. I appreciate the work you've put into your system.
Thanks Mike, looking at doing this setup. Note for others, these look like standard food service trays at 12.34 width. Any restaurant supply store will have many options in this width. They also have roll-able aluminum racks that will house them (although that is a nice welded rack!)
Wow, that’s an impressive setup! Very informative video. I had no idea mealworms needed a specific humidity. Thanks for sharing!
You just saved me from making a massive mistake, as I was going to use open-top trays. I had forgotten that my home is infested with moths who love grain. Big thank you :)
Glad to hear it!
I started farming them with 10 beetles now I have around 50,000 worms I’ll be continuing to let them breed until I have stacks like you!
Want to do to make some extra money !
Nice vid looking forward to the next mealworm update
Would love to see the whole system in a series of videos. I was going to do this for my chickens.
This setup is impressive! Definitely looking for more details.
This was very informative. Please do a video on the sifting
Great setup thanks for sharing looking forward to seeing more 👍🏼new follower
Like to see how you keep your pupa before they turn to Beatles
I would like to see the sift system you have. Enjoyed your video. have a blessed day.
I like the racking set up you have and how you can move the worms as they grow and mature.
Thanks!
Love your setup. You really invested a lot on your farm.
Thanks!
hey I like your system Mike. Thanks for sharing the video. I was imagining something similar and you seem to have materialized on youtube right now haha I like the overkill durability. That is my style all the way. I realize you are probably busy but if you might be able to answer a question I've had about this type of thing.
I can essentially free range my chickens 7 or 8 months out of the year and get about 4 to 5 eggs a week from them without feed since I live in a pretty lush forest and my chickens are good foragers. During the winter I take deer fat and scrap meat offal and make suet blocks from it and add some field corn I grow. I feed them that plus some sugar beets and winter squash thru the winter but still feel I need to get them a bit of commercial feed.
They are pretty healthy but I figured farming insects and/or capturing them somehow en mass during the hot season and dehydrating them would be effective. I was thinking of putting bait items in a giant solar dehydrator. I'd have a little pluggable hole on the side and when the inside o that thing is humming on a sunny day I'd plug the hole and uncover the glazing to cook sterilize and dehydrate them all in one shot lol
I'm not sure if that's going to work well enough to give me the volume I'd like to produce of insects so I've been looking into this too. I was just wondering if you know of a natural alternative to bran that I could use as a feed stock? I'm curious because I live in the woods and have a lot of things I could gather and store for feed stock. I just am trying to research what would work similar to bran in terms of what these beetles like? I already can grow 1000 lbs of root vegetables if I need to so throwing in a couple carrots here and there for hydration is cool. I'm wondering if something wilder like say putting a tarp under a locust tree and collecting a couple garbage cans full of seed pots and then tossing them thru the grinder might be similar to using bran? Just trying to brainstorm but no one is really wanting to take it this far so it's hard to find someone to bullshit about this topic with.
Hey, thanks for reaching out. I like the way you think, and your system sounds both efficient and economical (which I like). As far as a good wheat bran substitute, I don’t have personal experience with other food substrates, but I have heard others use rolled oats, chicken mash, cassava flour - basically anything with a high starch content (at least 40% starch). It is my understanding that seeds from plants in the grass family are a good source of starch. Do you grow anything like that during the spring/summer that you could harvest and store to use during the winter?
You can also put together a compost pile, and once it cools down in the winter, it will still stay warm enough for some insects and worms to grow inside. And chickens love pecking through a compost pile for extra protein!
@@TheRealRancherMike Nice thanks. I wasn't sure if roots would work but I grow lots of jerusalem artichokes which are not starchy. They're an inulin rich carbohydrate. I think it's similar to starch though. That would be awesome if those would work because they can fight against sod and with little care can produce about 1 or 2 tons in a 4000 square foot plot I have. I call it the guerilla plot not to be confused with my more refined kitchen garden.
That is good to know though. I'll do more research on the nutrient profile of those feed stocks and see. Potato is very starchy. That would make things simple if I could just grate and dehydrate potatoes as feed. If cassava flour works I bet I could. Cassava is most likely more mineral nutrient dense than potatoes though.
Hey thanks man that's got me pointed in the right direction I think. I'm going to focus more on that. I have a friend that is a biologist that can do tests so I'm going to see if he has a list of those things and see. Root crops grow way better in these parts than grain and way less labor so I'm hoping I can use all root crops and maybe collect things dropping from trees like I said since you can get a ton of wild seed pods and acorns out here off of one tree so I might be set.
Do you have links to all the materials you used on your rack bin system there? Thanks for your quick response. Have a good day my friend
Not sure about Jerusalem artichokes, but might be worth a try. Mealworms are pretty hearty and can even digest styrofoam, so you would be hard-pressed to kill them. They might not grow as fast as on other food substrates, but you could certainly experiment with several things and see what works best.
As for the items I use in my videos, I have most items listed under “Mealworm Farming” on my Amazon storefront. Hope that helps!
Beautiful explanation sir! Thank you so much
Thanks!
Useful information. Thank you for the information.
Love your set up. I want to do keep mealworms as well to feed my flock. I have 15 girls. Any recommendations of qty of worms and beetles I should start with?? Appreciate you sharing your knowledge. Hoping I can put it to use here soon.
Hi Jennifer. You might consider starting with 2000 mealworms (1000 in two separate bins) and see how it goes. That should produce plenty of mealworms for you on a sustained basis once your colony gets going. Thanks for watching, and best of luck with your mealworm farm!
Hi, amazing videos. I'm very pleased aboout Czech subtitles. Thank you
Thanks, Radka!
Great information. Please keep the videos coming.Can you provide more info on where to purchase the trays you are using?
Nice video. Can you make next video with all media preparation for the meal worm farming?
great work ,would love to see more.
To what temp did you heat-treat your grain? I've also read that freezing can effectively kill mite eggs.
Freezing for how long ? Did you found it to be true ?
@@shaker4891 This is an unlikely treatment for most. The target temperature can depend on the organism one tries to kill. Dust mites can be killed after being held at -15 Celsius for 48 hours. Most people will be unable to achieve a temperature, as household freezers do not get cold enough.
You should look into restaurant trays and holders. Idk what they’re called but it’s almost exactly what you have. It’s a stand just like your with trays just like yours and you can get trays that have slide on lids. Do a little modification on the lids and your good. You can find them on eBay for cheap.
Love the video!
I have now watched 2 of your videos and I find them informative and well done. I have been removing beetles from their bedding once per month, is that about right, too long or too short of a time?? I am now needing to up my production a bit so I need to fine tune by little "farm"?
Thank you very much Mike! Have you decided to go commercial?
I haven’t gone commercial yet, but you can check out www.mealwormfarmingsolutions.com for some great deals on live mealworms and other mealworm farming products!
@@TheRealRancherMike Thank you for your reply, I will check it out!
Please step by step how to move sift and farm your meal worms I’m wanting to start one of my own.
Can you please give the web site that you purchased the black trays. Thank you
Tnx for sharing, very informative... More videos
Awesome setup
Hi! Very exciting :) I would like to know how you clean the boxes...
Why clean it?
If you like to clean it, water works fine i guess🤔
I know I'm late seeing this video, but hopefully I'll still get a response..
Are you ever worried about your Frass having eggs in it? Do you keep it for a period of time to make sure that you have no new hatchlings that you weren't expecting, or do you use it right away on your plants?
Great question, Phat Mama! I didn’t explain in my video, but I actually keep my frass in the freezer for at least a couple of weeks before using to make sure that any eggs that might be in there die before I use the frass. Hope that helps!
Awesome set up. My basement humidity at times is above 60% even with the dehumidifier “old farm house dirt basement floor”. If I were to set a farm up down there for chicken and quail feed I apparently run the risk of mites getting in with the meal worms. What then? How bad are mites and would they infest my home or just meal worm set up?
Great show and info how long does it take for the Beatles to lay eggs and how long before you will be seeing the hatched little meal worms that look clear got some on wheat brand and screen had for about 1 1/2 weeks but not seeing any small meal worms yet what should we expect time wise thanks
Thanks! It takes about 2-3 weeks for beetles to start laying eggs. And it will take another 2-3 weeks before you will start to see movement of tiny mealworms (and even then, you’ll probably need a magnifying glass to see them). Hope that helps, and thanks for watching!
Great video. What method do you use to treat/cook the wheat bran?
Hello Mike great vid,
I wanted to know your final opinions on what is the best dimension for the pupae sifter, 0.125", 0.135",or something else? Thx a lot
süper
How many meal worms do you produce per week or month?
Very nice and well done setup. It has been a couple of months now. Do you think it's commercially feasible?
@@TheRealRancherMike That's what it look like. Thanks for your answer. I have a small red wigglers 'farm' but I'll watch you videos. tk
Can you feed your mealworms quick oats .. or just oatmeal.. or rolled oats. Thanks much
Any of the above is fine. 😉
That’s interesting the containers that you have for the grass and bran! Where could I find some like that? Also I was intrigued that you heat-treat your grain. I’ve heard of freezing but not heat!!
If you check out the bottom of my video, there is a link to my Amazon storefront. If you go to “Mealworm Farming,” you will find my store with all of the gear you see in my videos. As for heat-treating, it is WAY more effective at killing mite eggs. Freezing is no guarantee. Hope that helps!
Great video!!!! Can you share where you purchased the food trays?thanks again
@@TheRealRancherMike thank you very much for the response
Just discovered this great series! May ask; about how many mealworms per chicken per day to make a difference in egg production (Cups/grams or #)? I have a small flock and would like to transition to a less soybean based diet. Thank you, and I apologize if you already have covered the info on this feed ratio. Thank you and subbed :-)
Thanks for the sub, Debbie! I don't have a sense for how many mealworms per day would affect egg production because it depends on a lot of factors - the age of the birds, whether you are raising them for meat for just for eggs, etc. Having said that, if you have normal-sized adult laying hens, a good rule of thumb is feeding around 1/2 cup of feed a day per chicken (and the overall feed should be roughly 16% protein). So, if you are backing away from store-bought products, you could use whole grains like wheat, corn, flax, cooked rice (make sure it's cooked), raw oatmeal, cooked oatmeal, legumes, or even just table scraps. I also give my chickens treats (aside from mealworms), like plain greek yogurt and sunflower seeds, which are rich in protein. On days when I give them such protein-based treats, I don't give them mealworms as well. On days when I give mealworms, I usually provide around a teaspoon's worth of mealworms per chicken. You have to be careful not to give your chickens too much protein, because they need a balance of minerals and carbohydrates to stay healthy. Keep in mind that you want your chickens to forage for insects and other tasty items in the yard as well, so don't spoil them with too many treats. I hope that helps!
Where can I get those food bins with lids?
so cool.....Thanks
Hi. Do u do video on how to make frass sifter, and pupa sifter?
Hi! I don’t have a video on how to make those sifters, but keep an eye out for some of my new products launching soon - www.mealwormfarmingsolutions.com!
hey dude,watching from the Philippines,can u share whats the height of your food tray?
Hi Eddie! My food trays are approx. 3.75” high.
thanks mike.. need this
Larvae stage has the most protein?
Hi can you please provide me the link to those containers with the mesh tops/lids?
Thank you:)
Another question for you, I have my 6 plastic bins stacked vertically in our home office and for the past couple of mornings I have noted the temperature is about 64 degrees and humidity about 53%. I am considering trying to find some kind of heater to raise temps into the 70s, any thoughts?
Evening from South Africa why is my pupae much bigger and even my Beatles larger
Where do you get your trays with the lids
At the bottom of each of my YT videos, I include a link to my Amazon storefront. There, you will find a section called “Mealworm Farming.“ In that section, I list several bins, totes, and lids that you can use with your mealworm farm. Each time you purchase from my link, I get a very small commission, which helps me continue making these videos. For my system, I used these pans: amzn.to/3FoYtgg and these lids: amzn.to/384RNI5. For the lids, I cut the top with a router and added mesh for ventilation. The mesh I used is here: amzn.to/3KTc8NV. I attached the mesh with this two-sided tape: amzn.to/3FmRynV. I then placed this gaffer’s tape over top: amzn.to/3FmRt3B. Hope that helps!
Can I just keep them well feed cross my fingers and keep them all in one tube? How do you separate the beetles from the larvae and eggs?
where do you buy your darkling beetles and larvae from?
I actually grow out my mealworms until they turn into pupae, and ultimately, beetles. I then let the beetles mate for a few weeks and lay eggs. Those eggs will grow up into more mealworms. That way, I always have mealworms, pupae, and beetles developing in my bins.
how do you quickly filter/isolate all the pupaes from the all of those wheat bran quickly? It seems to me like if you have to hand pick them out, that ould be quite a lot of work...
Beetles are laying eggs but also poop.
How do you separate the poop from the eggs? Greetings from the Netherlands.
You have tô use suggar cabe.
loved the video! thanks. I also have a superworm farm system in Israel.
I wonder, how do you make sure that there are no insects in the wheat bran? I keep a big freezer and store all the wheat bran inside, do you have a different method for that?
@@TheRealRancherMike Amazing. Thank you very much! Sounds like you are extremely thorough. Is it because you had mites in the wheat if you did not heat it after freezing?
Here in Israel, the main parasite I am dealing with is the Indianmeal moth; And as far as I know, it dies at very low temperature.
How long to zap them in the microwave
How do you sort?
Tremendous!
Looking like a $500 to $1000 dollar investment to get started.
Can your Mealworm production compete with your beef production?
Thanks!
Can’t compete with beef production, but it certainly helps with the overall economics of my ranch!
@@TheRealRancherMike
They are saying that - compared to red meat of any kind - it takes much less land, less water, less feed, less refrigeration, and less machinery to farm insects if not mycelium meat.
Of course, there is need for extra building space for insects or mycelium meat which require climate control and certain special needs.
Understood, but you can’t throw mealworms on the grill! 😉🤣
@@TheRealRancherMike
Yeah man!
To each his own...
For some people it is producing food for chickens.
In some areas they are grinding up mealworms to make a food additive almost like nutritional yeast.
Those who have gotten used to stir fried mealworms say they luv it.
Mycelium Meat is looking real cool.
Thank you
Hey there, would this system work if you were trying to grow mealworms for human consumption?
You started mealworm ranching to feed your chickens? How many mealworms before it's commercially viable and not just a hobby? The rack setup you have, how many mealworms would you estimate that handles?
Yes, I use my mealworm farm to feed my chickens. With my setup, I fill a 1 gallon bucket about every two weeks when things get going (that’s if I didn’t take some out of the bucket to feed my chickens). So, it’s not at a stage where I could produce enough to sell commercially. I would need at least one other rack system I think to be able to start selling some. Hope that helps!
Great video like the rack
How do you sift out the frazz??
Your wheat bran link says currently not available.
Where did you buy everything?
where buy the vacuum?
Hello, thank you for the info.
How has it turned out and what was your weekly output on that number of trays and beetles?
Regards
@@TheRealRancherMike
Thank you sir
Your system is going to work great.
So for me to produce a similar harvest on your number of trays I would need 200 beetles?
200 beetles @ 30 eggs a day
@@TheRealRancherMike
OK thank you very much, I'll catch up in a few months and let you know
If you have any other mealworm videos I wouldn't mind seen them too
Regards
Did you remove the replys?
Hi, the carrots in my mealworm bin turned moldy. Is this normal? Should they be left in there until I sift my beetles into new substrate & containers?
Frass - do you add it directly to your garden or do you mix with other things? Is it ok to add to veggie garden?
Thanks for the vid... Great info:)
Hi Christine. If the carrots are turning moldy, the humidity in your room is probably too high. You might look into a dehumidifier. I put a link to the one I use (and the pump that I connect to it to push the water into a drain for my washer/dryer in my garage) in my Amazon storefront. You will find a link to that storefront at the bottom of each of my videos. Go to the “Mealworm Farming” section of my storefront to find all of the items I use in my videos (including the black pans and clear plastic lids that I cut and put mesh screen on).
As for the frass, I mix it with water and then let it sit for an hour or so before mixing again and pouring in my garden. And, yes, you can use it with your veggies to make the plants grow healthy and strong!
@@TheRealRancherMike thanks:)
I want to raise all my chicken food too. How many chickens do you have? Is the meal worm food cheaper than chicken food? I wonder if mealworms can eat dried leaves, or chicken poop!
@@TheRealRancherMike , I think I will do the experiment as soon as I dig up a few meal worms... Stay tuned!
hi Mike
what is the ideal ratio in your opinion in terms
of adult beetles and the space provided ?
Rancher Mike thanks
How do you separate frass from eggs (so that when you put the frass in the bin, it doesn't contain eggs)?
Shai, this is impossible to do because the eggs are so tiny, and they cling to all surfaces. The best you can do is put the frass in the freezer after you separate it to kill any mealworm eggs and prevent them from running around in the frass bucket. Again, it’s not ideal to leave the beetles in the same tray as the mealworms for this reason, but when you are faced with this situation, it’s the best you can do. The frass will still be perfectly fine, but you won’t be able to harvest any mealworms from it. Hope that helps!
What is the price per kg?
link for the trays?
Check the bottom of the video for a link to my Amazon storefront where you will find the trays under “Mealworm Farming.” Thanks for watching!
On this farm , how many worms are produced per month?
Hard to say because they are always developing, but I harvest about 3 kg every 2 weeks.
Mike Hi
I am having a problem with my pupae although the worms are having good sources of humidity still from time to time I get the odd dry ones any thoughts on the issue
Best.
Thanks to your prompt response
What I meant by humidity is hydration
There’s always either potatoes or carrots or cabbage.
Regards.
Rancher Mike
Natural selection 👍
How much frass per week do you get from your bin? How many lbs of meal worms?
Hi Taylor, both vary from week to week depending on how well my beetles have been laying (since it all trickles down from there). I would say I collect about 2 pounds of frass a week or more and about 1.5 pounds of mature mealworms at the moment. I hope that helps!
@@TheRealRancherMike how much feed to you give them for 2 lbs of frass?
Unfortunately, I have no idea.
@@TheRealRancherMike well, how much do you feed them per week? Grain wise.
If I were to guess, I would say 5-6 pounds of grain to yield 2 pounds of frass. But that’s just a guess.
Are those Mealworms in your Amazon link from you? Are you selling?
@@TheRealRancherMike thank you!
I keep seeing mealworm farmers saving the molts... why do this. What do you keep it for
@@TheRealRancherMike if I'm not mistaken it's also good for adding "fluff" to the soil for allowing aeration to the soil. Here in Missouri until you work the land for a while you can have some VERY clay heavy soil so anything that can "add lightness" is welcome. I have tilled 4 ft deep about half an acre at this point of top soil with literally tons of compost and sad. Oh man it's glorious lol. But I ordered, I forget the weight but it was 5 pallets of 5 gallon buckets stacked 6 buckets high of insect exos to mix in with the compost after letting it rain on for a season my garden produces like freaking crazy and at least to me it seems the stalks are more firm than my neighbors. My main focus though is my greenhouse avocado orchard that is an obsession. Fully climate controlled soil and air along with ventilation system for the soil, CO2 generators I have an army of Silkies to harvest that poop and I get all the banana peels from the prison about 40 miles away for a small fee, read that as bribe to the kitchen manager guy, and a couple local schools. I make my own potash effectively. But I can grow lots of avocado year round in Missouri and it pays my bills supplying restaurants and few select small grocers and farmers market. Super high quality avocado are impossible to find year round in Missouri and I'm the only game around other than the mediocre stuff from the large grocery stores that drive stuff from Cali and it's all bruised or super under ripe or ready to be pitched by the time you get it home lol
Well done, very nice video. If I want to feed 200000 chicken, Do you think how much my Mealworm farm should be greater than you?
Frass harvest please
Does it add nitrogen like chicken poop? I only have chicken for their poop and these seem like a great way to get more fertilizer and feed my beloved Dinner Doggos. I have a *Herd* of Silkies that is about 50 strong at this point to keep poop supplied for my avocado orchard
i got a small farm 😅
Filming Tick-Tok style... XD