Mealworm Substrate

Snipes

Arachnoprince
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Feb 25, 2005
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1,385
I have been keeping and breeding mealworms (I believe their scientific name is something like Tenebrio monitor or something along those lines) for 6 months or so. I have been very succesful at it, but i have trouble with the substrate. I have heard to get bran oat, but the closest thing to it i could find was Quaker instant oat bran, and it costs about 3.50 per box. I need two boxes per 2 months or so. Can any1 recommend a cheaper and equally better, or superior substrate that costs less. Also something i could buy at Safeway or some other store like that?
 

David_F

Arachnoprince
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Feb 9, 2004
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Any oatmeal should work. There's gotta be something cheaper than Quaker around.
 

mo_2

Arachnopeon
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Apr 6, 2005
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48
I use wheat germ and oat bran mixed together. I buy it at safeway in the baking goods section (I am in Canada so I don't know if our Safeway's are the same). I only have a small colony so a bag of each lasts a long time but it costs me about 3 bucks total.
 

stonemantis

Arachnoprince
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Apr 6, 2005
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1,187
Snipes said:
I have been keeping and breeding mealworms (I believe their scientific name is something like Tenebrio monitor or something along those lines) for 6 months or so. I have been very succesful at it, but i have trouble with the substrate. I have heard to get bran oat, but the closest thing to it i could find was Quaker instant oat bran, and it costs about 3.50 per box. I need two boxes per 2 months or so. Can any1 recommend a cheaper and equally better, or superior substrate that costs less. Also something i could buy at Safeway or some other store like that?
I go to the dollar store and buy whatever cheap oatmeal I can find and then I mix it with a little flour. costs me 2.50 for the oatmeal and flour.
 

Snipes

Arachnoprince
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Feb 25, 2005
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1,385
Thanks! :D Im gonna try to get some of those things.
 

packer43064

Arachnosquire
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Apr 25, 2004
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74
I just use cheerios and rice krispies. It have worked well for mealworms and superworms. The superworms have bred and now I have alot of tiny superworms and the mealworms have bred but I have no more beetles left of them because I fed them all to my american toad.
 

Mattyb

Arachnoking
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Jun 28, 2004
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2,317
Where i work, we use corn cob and they seem to like it.



-Mattyb
 

Snipes

Arachnoprince
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Feb 25, 2005
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1,385
yeah, i have hundreds of beetles, but few feedable worms. Can i put beetles in the fridge? I want to make it so feedable mealworms are available all the time instead of a lot at one time, and not at another.
 

stonemantis

Arachnoprince
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1,187
The mealworms growth can be slowed in the refrigerator. So I think the beetles can too
 

Mattyb

Arachnoking
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stonemantis said:
The mealworms growth can be slowed in the refrigerator. So I think the beetles can too

How? lol



-Mattyb
 
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