• Automatic chicken waterer
• Microbusiness ebook
• Homemade deer deterrent
• Cosmic cookout

While I was finishing up the ditch digging project I noticed a significant population of grubs, which got me to thinking about the possibility of raising meal worms for a chicken feed supplement.

As usual the internet has quite a lot to say on the subject of meal worms, but I found the Sialis website and all was made clear.

It seems like a bit more work than raising worms, but once you read the Sialis information you'll feel like an expert.

You should be ready to wait around 3 months for your first harvest, and most folks recommend a group of 1000 to get started, which can be had for around 20 bucks. This could be an excellent way to raise the quality of your eggs if your hens live in a coop and compete with a large flock for juicy insect snacks. Stay tuned to see if I can figure out a way to cut back on our store bought chicken feed with the help of a well planned insect community.

While you're improving your chickens' healthy, you should make sure they have clean water, an easy task with our homemade chicken waterer.

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Raising Mealworms

I've been raising mealworms for a few months now in anticipation of getting quail and chickens. They are the easiest livestock that I have ever raised. I ignore them for most of the week and throw in veggie scraps on the weekend.I raise mine in a cheap plastic aquarium with a lid and they nest in a bed of oatmeal. It has been a wonderful way to boost the protein for my quail chicks and a way of "growing" more of their feed.

Comment by TheMartianChick — late Monday evening, May 4th, 2009

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comment 2

I'm glad to hear positive feedback from someone who's tried it. Of course, I still want Mark to instead find a way to lure all of the Japanese beetle grubs out of the ground instead...

Comment by anna — early Tuesday morning, May 5th, 2009

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comment 3

I don't know about going thru all of that trouble just to feed my own chickens, but I wonder if it would be a feasible way to make some extra $$ on the side. Pet owners and fisherman alike would probably love to stock up on some mealworms. I used to feed them to my lizard all the time and would buy 100 of them from PetCo a few times each month. My brother likes to fish with them when trying to catch bass from a lake near his house.

Good luck!

Comment by Everett — late Tuesday morning, May 5th, 2009

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comment 4

Selling mealworms is a good idea. We'll have to add that to our thought processes!

Comment by anna — late Tuesday evening, May 5th, 2009

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Raising chicken food.

Why not try crickets, all you need is about ten male & ten female crickets (males have 2 tail, females have 3), a sealable container, with vents, a way to regulate temperature (light on a thermostat or reptile cage heater set to 80 F), chicken feed, a bit of sand or soil, and an occassional piece of fruit for water. No open water, and clean out fruit or potato bits before spoilage, and there you go! Don't let the breeders eat your newlay hatched babies, start by feeding those to your chickens! They will love you for it.

Comment by Vaughan — mid-morning Wednesday, May 6th, 2009

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comment 6

Good idea about the crickets! We may have to try that.

Comment by anna — early Saturday morning, May 9th, 2009

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Soldier fly larvae

You might also want to take a look at black soldier flies. We got them going in our compost by accident last year, and the chickens loved them. Then I discovered that there is quite a bit of information on using them for composting. Google around for more info.

Comment by Anonymous — early Monday morning, June 29th, 2009

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comment 8

Soldier fly larvae...we'll have to look into that. Thanks!

Comment by anna — Tuesday evening, June 30th, 2009

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