There are three parts to this video you can find the others here: Part 2 kzread.info/dash/bejne/k5yqpthwiNS7eMY.html and Part 3 kzread.info/dash/bejne/oop1ypWHebiqorg.html

Great video. I have been thinking of starting my own mealworms for my chickens and my future quail too. I enjoyed watching your experiences. I have a mantra that I got from another youtuber... we do the best we can, with what we’ve got, where we are at. In this case that may mean waiting a generation before feeding the mealworms to the birds. It is nearly impossible to get anything pure anymore (especially in the USA). So convert your meal worms as best you can... say a little prayer and then you have done the best you can. ♥️♥️♥️

@Pavlovafowl

4 жыл бұрын

Hi there and thank you for your comments, I'm sorry I only just found them! How are you getting on with raising them? I started another 'bloodline' from a sort of sporting goods shop as they had a fishing department but the meal worms did not change to beetles - so I guess they had been treated with something rather nasty. I did however get some more supermarket ones and they are doing fine, except I still think I need to adjust the moisture levels. I have made mine a miniature forest garden to live in in their wooden boxes, so they have plenty to eat and to crawl about in. I did hear from a guy who raised them in a black bin in soil, which is certainly cheaper than organic bran and I've found the beetles love to live in moss and bark, so I've started with that too on one side of the 'forest garden' and then bran in the other side. You are so right - do the best we can with some non-organic stock and feed them up to be healthier and fitter. It's all a learning curve and I have it all documented on film but need to edit it all! Anyway hope you are doing well with them, they are a fabulous quail and chicken food! All the very best from Normandie, Sue

@Chickmamapalletfarm

4 жыл бұрын

Pavlovafowl - Organic Forest Garden Poultry wow! You are into all the same stuff I am into. Sadly I’ve had gotten super busy... and as we homesteaders for, my project list is huge... I have not gotten started yet, rather I am still paying huge $$$ for the bags of dried mealworms to boost the protein content. 🤷‍♀️. One day soon I will get it all done. 😉

You have some of the most descriptive, informative, and calming videos about quails. I really enjoy it 😊

@Pavlovafowl

Жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for your lovely words, they are very much appreciated. Quail are wonderful birds, it is so easy to write about them and make films about them. One of my quail has gone broody this evening on 8 eggs she laid in a little dug out nest in the greenhouse. I've had to bring her and them in as I'm worried about predators, luckily I got her to sit down on them in her usual sleeping box, with her partner making encouraging noses, so he helped a lot! Fingers crossed I can work around her to create a small enclosed area over the nest site tomorrow! All the very best, Sue xx

I've been raising mealworms for a few years and i tend to get the deformed wings when the humidity isn't high enough so when they hatch the wings dry too fast before they spread and become deformed, or they were too dehydrated whilst pupating. (went on holiday and came home to a lot of them) The conflicting information on the internet is because they grow faster in higher humidity and temperature, and slower in lower temperature and humidity, so it's all dependent on their environment. I recommend freezing all bran/oats before feeding. Grain mights can be in food and if they get into your colony they are almost impossible to get rid of. Itchy little buggers too!

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi there and thanks so much for all that useful information! We live in a really old stone house with breathable hemp and lime wall covering so I'm thinking the humidity should be OK but that is a really good point because I kept thinking that lying on a bed of bran might not be so good for the pupae. I've never seen mites in organic bran or five cereals but certainly in organic rice and flours and as all my food is organic and obviously untreated then the freezing is a very good idea. We've made pallet wood boxes as you can see and the beetles can get around very quickly walking on the wooden surfaces. They have a sort of lido walkway around the 'pool' of bran and five cereals, so I think next time I will just place the pupae on the walkway or make a special pupating pallet platform! Thanks again for all you input, it's greatly appreciated. All the very best, Sue

Sue, you just astonish me! You are a researcher and scientist in these things and are going to be an expert. I so very much look forward to the book you'll write so I can use it to inform me when I have the birds you do and rescue wild ones. This was fascinating to watch and I love the relationship you and Andy seem to have, and also that he can build you boxes and planters, feeders and more. I sooo look forward to each of your films and your comments under the film in answers to questions, etc. Thank you for all you're doing and know that the time is coming when I'll be able to support you a bit. You both deserve it. Hugs and love♡Sue

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi Sue Aaww thanks for that, we really do appreciate it! Well we're still here, though KZread is touch-and-go for everyone at the moment. I'm sort of juggling it with VidMe, Instructables, the blogs, Pinterest and anything else I can find but I need to get an ad made to showcase our present animation work on Patreon. That's why I have that quote from Richard II on this channel: '...wise men ne'er sit and wail their woes but presently prevent the ways to wail.' it's as relevant today as in 1595! Big Hug, Sue

Old video so this probably won't get seen :) But I've been breeding meal worms (as well as locusts, various cricket species, fire brats, cockroaches, worms, slugs and tons more) for years, took a break this year just because I moved house and knew in about 9months (end of Agust) I'd be moving again and it was too much hassle to transport the cultures but will be re starting in sept :) As Wren said the reason for the wings being funny is just simply because they dried too quickly. While I read you live in a lime house (how old is it? Just wondering as I find it interesting doing Stone Masonry at the moment) and so you might have a higher humidity then a modern house remember you were keeping them on oat/bran which literally sucks the moisture out of the air ect so in the tubs there will be a much lower air humidity. The points on mites isn't really an issue as mites (grain mites) only appear in large/irritating numbers if you are keeping them on bran or something and its humid (ie you put a large piece of fruit in there with poor ventilation then the air humidity will rise and there will be a mite boom. Honestly the best way (imo from trial and error) to breed them and be able to leave them self sustaining is to keep them on soil.... literally top soil or even get a bucket/tub with NO lid or a mesh lid and put rubbish bits of turf in there. Keep it slightly damp to the touch but NOT wet and add some bits of wood in there and keep them on a heat mat at about 23-25C and you can feed on fruit/veg I personally would feed a lot of weeds (like plantain, dandelion ect) as well as kales for the higher vit A, vit C, calcium, iron ect content as this will make the meal worms better for the birds. Things like kales as well as carrot, sweet potato & red bell pepper are great for the carotene. For collecting its easy make sure that while they might be fed every day there isn't enough food for all of them to be filled up... this means they will always swarm and especially when there is something with a high moisture content that can be served as a slice it makes collecting really easy. And don't worry about removing pupa you can leave pupa in with them and they will pupate and hatch out, breed & lay eggs within the setup saving space :) By far not the only way of doing it! Just how I found works best for me and others I recommend it too. But the most important thing is good ventilation. I wouldn't even bother having a plastic lid on and drilling holes. I'd either have full mesh or open topped

@Pavlovafowl

6 жыл бұрын

Hi Matt thank you for all that very useful information. I have not edited the follow up to this video yet but I came to the conclusion that bran was not a great substrate for them to live on precisely because of its tendency to drastically remove moisture. An idea I had and it worked well for me, was to let the pupae lie between leaves of greenery - cabbage and lettuce but I am also pretty sure that your soil idea is the best, I came to the conclusion that at all stages they should be living on soil and moss. Our house is 400-300 years old, it is an old Celtic longhouse so difficult to date precisely - except that the chickens scratched up two coins from 1610 and 1615. As you are interested in stone masonry then you might want to take a look at our other KZread channel 'Organikmechanic - we have a video on using lime mortar and you get to see some of our house! I wasn't too worried about the mites other than that they compete for food and are very prolific. I always reply to all the comments and on all my videos, regardless of how old they are. In effect I think KZread tends to promote older videos anyway for small channels like mine, so although after the first flurry of views on a new video, I will get comments, it is mostly the older videos that have a steady number of comments and questions. All the very best and thanks once again for taking the time to provide such valuable information, Sue P.S. I would normally have replied sooner but I have been away back in Scotland and far from the internet.

Fascinating ! I love watching your experiment and your sense of wonder at their life cycle. I have know idea what the answers are to your questions. I will be watching as you learn. thank you for teaching me/all of us.

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Aaww Jean that is so kind. I'm learning all the time and so happy to share the experience. I think this is a real minefield, particularly now that mealworms are being sold for human consumption and also to give to wild birds and pets/poultry. The sellers should be obliged to label them if they are using hormones or antibiotics. I can't find there is any organic certification although there are people who are known by reputation to produce organic mealworms. 'Organic' is an adjective that gets thrown about like free-range, which has no legal meaning at all, but organic does. I'm looking forward to what happens next too! All the very best, Sue

Fascinating stuff... Thank you for all you do

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi there and thanks for the lovely comment! You are very welcome and all the very best, Sue

I really love watching your videos, always so calm & i get so happy by all the progress you've been up to. Great job and keep going!! ❤❤❤

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi there and thank you so much for your kind words, I appreciate them. All the very best from Normandie, Sue

Sue, I loved your delightful video! I recently started a mealworm farm for my muscovy ducks and you have given me some things to think about. I don't think it would have mattered what your subject matter was, your presentation was so cuddly that I had to subscribe and see what else you have. Thanks!

@Pavlovafowl

6 жыл бұрын

Ruth that is a great comment! I usually always laugh on all my vfilms because usually something silly happens or because it's just great fun making them. I should be posting some more very soon. We have been working on our house over the last months and I really haven't had any time to edit all the footage I have taken of the birds. My mealworms have had a 'blessed event' or rather events without me noticing - they have been leading a secret life under the layers of bran and five cereals. They have actually gone through one whole cycle already and produced seemingly just 4 beetle but and I'm putting this down to their organic diet, both these 4 and now the old ones too, have produced 100s of 'grandchildren! Thanks for the sub it is appreciated and all the very best from Normandie, Sue

This video is a great exploration in the education of raising mealworms. Thank you for the video.

@Pavlovafowl

6 жыл бұрын

Thanks for that lovely comment - it is appreciated even though I'm late in replying due to the pressing need to grow food! All the very best and I should have an update to this video very soon. It's all filmed just needs me to sit down and edit, Sue

This is awesome

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Thanks Christian, I appreciate you taking the time to comment. All the very best from Normandie, Sue

Hey pavlovafowl you guys are amazing I love your videos

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi there, that is such a kind comment and it is really appreciated. All the very best from a very rainy day in Normandie, Sue

Use a mesh kitchen strainer to separate the mealworms from the bran. Makes it much easier. Just be sure to not use it in the kitchen afterwards! :)

@Pavlovafowl

4 жыл бұрын

Hey these are organic meal worms and people eat them! Not me though. I actually separate them with a spoon or now I've grown braver by hand, I just felt they might not like being in a metal strainer but I guess they don't like being picked up by hand either! All the very best from Normandie, Sue

You even have utmost compassion for the insects you raise. You're a rare jewel! I have no experience with mealworms, but as far as detoxifying them, you could try bentonite clay. I do know that living clay absorbs all chemicals of every sort. Not sure how you would go about getting the worms to ingest it. Maybe it could work topically (like mixed with their bedding)? However, for detoxifying quail, I don't think it would be very difficult to mix some bentonite with some sort of food and feed it to them. You could put some of their food in a bowl and dust it with the clay to coat it. Or maybe add it to their drinking water. (Never use clay with metal bowls/utensils though). It's just dirt so the quail shouldn't really notice it. It would safely and organically remove all traces of medications in their system. Even my cats lap it up mixed with a little goats milk!

@daniellaelayne

6 жыл бұрын

Sajc Emmanuel , bentonite clay would kill the meal worms! It destroys the exo-esquuelet of insects.

Very interesting. I have been wanting to start a mealworm culture, but I'm going to have to pay attention and source them from somewhere reliable.

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi April, I can not find there are any standards for keeping mealworms, so it's very much caveat emptor. Probably best to buy them locally where you can see them first and meet the people who keep them! Really good luck and all the very best, Sue

You guys make some very cool videos.

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hey Rustic thank you so much for that! Hope you are all doing well and all the very best from Normandie, where it is raining....again! Sue

@RusticByNature

7 жыл бұрын

It's raining here in Southcentral Alaska again also. Stay dry.

I'm raising my quail on the meal worms and fodder on a yacht.

@Pavlovafowl

6 жыл бұрын

That is fantastic! Hope you are filming this! All the very best from Normandie, Sue

When you purchased them the container had wheatgerm for their medium. I use a mixture of wheatgerm /oatmeal and toss in a handful of chicken feed.

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Thanks for your input, I'm feeding them on a selection of organic foods; bran,five cereals, fruit and salad. I think normally they would eat some protein - apparently they do eat carrion such as dead mice and rats! Don't really fancy that but I've tried them on Camembert and egg. All the very best, Sue

Small correction.. shortly before the 2 min mark you mention that people treat mealworms with hormone in order to turn them into Super mealworms. This is incorrect. Super mealworms (zophobas morio) are a completely different species from regular mealworms (tenebrio molitor). You are confusing Supers with Giants. Giant mealworms are those that are treated with hormones. I only say this because there are a lot of Super farmers who depend on this income, and this type of misinformation might harm their industry. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zophobas_morio

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi Scott actually it depends on what part of the world you live in as to what they are called in common parlance, that's why it is really better to use the Latin as I did in the title. Zophobas morio are generally known as Superworms (there is no addition of the word 'meal' involved here). The Super Mealworms, also known as Super Giant Mealworms or Giant Mealworms are all just tenebrio molitor and are those that have been treated with growth hormone. Both Zophobas morio and Tenebrio molitor do belong to the same family: Tenebrionidae aka Darkling Beetle. On a further note the antibiotic treated Tenebrio molitor which I unfortunately bought, have not reproduced viable eggs as far as I am experiencing, so I am guessing that antibiotics have caused them to be sterile. I am not a happy bunny and am going to have to start all over again but I suppose I'm at least giving some Darkling beetles a happy escape from being fish food and they are living in a roomy space and eating certified organic food! All the very best Pavlovafowl aka Sue

@scottjost857

7 жыл бұрын

The hormone-treated worms are giant mealworms, plain and simple. Placing the word 'super' in the giant's name is very rarely used and only leads to confusion, as I mentioned before. I say this not to demean or to create a debate, but to prevent confusion to those who may not know the difference. Super Mealworms = Superworms = Zophobas morio Giant Mealworms = hormone-treated Tenebrio molitor 'Regular' mealworms = Tenebrio molitor There are a few other different darkling beetle names to describe similar worms, but I'll leave them out to avoid more confusion.. I've only found one reference to the term 'super giant mealworm', and it's from a small online worm business, not really an academic or credible source. Where have you heard that super and giant are both used to describe the same worm?

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Just use the Latin name it is far less confusing and on no occasion on this film have I mentioned Zophobas morio. The confusion has something to do with the internet but you will find all these epithets in written and spoken language(s) - including here in France. It is just a marketing term. The main problem for me, at the moment though seems to be the antibiotic use, as these worms are to all intense and purposes intensively farmed and there is as far as I can see there is not yet anything in place to provide for organic certification.

After putting so much effort into them it will be hard to feed the mealworms to the quail!

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi Keelan, I just didn't want to become to attached to them, like naming them!! I did call the first one fluffy but that was a silly name ;) My quail deserve the best so the effort is worth it, they cured Andy's hay fever and eczema so nothing is too good for them! All the very best from rainy Normandie and hope you are getting some real Summer, Sue

I wonder if insects remember the larva stage

@Pavlovafowl

3 жыл бұрын

That is maybe the question Hamlet was referring to and hopefully no one will ever answer it. That somethings remain a mystery and forever wondered about are what to me makes life so fascinating. All the very best and thanks for that great comment, Sue

Your Jackdaw looks all grown up now! Is he going to be a permanent resident of your household now?

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi John Paul, He certainly has settled in with the quail but am not sure how he's ever going to fit in with chicks! Also he can't just go out in the garden, he actually knows that and he stays up on the trellis arbour and just hops around the top of it and the greenhouse roof. The chickens don't trust him and he is very in tune with how they feel. It's a funny situation, a lot easier with the wood pigeon and the moor hen we rescued, the one is still here but still wild and no body bothers and the other was released back to the nearby lake. All the very best, Sue

Hi Sue and Andy, do you still rear these worms for your quail? I have some quail eggs in the incubator at the moment and like you would be rearing them organically, though I'm not really looking forward to rearing these critters! thanks

@Pavlovafowl

4 жыл бұрын

Hi there Stephen, Good to hear from you How are things? Yes we do, in fact I am sitting typing this in the room where they are at the moment in their individual forest garden boxes! I found the general set up with just a little greenery and a lot of bran to be too dry an environment for them, so now they have a mini forest garden in each box. They really aren't much trouble and they are a great food source. Actually before I had them I just used to get things out of the compost heaps for my quail, like earwigs and wood lice and they will also eat compost worms too. A real super food for quail is ants, they particularly like the winged ants and winged ant eggs and these are high in Vitamin B12. So there is quite a lot to chose from but they are all creepy crawlies! Just don't give them names and get attached to them because otherwise you won't feel good about feeding Mike and Millie the Mealworm to your quail! All the very best from Normandie, Sue

Hi sue, quick question,,, what are the best results with organic fertilizer's like compared to none organic fertilizers? I have only ever grown food organically so I have no idea of comparisons....

@Pavlovafowl

Жыл бұрын

Hi Chris, Me neither, I've never used non-organic fertilisers but as far as I know and with reference to results I have seen tabulated here on organic farm open days, the yields are as good with organic - if not better. With reference to the above video I now have quite a collection of meal worm fertiliser so I'm going to try this for my autumn/winter crops as it is supposed to be very rich in nutrients. One of the major eye openers though for most people when they visit these open days is the veterinary costs per animal are really low as compared to non-organic farms, where these are exceedingly high. All the best from Normandie, Sue

Creepy crawly! I don’t know a lot about quail as I haven’t had any yet (I have eggs on order) but I plan to let mine forage on worms and maggots that I found under some pine chips I had laying out.

@Pavlovafowl

4 жыл бұрын

Hi there, then your quail will have had a great start in life because these foods are so good for them! Sorry to be so late in replying KZread stopped informing me of all comments and it has taken me some time to find them. All the very best and hope everything is going well with your quail, Sue

Are you planning on having the beetles mate and use the offspring warms for quil feed?

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi Leonardo, Yes and for the jackdaw too. I think it will be a good back-up particularly in the Winter when woodlice and other compost bin dwellers are hibernating. All the very best, Sue

@leonardoalfonso7080

7 жыл бұрын

Pavlovafowl - Organic Forest Garden Poultry very interesting. Please keep me up to date with the development of the beetles. I am interested as to see how long the adult beetles stay alived and mate. Thank you Sue :)

If you don't remember me I commented on one of your videos a while back I have new animals and I got pheasants and bobwhite quails

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Sure I remember you and I subbed to your channel so am hoping you will make some films about your new birds! What sort of pheasants have you? All the very best, Sue

I actually doubt it was the antibiotics that did that, but feel more like it may have been the pesticides in their original feed. even if it was somehow removed from the brand they could still have been damage (obvs. antibiotics didn't help). once they breed the next generation should be mostly fine though!

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

Hi there, yes pesticides will cause deformities that is a very good point and the bran they were in would no doubt be full of it. France is the third and sometimes second biggest consumer of pesticide in the World, which is one of the reasons why we have always eaten organic here. The research is still meagre though, you may have read that the effect from toxins in plastic, for example can pass through whole generations of humans. I keep thinking about all these guys tipping all this bran and unused mealworms into the rivers at the end of the day's fishing! All the very best and thanks so much for your input, Sue

Can we get an update on this project a year in?

@Pavlovafowl

6 жыл бұрын

Yes, It is going well. I have it all on film and just need to get it all edited and also written up on The Holistic Hen. We are having a few thunderstorms here at the moment, so in the next few days I should have something - it's just so glorious outside as the roses are out now but I'll steel myself to stay indoors! All the very best from Normandie, Sue

This was filmed a while ago. Since then have u tried soldier fly larvae??

@Pavlovafowl

3 жыл бұрын

Hi There, No I haven't tried them but I have been doing really well with the meal worms. I've shifted this project over to BitChute, as I'm trying to spread my videos over more platforms and although all these YT videos upload automatically to Odysee as well, I am making dedicated videos for my two new platforms. Here is the link for you, if you are interested: www.bitchute.com/video/WVN3QjhKlLBD/ I have learned an awful lot over the past 4-5 years about raising meal worms organically. In the final film which I am just editing - I found that I needed to provide for them exactly the same environment as everyone else has here - i.e. a forest garden - OK it's in a box but they seem to be doing very well in it! Thank you for your suggestion though, it is very helpful and I will follow it up and see what I can do about it because creating a 'paleo' diet for all the inhabitants of our garden is close to my heart. All the very best, Sue xx

@anakamhi7097

3 жыл бұрын

@@Pavlovafowl ahhhhh I see. Yes I’ll check it out there! I have heard they are easier and faster to grow and have a ton more protein. Might be something to just look into for fun meanwhile. You also compost your food from your kitchen w them. If you eat organic they will be organic :)

Now:bow

They are hard to take care of

@Pavlovafowl

7 жыл бұрын

No, once you get the boxes set up with the food/bedding they are really easy. I plan to have a set of boxes made, in fact we are just making the next one. I will remove the beetles to the new box after they have been in this one for around 3 weeks. Then that will be left for the eggs, which hopefully they will have laid in the bran and cereals to hatch, when they hatch I will add some fruit and vegetable slices for moisture. meanwhile the beetles should have begun to lay more eggs in their new box and so on - this is the theory!! All the very best and hope this helps, Sue

There's no such thing as a super mealworm what you're thinking of is a giant mealworm what it sounds like you're saying is superworm which is a different larger species *that is not treated with hormones*

Don't now down petquail...