How to Grow Mealworms

Mealworms are insects that are typically used to feed pets such as lizards, iguana, tropical birds, snakes and fish. You can usually buy mealworms at pet stores or department stores that sell pet supplies. If you need mealworms regularly, it can be irritating to have to drive to the store every time you need pet food. Luckily, it is possible to grow your own mealworms right at home, which can save you time and money, and will allow you to have a fresh supply of mealworms on hand right when you need them.

Things You'll Need

  • 1,000 mealworms
  • Newspaper
  • Oat bran
  • Vegetables
  • Plastic container
  • Spray bottle
  • Water
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Instructions

    • 1

      Set up the mealworm container. The container needs to be made of a sturdy plastic, such as a Rubbermaid container, and should be large enough to hold the mealworms and their food. A container around 10 inches by 13 inches should suffice.

    • 2

      Add food. Pour in enough oat bran so it is about 2 inches deep. This will be the food for the mealworms.

    • 3

      Add the mealworms. Place 1,000 mealworms into the oat bran, and cover it with three sheets of newspaper. The paper will need to be moist so the mealworms will be sufficiently hydrated, but the oat bran must stay dry. Using a spray bottle, lightly spray the newspaper twice a day. Keep spraying the newspaper until the mealworms begin to change into beetles.

    • 4

      Feed and water the beetles. Over a few weeks, the mealworms will start to change into beetles. Keep the container at a higher temperature to speed up the metamorphosis. Once the beetles are full grown, they will need to eat more oat bran than the larvae did. Replenish the oat bran as needed. Instead of using newspaper to keep the container humidified, place a few pieces of iceberg lettuce into the container. The beetles will not eat the lettuce, and it will keep them sufficiently hydrated. Pretty soon, the beetles will start to lay eggs around the container.

    • 5

      Harvest the mealworms. Mealworm beetle eggs are extremely small and will be difficult to locate within the oat bran. Fortunately, the eggs are extremely hardy, and they will be able to hatch safely if left alone with the beetles. You will start to see very tiny worms inside the oat bran, sometimes as small as 1/4-inch long, which will quickly grow into large, 1-inch mealworms over a few days. Before long, there will be enough mealworms for your exotic pets to have a feast.