[Q]

Congratulations Q sounds like a booming success 
What are courgettes?
Also is your mealworms  farm inside or out? Just wondering because mine were outside in a shed but we had a very wet summer not if that was the reason but unfortunately mine didn't make it. So if I can convince my family  to let me have them in the house I may try again
I bet your chickens just gobbled them!

Hi Vinnie - you may know a courgette as a zucchini.  the mealworms are kept inside but I dont think it would have mattered as its been quite warm here over the summer - I am sure the beetles should be approaching the end of their life span - I thought it was 3 months but they seem to be going ok.
The Chickens get all excited when they see the mealworm box coming - the first batch is now almost gone but I'm trying not to give them too many at a time because I dont want to unbalance their diet with all the extra protein.

Here's a picture of the third batch - give you some idea about how many.
 

[cloddopper]

Vinnie ,  courgettes are what you guys over the pond call  Zuchinni ,   if left to grow on past nine inches long they can become 2 foot long monster " Marrows "

[Vinnie]

We have lots of zucchini but think I will start calling them courgettes.
Q  wow you do have probably 1000's of worms that's so neat. I am definitely going to try and grow them inside I think our summer this year just wasn't good for them too chilly

[Q]

Now i have more worms maturing than the chickens can reasonably eat. 

Even though I separated the boxes out at intervals there are mature mealworms in each box mixed in with the younger ones.

I think I may need more chickens!

[cloddopper]

Freeze the worms in tie wrap bags perhaps ...  So that when it slows down in deepest winter you can feed the chucks on newly thawed ones .
 You ought to also be able to dehydrate them and vac pack worth while amounts .

 That could be an interesting exercise in making a simple 50 watt light bulb dehydrator and some form of cage to hold the worms in till they get dried & died out  .

[Q]

Freeze the worms in tie wrap bags perhaps ...  So that when it slows down in deepest winter you can feed the chucks on newly thawed ones .
 You ought to also be able to dehydrate them and vac pack worth while amounts .

 That could be an interesting exercise in making a simple 50 watt light bulb dehydrator and some form of cage to hold the worms in till they get dried & died out  .

I did a bit of research on freezing them on the reptile forums - apparently the freezing process breaks down the fat after a few days. there was a comment that they wouldnt feed the mealworms to their reptiles after they had been frozen for more than a few days.

I also read that keeping them cool slows down the development of the mealworms - that would explain why they all seem to have matured at about the same time.


But chickens ain't reptiles & dont need the worms as a protein - just a treat.

Did find out why they mealworms were not being used quickly enough - I think my OH was giving the chickens too small amounts - they must have been getting about one each