Last year posted culture for raising your own Bee Moths. Thought I'd do it again if anyone wants to give it a go. Use to start them around Thanksgiving so would have adult worms by around Christmas when we'd have ice.
Pablum---------14 oz. High protein baby pablum (dry) or any type cereal. Wheaties, etc.( put in blender and powdered) They all work.
Glycerin-- 6 oz. Avoid Rose wood Glycerin as it is poisonous. Buy at pharmacy.
Brewer's Yeast powder-- 6 oz. ( drug store. Comes in tablet form. Ask drugest how many needed for 6 oz. Crush into powder.
Bee's Wax--- 2 oz.
Water -- 3 oz.
Honey-- 7 oz.
1. cut Bee's wax into small particles. I used a cheese grater.
2. Throughly mix Bee's wax with cereal and brewer's yeast.
3. In another container, mix Glycern, water and honey.
4.*Slowly - add just enough of the liquid mixture to the dry mixture to make it moist, NOT WET!! Don't make too wet! Will cause mold!!
5.Place culture in wide mouth jars, fill about 1/3 to 1/2 full. (2 quart jar works good) Have used gallon jugs too. Plastic or glass. Use to get empty pickle jars from high school cafeteria. Or try local resturant?)
6. Place 10-15 Bee Moths (worms)in each jar. All you need is one female to hatch into moth, will breed with male and soon there will be hundreds of eggs.
Place a few pieces of wax paper folded accordion style in each jar, 2"x 3". Eggs will be laid in folds and creases.
Place cover on jars with tiny, tiny pin holes for air and to let moisture escape. Tiny worms will travel and chew and might escape if holes are too big. Wive's frown on this. I know from experience!!!!!
Place jars in dark warm place. 70-80 degrees is best. I put mine next to furnace up high.
10. Approximately, 6-7 weeks you should have bait size worms. ( If things work out well, you will have some of the biggest Bee Moths you have ever seen. Could almost put a saddle on some!!!!
They say you can freeze adults at 32 degrees for a couple of hours to retard cycle but I could never get the correct temp and they always died. So I just used adults as needed. I killed any moths that would hatch as if they are let go they will get into bee hives and destroy hive and bee raisers hate them. And they hate guys like me that raised them.
Good luck!
Teach
