![]() ![]() Shorter days, 12 hours or less, could result in them going in to diapause once pupated and this could last for months. Longer days, around 14 hours, promote more rapid development. If you plan to breed them you may also want to keep them on a light cycle. They will readily eat many of your typical gut loading veggies. I also take out a few that I plan to feed off within the next couple days and gut load them with greens, squash, carrots and red bell peppers. Proper cleaning and maintenance will ensure healthy hornworms. When I add fresh food I remove all of the old food and clean the container. This helps to ensure the food is fresh and does not get contaminated. I store the hornworm chow in the refrigerator and only put enough for them to eat each day in the container. This is where I will grow the worms while they are fed off and until they are ready to pupate. This layer of gutter guard allows the frass to fall through and makes daily cleaning easier. I also put bottle caps in the bottom to raise the gutter guard up. I also cut some gutter guard ( Link to Lowes Gutter Guard) to place in the bottom. I then cut out the lid and hot glue some screen to it as shown below. Any Tupperware that is around that size should do. I use the sterilite 6Qt (5.7 L) Tupperware containers that state they are for shoe storage. When the hornworms grow big enough to move, I then transfer them from the deli cup to a modified tupperware container. I will put them in for a day and then leave them out for a day. I have read that they can go in for up to 2 days however I have never put them in for more than a day at a time. I usually put them in a mini frig I have set at 50 degrees. If you need to slow down the growth of the worms in order to prolong the time you can feed them, you can put them in the refrigerator. I have read that in the case of mold you can just remove the mold spot, but I don't take any chances. If you see any mold, white milky spots or a film on the food you will want to get them transferred out of the cup as soon as possible to avoid a total loss of worms. I make sure to take the lid off to dump the frass everyday and also inspect the food for mold or bacteria. ![]() ![]() I allow them to grow in the cup until they are large enough to move. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |