Random thoughts related to culturing black soldier fly larvae:
Hermetia illucens-the black soldier fly
2009
Dry Pasta 9/27 – I added 1.5 lbs (.685kg) of uncooked pasta to my BioPod last night. Because it was dry and hard I expected that it would take several days for it to be consumed as it gradually absorbed the ambient moisture. When I checked the BioPod this morning all traces of the pasta were gone just 12 hours later.
Sawdust 9/27 – I often add a few handfuls of sawdust from non-pressure treated wood to my BioPod. Pressure treated wood contains insecticide, not a good thing for BSF. My feeling is that the sawdust might work as a moisture buffering agent. By that I mean it will soak up excess liquid when it’s present and retain it to help keep the compost consistently moist. Moist but not wet is the perfect balance. The texture of the compost in my BioPod is almost always like potting soil; damp but not sticky and with a loose “fluffy” texture. It’s true that the sawdust adds bulk that will fill up the unit faster, but I don’t see that as a big deal, especially if it results in a more consistently aerobic (aerated) environment.
Shady spot/sunny spot 9/29 – Myself and others have stated that a BioPod (or DIY unit) must be kept in full shade, but there are exceptions. The real point is about regulating the temperature of the colony which must not exceed approximately 110ºF internal temperature (BSF reportedly die at 116º). If you live in a hot climate but you’re trying to establish a colony in the spring it might be best to keep your unit in at least partial sunshine. People in cooler climates might find that they can keep a unit in a partly sunny spot all summer. I’ve heard from several sources that black soldier flies are common in Vancouver, B.C., and I expect you could keep a BSF unit in a sunny place there for most of the mating season.
Loose insulation 9/30 – The recommended way to insulate a BSF colony for winter operation is some type of rigid material like Styrofoam cut a little smaller than the inside diameter of the BioPod or other unit. The gap at the edges allows the larvae to come up for air and to cool off. To add food scraps you must remove the disc, add the food and then replace the disc.
One time I processed a large quantity of fresh corn kernels. The larvae ate the soft middle part leaving the paper thin skin of each kernel intact. This created a layer of material that floated on top of the waste. It was summer at that time I remember being concerned that the layer would trap in unwanted heat causing juvenile larvae crawl-off into the collection bucket. It occurs to me that in winter you could possibly use some type of insulation that would float on the waste allowing a one step operation when adding new food scraps. I wonder how packing “peanuts” would be? Maybe this wouldn’t provide as much insulation as a solid disc, but in areas with mild winters it might be a viable alternative.
Vacation “feeder” material 10/1 – Regular additions of food scraps help keep a black soldier fly colony balanced. Time released food items might be helpful when you can’t add scraps to the unit for several days at a time. BSF seem partial to corn and dry whole corn kernels or cracked corn like that fed to birds might serve as a long term food source for the larvae. As the grain absorbs ambient moisture it will gradually soften so the larvae can eat it. In a relatively dry climate it may be necessary to soak the corn for a period of time. Raw potatoes might also serve this purpose. They contain more moisture so might be preferable in dry areas. I normally don’t condone feeding good fresh food to the larvae, but I make exceptions for the sake of maintaining the colony so it can be used effectively in the future.
The relative rareness of BSF adults 10/1 – I’ve often stated that BSF adults are rarely seen even around BioPods and DIY units full of larvae. Some people have contacted me to say that they aren’t rare on their property because they’ll often see several at a time around their units. I still say that BSF are relatively rare because you might see 4 or 5 at a time, but how many house or blow flies would you attract if you tried? I think the most* BSF adults I’ve seen at once around my unit was 15 and that’s with me doing everything I can think of to attract them!
*I’ve actually seen a few hundred at once, but that consisted of newly emerging adults from my “incubation” bucket that I protect pupae in. I had a few thousand pupae in the bucket and a large number of them emerged at the same time. I don’t count this because they didn’t go to the BioPod, they went into the woods to seek a mate. After mating the males aren’t attracted to any type of food so you probably won’t ever see one of them. The females may or may not return to the BioPod, but if they do it’s still only a handful at a time.
Stumble upon it!