Saving frass
- Thread starter loreross
- Start date
I am curious why you want to keep the frass? I am assuming you mean the "spent" flake soil from the larvae containers that you will replace.
Bugboy3092
Strategus
It's a pretty good additive for gardening, A lot of claims floating around that it can help a plant's natural pest resistance if the plant is grown on it. Back when I had a tooon of it laying around (from Gymnetis Thula) we had compositional analysis done on it, HUGE amount of calcium in it
I've actually forgotten my own reason for asking - it's been some weeks since my first big rush of cramming in new info. Right now I'm just idling, waiting for one wild beetle to emerge and validate my faith in her.
Aside from garden compost additive I believe I was reading about jump-starting flake soil with used substrate as inoculant, or inoculating substrate for new larvae. I'd have to dig through my bookmarks.
I use a handful or two of flake soil that finished cycling to inoculate the next batch. I make several batches in the summer. Also, I believe the spent flake soil from the larvae could be used as egg laying medium for the adult beetle breeding boxes. However, since adults don't really need the premium flake soil and the fact organic raised bed soil from the local garden center has shown efficacy in rearing several beetle species, I might just use this "cheap" store bought soil for my own breeding boxes, avoid the nasty frass, and then transfer the eggs/larvae to flake soil once collected.