Soil for Breeding and Larvae

H

hereyougo1

L1
Hi

I'm a beginner of beetles.

Can anyone tell me what soil i should buy for the breeding beetles? and for larvae? are they different?

and what brand you guys suggest to buy?

Thank you
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I recently purchased a few bags of cheap "top soil" from a local garden store. I like it because it doesn't have the perlite in it which sometimes makes it harder to find the eggs because these small white rocks look like eggs themselves. Mix in a little bit of the wood that the larvae eat. It may help to promote egg-laying by the adults.

 
You can purchase compost to use as part of the substrate but the food for common pet species is rotten leaves and/or decomposed wood.

 
Orin said:
You can purchase compost to use as part of the substrate but the food for common pet species is rotten leaves and/or decomposed wood.
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where can i purchase the rotten leaves or decomposed wood???

i heard someone says they used the dried dog food, blend it with the soil.

Is it works??

 
If you can find a mature leaf compost pile you won't need to purchase rotten leaves. As for the dried dog food Orin would best answer that question. Orin?

hereyougo1 said:
where can i purchase the rotten leaves or decomposed wood???
i heard someone says they used the dried dog food, blend it with the soil.

Is it works??
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Dog food is an excellent additive but if used as a primary food the grubs are unlikely to live to maturity.

 
hereyougo1 said:
how about Dry Oak Leaves~ is it good instead of rotten leaves????
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If you dry a bunch of oak leaves and then crumble them into almost powder that should be an acceptable primary food for many flower and rhino grubs. Not all leaves will work and unrotten leaves can lead to mite issues.

 
Orin said:
If you dry a bunch of oak leaves and then crumble them into almost powder that should be an acceptable primary food for many flower and rhino grubs. Not all leaves will work and unrotten leaves can lead to mite issues.
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Usually, substrate should have same composition : mainly decayed/pulverised leaves for cetonidae (flower beetle) and mainly decayed wood for horn Rhino beetles (dynastidae). For egg laying, substrate must be very fine.

Regards

Yves

 
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I guess it takes certain time for leaves or wood to rot / decay? is there any info on time periods - like how long compost / wood / leaves have to be left rotting to get into proper condition ?

 
Leaves only have to be on the ground a few months, this time is required for excess sugars and fats to be consumed or you can experience grain mite infestations which can damage larvae. Wood is much more variable and can become the correct decay level in a few months to many, many years depending on the species of wood, size, moisture level, temperature and type of fungus.

 
Orin said:
Leaves only have to be on the ground a few months, this time is required for excess sugars and fats to be consumed or you can experience grain mite infestations which can damage larvae. Wood is much more variable and can become the correct decay level in a few months to many, many years depending on the species of wood, size, moisture level, temperature and type of fungus.
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"grain mites" - where are they coming from? sort of transferred by air, or rather critters laid into the soil by some sort of flies?

I mean - how can they get into it so fat and infest so widely. or do they already stay in there in some dormant state?

today I have found 2 larvae looks like dead - doesn't move at all and became black.

my wife has told me that she has removed from it some of these mites.

also, is that white (blanket like - sort of penicillin?) fungus somehow related to these mites?

I recall reading in another thread you or someone else saying that need to watch out for this kind of fungus.

 
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