Sophia Posted June 21, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 21, 2010 morning update took the lid off the box and could only see 1 bug moving slowly but I didn't have time to wait and see if more were alive. Have taken the moth ball out and replaced the lid. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barrie Posted June 21, 2010 Report Share Posted June 21, 2010 next will be interesting will the worms be OK and not full of poison? May pay to be carefull on what and when you feed the worms to I would strongly recomend not feeding them out for a week to allow the rubbish to be expelled from the worms Thanks for all the info Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia Posted June 22, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 22, 2010 I don't know about that. My husband says that soil will have naptha in it as it does absorb the oxygen but whether the worms will absorb it that way I don't know. I don't have any fish to feed them to at the moment and won't for some weeks anyway. Tonight's update is that after a day of no mothball inside the wooden box when I checked on the bugs they were moving around but still sluggish. There is now a mothball in there till the morning. I am not willing to sacrifice the whole worm colony for the experiment so if there is no further progress on it tomorrow I will probably flag it and revert to flooding the bugs out of one box. They have in any case been reduced by at least 3 quarters in the meantime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia Posted June 23, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2010 damn bugs are still moving around Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricketman Posted June 23, 2010 Report Share Posted June 23, 2010 get them sluggish, heat a needle over flame, then singe the little (insert epiphet of choice) till they are all gone??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia Posted June 23, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 23, 2010 oooh that sounds mean but effective!! I left the mothball one more night, this morning they were still moving like little bug slugs. Have taken the mothball out now. Experiment is over! Barrie, I can recommend using the ball when the lid is off to get the bugs moving and up the sides of the container so you can wipe them out with a cloth. I also suspect that using mothballs in the box might prevent the bugs coming in the first place. Since I don't have anywhere to keep the worms warm but not fill my house with vapours I probably won't get to test this theory at least till summer. If anyone else has any experience with using mothballs, I'd like to hear about it. thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia Posted June 26, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 26, 2010 a few days on and the worms are still chomping through their luncheon but there seem to be less bugs than at the end of the experiment. maybe they went away to die later! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barrie Posted June 26, 2010 Report Share Posted June 26, 2010 that sounds positive Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted July 12, 2010 Report Share Posted July 12, 2010 I have not had any experience mothballs but you can put a ladybug in your culture. If you have a really bad problem with them then put a few in for starters. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barrie Posted July 12, 2010 Report Share Posted July 12, 2010 I will try that Thanks Ive been starving mine thinking that the worms will suffer but cant escape but the bugs can escape so will go elsewhere for their tucker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stella Posted July 13, 2010 Report Share Posted July 13, 2010 A LADYBIRD!!! Now that is clever. Are you serious? Have you tried it? Even if ladybirds don't work, there must be some other biocontroller that would work. BRILLIANT! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barrie Posted July 13, 2010 Report Share Posted July 13, 2010 I swallowed a cat to catch the rat, I swallowed the rat to catch the spider etc etc Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sophia Posted July 13, 2010 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2010 a ladybird is a good idea - I will have to dial 0800 rent-a-bug!! since the experiment finished the bugs that were left have not multiplied in any great fashion either, they are there but not taking over like before. I haven't felt the need to resort to flooding them out as I was going to Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alanmin4304 Posted July 13, 2010 Report Share Posted July 13, 2010 I have mine in chinese food type containers with no holes in the lids and change the luncheon dayly. Have had no mites since I started and have done exactly as instructed by El Presidente from whence they came and have therefore avoided the pointy stick. Long may it last. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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