tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1593178396392787391.post1546545728443411241..comments2023-03-31T08:03:39.865-07:00Comments on Texas Urban Homestead : My New and Improved Black Soldier Fly Set UpAnonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09584460551684159341noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1593178396392787391.post-62913340032966054222017-03-19T14:39:28.813-07:002017-03-19T14:39:28.813-07:00Black Soldier Flies live in my area naturally, and...Black Soldier Flies live in my area naturally, and I found the larvae in my compost. I wanted to know what they were, so I looked them up and studied about them. I had no real use for them, but wanted to keep the colony going. I gave the larvae away to my friends who had chickens for a while, then I started trading them for eggs or garden produce, and sometimes I get money for them. I always thought I would get chickens myself, but so far that has not happened. <br /><br />I have helped one friend set up a colony, but it took two tries. The females are attracted to lay eggs in rotting vegetation, or they are attracted to the pheromones that a colony gives off. If you don't have enough of an attractant to the female flies it can be difficult to make the colony self replicating. I was lucky to begin with, and I have been able to keep the system going by just feeding them and protecting them from freezing in the winter. <br /><br />There are lots of places online where you can order bugs from though. You should try to get some of the bedding too, so that you can attract the females with the pheromones that will be in it.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09584460551684159341noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1593178396392787391.post-2009561323114011492017-03-19T14:03:47.946-07:002017-03-19T14:03:47.946-07:00Hi Florence, I was wondering how to started the co...Hi Florence, I was wondering how to started the colony? Did yo order the BSF's? I am trying to set up a Composter myself and am not sure how to get the Black Soldier Flys.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1593178396392787391.post-77274896858212745862014-06-23T16:15:05.743-07:002014-06-23T16:15:05.743-07:00RJG, Maybe you could post a picture of your setup?...RJG, Maybe you could post a picture of your setup? <br /><br />I moved mine onto a side porch a while ago because of ants - for some reason they cant find it there - and it keeps it out of the rain. <br /><br />When it rains and the humidity is super high, they can crawl right out. I dont mind too much as I want some escapism to produce the adults.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09584460551684159341noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1593178396392787391.post-65505675530328839302014-06-23T14:33:24.708-07:002014-06-23T14:33:24.708-07:00Thanks Florence! I got mine up and "running.&...Thanks Florence! I got mine up and "running." I put it out by the garden, propped on rocks, but am thinking I need to move it under the car port and make a stand after all because my collection bucket gets water in it and I think they've been crawling right up the sides and out of it bc. of the moisture. The one modification I made that I think was good was to use a plastic drawer unit for my collection bucket and screw it right onto the barrel. It doesn't need a stand that way, and is easy to empty.RJGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06018438618141380820noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1593178396392787391.post-57466132057961404262014-06-06T16:15:55.943-07:002014-06-06T16:15:55.943-07:00You can pile the stuff up in the end without the s...You can pile the stuff up in the end without the slit just fine. Stuff does not really last very long in there anyway as the BSF eat it all up pretty fast when you have a lot of them.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09584460551684159341noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1593178396392787391.post-7075894928622219192014-06-01T22:36:16.919-07:002014-06-01T22:36:16.919-07:00Thanks for posting this... I think this is going t...Thanks for posting this... I think this is going to be the basis of the design for one I make. I'm wondering though... is the usable volume of the barrel diminished by having it at an angle? can you pack scraps into the barrel above the level of the slit or not? I'm working on plans for 50 broiler chickens (and 10 turkeys?) here in a few weeks, and I'd like to raise enough BSF to be a major protein source, so I would need significantly higher yields than what you have pictured.RJGhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06018438618141380820noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1593178396392787391.post-26502171689199281562013-08-11T19:21:21.349-07:002013-08-11T19:21:21.349-07:00There are no holes in the top, but if you look at ...There are no holes in the top, but if you look at the door, you can see that it does not fit snugly. I have watched the Black Soldier Flies buzzing around and they don't seem to have any problem finding the way in. There are some holes in the ends of the barrels also for ventilation, but I plugged up the ones on the low end, and left the ones on the high end.Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09584460551684159341noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1593178396392787391.post-9580310519446811892013-08-11T17:05:03.149-07:002013-08-11T17:05:03.149-07:00Hi. I am looking into harvesting BSFs for my chick...Hi. I am looking into harvesting BSFs for my chickens and this looks great! How do the flies get in the bucket to lay eggs? Are there holes in the top that I can't see? The integrated ramp us brilliant. David Ghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16032489498485853432noreply@blogger.com