Backyard Aquaponics
A place to discuss aquaponics

slaters are NOT a problem either are large grasshoppers or cockroaches (don't use them from the house if the house has been pest treated), march flies, mossies (usually pre-squished - easiest way to catch them) mossie wrigglers, worms, caterpillars, sand, small gravel (they tend to get a bit carried away (anything that falls in gets tried )

I have also been feeding my perch African Black Beetle larvae - see my posthere for a picture.

The perch gobble them up and I have heaps of them in the compost, gardens etc.

snails are a treat, but how to be certian that thye haven't come from next door with a belly ful of snail bait? That is the problem

Perge the snails for a week to make shure they are safe.

AP

If the snails have come from next door they can't be using very good bait.

for snails anyway.

<Dons Iggy Hat>
What's a Slater?
</Dons Iggy Hat>

Iggy, slaters are also called woodlice

Aha! Also known as Rolly Pollys, Pillbugs, or Sowbugs. Thanks Jaymie, ain't language Grand?

Ah, Pill Bugs. I was wondering, too.

(Glad I wasn't alone there, Janet...)

Getting back on topic...

I'd really like to try raising BSF, but it's going to be another "get it past the missus" thing...



...and several back-and-forths later, I've got a worm farm.

A similar exchange occurred for the Duckweed Bucket -- Concerns for Duckweed being poisonous to dogs... (arrgh...)

So, do they really do that well at crowding out ordinary houseflies? (In the worst of summer, these get attracted to the "dog presents" in the backyard, and become a bit of a problem). Perhaps this is the angle that can sell the idea...

Iggy, What kind of fish are you going to raise? If you go for tilapia, they are more vegetarian and would love duckweed and garden weeds. Their protein requirements are very low. If you go with a lot of the natives, then BSF would be very nice.

At this point, I'm thinking in pretty general fashion, taking into account the wild changes of season in the American Midwest. This would involve a spring-summer growout for a warm water species (Tilapa) and perhaps a 1 to 2 year grow cycle on some cold tolerant species (Trout or Catfish).

So at the moment I'm most keen on working out the most effective methods of producing fodder for a mixture of import and native critters -- Primarily fish, but eventually, I hope to get some "chooks", maybe rabbits, and perhaps even a couple of Emu...

Need big fish to get them to eat emu...

Nova

Hi Iggy,

Once BSF get well-established they will crowd out houseflies.....simply by denying them access to food.

Of all of the fly larvae that I've seen, BSF larvae are the least repulsive. They are dry to the touch and, by the time they do the long march up the ramp, they don't even have mouth parts.

Gary