09/06/2021
Everyone that buys substrate for beetles from me knows I pack it very tightly into 32 oz cups. Some have asked me why I do this instead of bagging it up. To demonstrate why, I have measured out 1 gallon packed into cups and packed it tightly into the bag. The bag is bursting at the seams. 1 gallon properly measured is NOT the same as one gallon of fluffy soil that ends up half the volume when compressed for beetles to lay eggs. Shipping like this would end up with burst messy bags. Shipping by weight is also different, as it encourages overhydrating substrate to reach a weight threshold. At this stage substrate is shipped perfect for lucanidae such as elephus. In the last two pictures, each cup had a substrate change for top half and bottom half respectively, with the darker substrate being the older bit. The larvae have migrated to the fresher portion in either container regardless of which portion was deeper. For dynastidae, planning ahead 2-3 weeks would be ideal as they do better on less fresh substrate, but I have had good results with them even with fresh
