How to Raise Silkworms? A Detailed Guide to Silkworm Rearing Methods and Techniques

Silkworm silk is the main raw material source of silk. In ancient times, sericulture was one of the important economic sources for families. In the traditional small-scale peasant economy, men farmed and women wove, and what was woven was silkworm silk. It can be said that silkworms held an important place in the economic life and cultural history of ancient China. So how should silkworms be raised?

1. Key Points of Silkworm Rearing

1. Early preparation: After planting mulberry leaves well, prepare the silkworm room and silkworm tools. 7 days before rearing silkworms, spray and disinfect with 1% strong chlorinated disinfectant, using half a jin of liquid per sq m. After spraying, seal for more than 24 hours. At the same time, spray and disinfect the surrounding environment of the silkworm room.

2. Mulberry leaves: When rearing silkworms, note that the mulberry leaves should ideally be fresh. Do not use mulberry leaves that have been stored for too long for feeding. Non-fresh mulberry leaves can easily cause disease in silkworms.

3. Temperature: Silkworms are poikilothermic animals, with a suitable range of 20 to 30 degrees C. During the spring silkworm period, low temperature and high humidity are often encountered, so the focus is on adding warmth and removing moisture. During the summer silkworm period, high temperature and high humidity occur, so the focus is on cooling and removing moisture, keeping the air in the silkworm room circulating, and eliminating stuffiness. During the autumn silkworm period, if high temperature and dryness occur, moisture should be added indoors.

4. Incubation: About the eighth day after the silkworm eggs are taken out of storage, a small black dot can be seen at one end of the silkworm egg, called the blue-point stage. When 20% of the eggs in one batch of silkworm eggs show blue points, cover them with black cloth to block light. Counting from the day the blue points appear, remove the black cloth at 5 o'clock on the morning of the third day, turn on the light, and allow them to hatch under light exposure.

5. Disease prevention: Silkworms have many diseases, and prevention is generally the main approach. After disease occurs, use specialized agents for disinfection. At the same time, do not discard diseased silkworms randomly, as they are highly contagious.

6. Management: When feeding mulberry leaves, it is best to feed 2-3 times a day. Also, no incense should be burned in the rearing room, and mosquito coils, perfume, and other strongly scented items should not be placed there ordinarily, to prevent silkworm death.

7. Hygiene: When silkworm droppings accumulate too much, pathogens can easily breed and spread. Silkworm droppings should be cleaned up promptly, generally on the same day. In addition, the skins shed by silkworms and leftover mulberry leaves should also be cleaned out promptly.

2. China's Sericulture Industry

Today, China's cocoon and silk output and export volume both account for more than 70% of the world total, making it a major cocoon and silk country that can lead the trend of world cocoon silk prices. With the arrival of the machine industrialization era, the traditional sericulture industry has gradually begun to decline. In recent years, most farmers making money in the sericulture industry have relatively strong economic strength and stable sales channels.

The traditional sericulture industry has a history of more than 4,000 years. Before the Xia Dynasty, domesticated silkworms already existed. The domesticated silkworm was bred from mulberry tree pests, and sericulture techniques were created. In the Shang Dynasty, there was the “female silkworm” official, who was the officer in charge of sericulture. In oracle bone inscriptions, the silkworm deity was sacrificed together with Shangjia Wei, showing great reverence for sericulture. Today, the sericulture industry is actively transforming, adopting more scientific techniques and methods for rearing.

That is all for our discussion of silkworm rearing. Raising one or two silkworm babies personally is fine, but large-scale silkworm rearing is not recommended. Generally speaking, this industry is already very stable, and launching into it blindly may lead to losses.

For silkworm rearing, disinfection should be carried out in the early stage. When feeding, place fresh mulberry leaves and ensure the temperature. At the same time, incubation should also be carried out. In addition, attention should be paid to maintaining the hygiene of the silkworm room to prevent disease.