Microworms

http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/month.200206/msg00124.html

To make them crawl up the sides add a small amount of yeast

http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/month.200206/msg00135.html

If you add a pinch of dry yeast spread over the surface, the chances of
the culture smeling bad are greatly diminished. I use Fleischman's dry
yeast, the kind that comes in a foil package.
 
I think that the bad smell is due to rogue bacteria/yeast/molds that
invade a culture. Adding yeast gives the "good" yeast a head start and
the rogues don't get a chance to take over the culture. If I see mold in a going culture (it happens sometimes -- white, yellow, blue, black,
patches growing on the medium), I start a new culture. A good culture
doesn't have ANY mold growing in it.
 
In over 20 years of microworm culturing (always adding yeast) I've NEVER had the bad smell described by others. Usually it is a "fruity" odor that, after a month or two, becomes "earthy". That is when I start a new culture.
 
I use multiple small containers -- the squat glass jars from baby foods
(2-1/8" diameter, 2-1/2" tall) -- with a WOODEN tongue applicator
(obtainable in any drugstore) cut in half as the "runway for the
microworms. (Plastic tongue applicators don't seem to work as well.) It
is MUCH easier to scrape the microworms off a flat surface, rather than
the round sides of a jar or tub!
 
I use UNBLEACHED corn meal as the medium. It is less messy than other
media, but people have success with any starchy food. Just add enough
water (boiled to sterilize it, but then cooled) to a heaping spoonfull
of corn meal in a CLEAN jar. Wait for the meal to soak the water in and
add enough water to form a THIN film of water on the surface. 
 
Sprinkle a few (~10) grains of dry yeast on the wet surface and leave
(covered) overnight, to give the yeast a chance to grow. Add your
microworm culture, a wet wooden tongue depressor cut in half crosswise,
and wait. If patches of mold appear initially -- remove them! After the
yeast and microworms are going strong, no mold should appear.
 
After a while (the time is variable and depends on the size of the
inoculum, etc., but is usually 1-2 weeks) the microworms will cover the
tongue depressor in a solid mass and can be conveniently harvested.
 
Every month, or so, start another jar. That way you will have several
jars producing. When the productivity slows down, discard the culture,
sterilize the jar and the tongue depressor by boiling them for 5 min. in water, and you are ready to start anew.
 
http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/month.200206/msg00122.html
 
I use the quick oatmeal. Mix a small amount of oatmeal with water to
form a runny paste then add a pinch of dry yeast. Add a bit of your
present culture to this and you should have a new culture going strong
in a couple of days. If the mixture gets too dry just add a little water and stir it to keep it on the runny side.This culture usually lasts me over a month before I have to start a new one.
 
 
http://www.angelfish.net/yabbse/index.php?board=13;action=display;threadid=489
 
A 16 oz plastic soda bottle or larger can be used.

Cut the mid section out 1/4" from the bottom ridge and right at the top ridge and trash it.

Use the two remaining sections to make a mini terariam by placing the top (Cone shape) over the bottom half. The top should overlap the bottom due to where the cuts where made.

Mix food and dab a microworm culture on it.

If you use a tongue depressor as a feeding implement it rests in the neck of the bottle very well.

I notice less odor from my cultures permiate the room since starting this method as well as a more abundant culture in less time.

http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/month.200308/msg00425.html

Thanks for your message. I grow microworms in closed containers. I use only oat meal porridge, no yeast,  in a small Tupperware style container and keep the lid, without any holes, tightly closed. The the short term productivity is not very good, but with this method the cultures keep alive up to 6 months. The advantage is clear in my case. The smell of the culture medium doesn't spread around and the ladies of my household don't get angry. In your case this would keep the flies out (or in, if you prefer).
 
I stirr 1 cup of oat meal with 1 1/2 cup of cold water in a mixer and put it in a small container. I heat it in a microwawe owen 2 minutes in full steam and let the stuff cool. Then I set a pinch of old microworm culture to the new one and keep it in a dark place.
 
I don't encourage anyone to put yeast in a closed container, because the CO2 production will blow the lid of and let you with a nasty mess.
 
 
http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/month.200206/msg00127.html
 
Interestingly enough, I used to have them fouling up all the time. The reek of a bad culture is one of the most horrible smells I have had the bad luck to come across (my wife too ;) judging by the screams) But, the last time I started a new one up, I recalled someone saying they used dried instant mashed potatoes. I found some in the cupboard and tried it. Well, it's been going for maybe 3 months now, and still looks (and smells) excellent.  The fish seem to like them better too, because I used "butter and herb" mashed potatoes.
 
 
http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/month.200206/msg00140.html
 
If that is the culture that I gave you about a month ago, the medium 
in which it is growing is made up of instant mashed potatoes, water, 
and a pinch of yeast.  If you get the consistency right, and keep 
them in a container of that size, they will last for over a month 
(... and I have some cultures that have lasted MUCH, MUCH, MUCH 
longer than that).  Oddly enough, I have never had such (long term) 
success keeping them in oatmeal, baby food, and many of the other 
media suggested.  As others have pointed out, you WILL KNOW when the 
culture starts going bad. :)  If it does go bad, and you can stomach 
handling it under such conditions, you can probably still rescue 
enough microworms to start a new culture.  Anyway, the point is that 
the medium in which yours are growing (and with which you are finally 
having some success) is made with instant mashed potatoes from the 
$0.99 store. 
 
 
http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/month.200206/msg00193.html
 
I too use the Quick Oats severely dampened with water, but not running wet.  I then lightly sprinkle several grains of brewers yeast on the surface and then scrape some worms off the side of a previous culture being careful not to take any of the old culture medium with it.
The cultures last a long time this way [4-5 weeks] and produce well.  
I have noticed that if you want to drive the culture to produce lots of
worms on the sides of the container, where they are easy to remove for
feeding, that you need to keep the lid on tighter.  In other words, provide less air circulation to the culture.
 
 
http://fins.actwin.com/killietalk/month.200211/msg00150.html
 
Microworms are a very poor first food for almost all killies. They are 
too large -- contrary to the will-not-die popular myth that they are smaller  than baby brine shrimp. They do not have the food value of brine shrimp either. Strart the fry on a little green water and LIVE baby brine and in about two weeks see if they will eat microworms as an additional food. Baby brine is the easiest and best first food for those fry that do not have to have infusoria or rotifers -- which are both good to use for a few days even with the brine.
 
 
http://wako.aka.org/articles.html
 

Lately I have been raising microworms with a new twist. I start with a small tupperware container that has a large surface area. I place a thin layer, 1/4 inch, of medium in this container: 50% farina baby cereal and 50% cornmeal. When I notice the worm production falling off and before it begins to smell, I add another thin layer on top of the first. In 48 hours, I have a very active and "sweet smelling" culture. I continue to do this until the container is nearly full. I get many weeks of worms with no loss of production and no smell.

 
 
http://wako.aka.org/articles.html
 

Culturing Microworms is just about as easy as it gets! They grow and proliferate on many types of medium including corn-meal, oatmeal, fresh potato, potato buds, etc - but for optimum results, I highly recommend Gerber Mixed Cereal. For a small (i.e. margarine tub) culture start with 2 - 3 tablespoons of cereal, add a pinch of active dry yeast (~ 1/8 tsp) and stir in enough water to make a sticky ball - about 1 inch in diameter. The yeast is critical, as it helps keep bacteria count under control and in my experience can triple the life of the culture! Place the ball of cereal in the center of your container and add a dollop of worms from a thriving culture. Make sure you transfer only the microworms and none of the media (and therefore bacteria) from the older culture! Depending on how many worms you start with it will take 3-7 days before the population increases to the point where the microworms start "climbing the walls". As the population grows the ball of cereal will gradually spread out and liquify. When you tilt the container and the media runs downhill it is time to deal with the excess liquid. Try sprinkling either dry Gerber cereal, or whole Quaker oats around the bottom of the container to soak up the liquid and extend the useful life of the culture. Typically, you can begin harvesting within a few days of starting a culture and keep harvesting for up to 6 weeks. Eventually the medium starts to darken and takes on a memorable odor (to put it mildly - a culture gone bad will elicit a strong gag reflex when you pop the lid!) My recommendation is to start a new culture every 2 - 3 weeks, so you always have more than one going... I keep 3 cultures going at all times, and each time I start a new one I toss the oldest. This may seem like overkill, but it has 2 advantages... first, it ensures that no matter what happens I will usually be able to get enough worms from one of the containers to start a new culture . And second, I never have to deal with a culture that is so far past it's prime that it elicits the gag reaction. Last bits of advice, keep them at room temp and allow the culture to "breath" by poking a couple small holes in the top!