# Frogs & Toads > Dart Frogs (Dendrobatidae) > General Discussion >  How do I keep my fruit flys alive??

## GREGCELLENT

Hey everyone. . I have been having some issues with keeping my flies alive..what are some systems thst work? yesterday there were hundreds of flies now there's only about 50 alive..the culture in the back is a new culture which also had about 100 flies they all died.

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## bill

How old are the cultures? They look all used up. 


Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world ~ Nelson Mandela

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## GREGCELLENT

The one in the front is about 2 months and the one in the back has been growing for about 1 month..what am I supposed to do to keep the flies alive? I transferred some into a container with bananas but not sure if that's a good idea or not.

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## bill

you need to continually make new ones. they are only good for about a month, once they start producing. then all the food in the media is used up and the flies won't reproduce anymore. personally, i make 2 cultures every other week, so i never run out.. a lot depends on how many frogs you have and how often you feed them. some people make one per week, others need to make more.

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## Dale

My cultures usually last 4 to 6 weeks.
The culture I am currently using was started on Nov. 27.
I make 1 new culture of Hydei and 1 culture of melanos each week.

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## GREGCELLENT

I have 4 frogs and feed them every day/every other day depending on how much they eat when I feed them...each culture takes about 30 days to blossom ..is that correct? ..if grow a culture every month I would have an overload of flies...I wouldn't be able to feed them all to my frogs . Am I doing something wrong?

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## bill

You won't be overloaded. With 2 cultures. Start with making one per week. You use the running cultures to populate the new cultures. Remember to allow about 2 weeks for them to start really producing. And expect to toss them a month after that. This way it prevents you from having any mite issues. 


Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world ~ Nelson Mandela

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## GREGCELLENT

Ok.. so it's not wasteful throwing away a culture that still has flies in it..the more important thing seems to be the time frame of the culture.  Is that correct?

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## bill

Yup. Once you get a system down, it pretty much regulates itself. The key is having that 2 week grace period for the culture to start producing. 3 weeks if temps are a bit cooler. 


Education is the most powerful weapon we can use to change the world ~ Nelson Mandela

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## GREGCELLENT

Ok thanks for all the advice. ..also I blended some banana and mixed it with some water and put that into an empty container and added flies...is that ok or am I risking a mite or mold issue

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## bill

you are definitely risking a mold issue. if you are in a jam, most petcos carry fruit flies. their are pricey ($10 for a small culture) but excellent in a pinch. 

where in NY are you located? there are tons of froggers in the NYC area you may be able to buy a culture off of.

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## GREGCELLENT

I'm in queens . Haven't found many places . There's one place I found repxotica in long island. It's about an hour drive from me.

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## bill

Repxotica is an excellent shop. hopefully one of the long island folk will correct me if i am wrong, but you should be able to get everything you need there, including a kit to make several cultures to last you a while. from there, you can either go back for more supplies or order online.

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## GREGCELLENT

Everything I have including my frogs are all from repxotica.  I think the place is great. Just the hour drive isn't as convenient as I would like but I don't think there's a place better than them anywhere closer

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## Vivariums In The Mist

We don't sell flys, but we have a ton of supplies, springtails, and plants in stock plus we are in Queens.




> Everything I have including my frogs are all from repxotica.  I think the place is great. Just the hour drive isn't as convenient as I would like but I don't think there's a place better than them anywhere closer

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## Lynn

Hi,
Right ! You will find ready made ( immediately available ) cultures at Repxotica on LI. 
You might call before you head there.

You will find all the supplies at Viv in the Mist. 

IMO , if you want to get a good start/ stock on flies  , may I suggest you place and order with NEHerp.
Purchase 2 or 3 cultures ( or more ? )  that are 'ready' . As soon as you get them ... make a few new cultures.
Keep in mind they may not ship because of the cold weather  :Frog Surprise: 

*What culture media are you using?*
I use Repashy - only - after trying every mix, including several home made recipes!
Keep in mind this is one area of PDF care you need to _'get right'_ .....  :Smile: ....and NOT skimp - as their food must be available.
Keep a strict schedule for making new cultures. ie weekly

In the winter / dryer  months , the cultures may dry out a little faster. You could try misting ( carefully) with distilled water.
Try adding a little additional water when you make them. Let the newly prepared culture cool completely  before adding the flies.
I prepare my cultures  one day and add the flies the next ( cover them ).

If you spray w distilled  water---after the spray ----look in to see if you still see larva moving around. 
You could add ( squirt/ in) additional media if you think that it's low the?
Check to make sure there are NO mites--- the mites will look like moving grains of sand. If so, move the cultures form all good ones immediately. 
To examine more closely for mites look around the rim of the lid. 

If , after one month , the cultures are still producing, ( common w Heidi) move them far away from your other /newer cultures.
There is nothing wrong w/ using a culture w/ mites to feed your frogs....but you do not want to make a new one with it or keep near the good ones.
Keeping them too long will increase you chances of getting mites in them.

Try to use a culture that has been producing for about 10 days to make the new one. 
This will add flies that are 'ready' to breed in the new culture. You will have less production w immature/ newly hatched flies.

A production routine is important. If it gets interrupted. BUY flies ( if you can ) to get yourself up and running again.

Hope this helps

 :Butterfly:

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