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How to Raise an Inchworm

You may care for young inchworms as part of an experiment or to satisfy curiosity about their life cycle, but the best time to raise them is in the late spring or early summer. The small green inchworms, or cankerworms, are actually caterpillars that grow into geometer moths. As you raise inchworms, you will see them burrowing in the soil and then emerging as moths. The males have wings while females are wingless. Once they have reached the moth stage, you may release them.

Things You'll Need

Jar with a lid
Knife
Sticks and leaves

Instructions

- 1
  Find a glass jar with a lid, such as a jelly or mason jar. Poke small holes in the lid with knife. Fill the bottom of the jar with 4 inches of dirt.
- 2
  Collect sticks and leaves from outside and place them in the jar. Inchworms will climb and hang from the sticks, and they will eat the leaves. Replace eaten or wilted leaves with fresh leaves every two days. Avoid leaves that may have been sprayed with pesticides, or wash the leaves thoroughly before placing them in the jar.
- 3
  Look for inchworms in the bushes and trees near your home. If you find one on a leaf, take the entire leaf from the tree and place it in your jar. Otherwise, place a small piece of paper in front of each inchworm as it is moving. Once it has moved onto your paper, transfer the inchworm to one of the leaves in your jar. Collect about four inchworms per jar to keep from overcrowding.
- 4
  Close the jar's lid and place it in an area that gets limited sunlight during the day.
- 5
  Watch the jar and you may see the inchworms descend from the branches on silken threads and burrow into the soil to form cocoons. This step occurs when they are about three to four weeks old. Wait for the inchworms to emerge from the soil in early November. Release the moths outside once they emerge.

Insects & Science