Dubia Roaches and geckos

I don't use dry food (crumbles in the bottom of the rat block bag) unless I am going away and don't want their food to mold or I having a lot of mold and humidity issues in the bin. I would pair dry food with water crystals so they have a food and moisture source.

That said, I do not ever feed dry because then I would have to buy (spend money) on water crystals.

I mix the crumbles at the bottom of the rat block bag with water until it is a little thicker than applesauce. Food and water source in one. Fruits and vegetables are a food and water source in one. You can use dog food... you can use pretty much anything. Oranges! They love oranges. Varied diet will be best for the roaches and best for your geckos.

They can definitely live without food for a few weeks if I had to guess. Water, maybe a week? I may have to do trials on this, BUT, if you forget to feed or water, they will be fine if you are away on a week vacation.

Keep them dark, keep them warm, keep them fed, keep them mold free and you will have a colony before you know it.

All vegetable and fruit scraps go to the roaches. I've found they are not a fan of granny smith apples. as aldebono said, they do love oranges, it will also add a subtle orange scent to their enclosure. They also really like bananas. I don't like using potatoes. They will dig holes in the potatoes and the nyphs will make a home in those holes, makes cleaning a pain.

For dry food, I give them Professional Reptiles Pro Gutload, never had a problem with it molding and lasts a long time. I also give them bee pollen, they love that stuff.

I use to use water crystals, but I found they would drag them out of the container I had them in I leave them in areas of the cage which would create little damp areas which could breed bacteria, so I switched to the veggies and fruits.

And speaking of containers, I like to use the styrofoam containers that you buy mushrooms in at the grocery store. The little nymphs can climb up those, and it helps contain the food.

I use dog food and chicken mash plus my insects always have some sort of fruit (apples, oranges or bananas).

I stopped using water gel, it just seemed to drive humidity up