Flies in compost bin

[Vegandmore]

I have a 'Dalek' style compost bin which I have been using all year to compost grass clippings, veg peelings, paper and cardboard, my plan was to use it to spread over my raised beds to act as a mulch and add nutrients but when I have opened the door of the compost bin it is swarming with hundreds if small black flies. Is this normal or is my compost ruined and would affect my crops I I used if for planting? Help 😩


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[Aileen35]

Perfectly normal and part of the decomposition process..... panic not

[Vegandmore]

Phew 😀 on the garden it goes then, thankyou 😊


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[Aileen35]

Assuming you have fruit flies and not Blow Fly? (metalic green horrid things that lay their eggs in rotten meat, or live flesh? ) If they are blow flies then you have put meat in the compost and that's a huge "no no". Here's hoping you have fruit flies then

[Vegandmore]

They weren't big flies, they were tiny little ones That jumped rather than flew although they did have wings - I've tried to show a photo of what they looked like, I spread the compost onto my raised beds and they've gone now so don't think they will cause any problems , hopefully ☺


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[Two_Sheds]

compost bin it is swarming with hundreds if small black flies.

It's normal, but not necessary.

Wrap your kitchen peelings in sheets of newspaper (like a chip parcel) before adding to the compost bin. I compost dog poo this way, and get very few flies (they can't lay on newspaper)

[alldigging]

Put a layer of grass clippings over the top. It'll keep the numbers down.

[Bill HH]

I notice there is thread on here "Insect repellent" That might have hepled.

[MrsCordial]

I've been reading up on these little flies this evening as I suddenly have an explosion of them. My compost is 90% kitchen peelings but I put loo roll inners too and try to put in scrumpled up newspaper with every load. With all the fruit preparation recently the balance must have got skewed.

[Two_Sheds]

My compost is 90% kitchen peelings

mmmmm, it should be about 50%

Try wrapping each lot of peelings in a sheet or two of newspaper. Also never have fruit peelings as the top layer of your heap, or you'll just get clouds of fruit flies. The top layer can be grass clippings, a sheet of newspaper, autumn leaves, straw, sawdust, anything really ~ just not fruit

[MrsCordial]

Til recently composting was just a way of avoiding putting veg scraps into landfill, but as with so much in gardening as time goes on I'm paying more attention and trying to do it properly. Thanks for the great advice. I'm now lining the compost trugs (two old pick-your-own punnets) with paper and adding paper every time I empty it. I'll bung some of the chicken shavings into it too.

What scares me now is how fast the thing is filling up. I'm going to need a second one at this rate

[Bigmallly]

It'll soon reduce down Mrs C.........Do as TS suggests & wrap all your veg waste in newspaper, that way you are adding both greens & browns to your mix plus it will help keep the flies at bay.

[Vegpatchkid]

I'd suggest giving your compost a turn every now and then. Not sure if its the mixing that helps or getting some air in it, but it seems to help speed up the process. I try and do ours once a month ish.
I read the reviews of some compost turners that are like foldable T-bars and they wern't very good, so I bought one that's like a big corkscrew and that does the trick really well and quite easliy.

[Two_Sheds]

Til recently composting was just a way of avoiding putting veg scraps into landfill

... that's why I started composting the dog's poops. Imagine how many plastic bagged turds are going into landfill: it's staggering.

how fast the thing is filling up. I'm going to need a second one at this rate

Or, you need to empty it and use the compost that is "done"

I'd suggest giving your compost a turn every now and then.

You can, but I can't be bothered, myself.
Instead, when the dalek gets full, I take the whole thing up & put it somewhere else. I leave it as a bare heap for a few weeks, and the blackbirds pick through it for insect snacks.
Then I pick out the big unrotted lumps and put them in the new heap, and shovel the "done" compost onto the veg beds.

I try to site the compost daleks where I'm going to need the compost, so I don't have to move it so far. Anything for an easy life

[shirlthegirl43]

... that's why I started composting the dog's poops. Imagine how many plastic bagged turds are going into landfill: it's staggering.

Do you treat the dog do in any particular way for composting? I pick up Ludo's and put it in an old flowerpot with holes in the bottom - this gets abandoned at the back of the garden until it washes away. Was wondering if there was a better way to get rid though.