Compost and flies

[Curtis B]

This is my third year with a compost pile and by far the worst with flies. I don't know why, but I would much rather have the material decompose that just be fly food. I know that you need a balance of "browns" and "greens", but what could I be doing wrong?

[mammabooh]

Hmmm...I've never had that problem. Is your pile really wet?

[Curtis B]

Originally Posted by mammabooh

Hmmm...I've never had that problem. Is your pile really wet?

Somedays. We have been going a week to ten days w/o rain, then 2-3 inches in a day. The flies are going after what ever is on top food wise. I don't always have stuff to put on top.

[uncle Will in In.]

Anything that could be considered garbage needs to be buried where flies can't get to it and breed.

[Callieslamb]

Turn your pile. Add straw or other dry matter. Cover it when it rains and water it yourself.

[Alice In TX/MO]

Cover food compost with hay or barn sweepings or leaves.

[HilltopDaisy]

Have you or your neighbor gotten a horse recently?

[Micheal]

Fly attractor - What are you putting into your compost pile? That may also have something to do with the number of flies.
If you don't have any "greens" to cover the top, try covering the new with some of the old.

[Curtis B]

I think the garbage thought is what the problem is. Recently DW has gotten more into composting rather than throwing the scraps away. We don't have any barn sweepings, grass clipings, or anything of the sort. I will have to try and come up with something. I could try to turn it, but at this point I feel like flypaper anytime I go near it. What else could I use to cover the scraps.

[makeitmyself]

Anything that's not vegetables will attract flies. We had some mysterious maggots in our pile a few weeks ago, couldn't figure out why. Then we remembered the potato salad made with eggs we dumped in there. They were gone after a day or two.

[offGridNorthern]

If you don't have any straw or leaves to put on top of the food, do you have any garden soil that you could sift on top of the new material just to cover it from the flies?

[highlands]

It does sound like it may be too wet. Keep chickens free-ranging near the compost pile. They thrive on the insects.

Cheers

-Walter
Sugar Mountain Farm
in the mountains of Vermont
http://SugarMtnFarm.com/blog/
http://HollyGraphicArt.com/
http://NoNAIS.org

[steff bugielski]

WE have a tremendous amount of flies this year every where. I think the amount of rain has a lot to do with it. But the chickens seem to enjoy them.