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maggots in compost

carolinadesertdeb's picture

maggots in compost (post #19376)

carolinadesertdeb on Tue, 09/13/2011 - 04:54
in

Help!!!! I threw some potatoes & oranges in my compost bins & now they are SWIMMING with maggots as large as grubs (or bigger) and they liquify anything & everything I put in it!!!!  The fruit & potatoes had fruit gnats, which is why I tossed them.  Can I use this anyway? Will the maggots die during winter freeze?  I go out each week to stir & add more to my bins, they will be full after butting in plant debris & the next week they are back to  !/2 bin of liquid!!!  I've been making compost for years & never seen anything like this!

-A +A
KimmI's picture

Maggots in compost (post #19376, reply #1 of 1)

by KimmI in reply to carolinadesertdeb [original] on Wed, 09/14/2011 - 08:17

Those maggots, the larva of flies, are there because conditions are right for them, a moist environment. That is an indication that your compost is too wet. Putting dry material on can help as will some kind of dessicant. Blood meal, sprinkled right on the maggots, can help. 

The sign of a good gardener is brown knees, not a green thumb.