Source is mostly yard clippings and tree leaves (no food). I was traveling and it was left unattended for a month. It smell like manure and it has these worms when I turn it. Is it good, recoverable, a lost cause?
It’s a little hard to see but I’m pretty sure you’ve got black soldier fly (BSF) larvae. They’re not necessarily bad (they’re not pests) but they are a sign that your pile’s conditions are outside of what’s best for normal composting.
I’d guess too wet and too much organics. You can either fix the ratio to encourage aerobic composting or keep feeding these guys to encourage them to break down the pile.
80sKidAtHeart
Throw in more leaves and dirt, that’ll make it less moist
bikes-and-beers
Compost is almost never a lost cause. Add more browns and it’ll sort itself out.
Crazy_Ad_91
I welcome my little soldier friends but it does look a bit moist. It doesn’t sound like you’re adding any water, so load up on browns for the next 1-2 weeks and give it a good turn when you do and check it then. As far as I know, as long as they aren’t bothering you, the larvae only help break things down. But typically they come with unfavorable conditions such as strong foul smell. End of the day, if it doesn’t look like it did when it first went in, it’s at least doing something in the right direction when it comes to compositing. I think it all just comes down to how fast you’ll get to where you want it, is all. Someone correct me if I’m wrong here at all or they should just pee on it more.
Averagebass
No its amazing and you should piss on them and add more rotten fruit (seriously, theyre composting).
HeemeyerDidNoWrong
Friend shaped
nardixbici
Thanks for your advice, folks! I I will do the following, if I understood correctly, based on my context ( I won’t piss or add fruits): add dry tree leaves 🍂, mix, put the next round of grass clippings only when they are dry, wait for improvement.
AdPlayful6449
No but its wet. Add brownz
TrivialClock
More browns.
No-Interview2340
Chicken time
Coderedinbed
Google “compost brown vs green”
3x5cardfiler
Is that in your kitchen?
docsjs123
Black soldier fly larvae. They’ve never seem to harm, though they scare the 💩out of you when you open the cover and they fly out. They’re pretty big!
Knullist
get a chicken, seriously, put it on the pile and let it live the life for awhile
14 Comments
It’s a little hard to see but I’m pretty sure you’ve got black soldier fly (BSF) larvae. They’re not necessarily bad (they’re not pests) but they are a sign that your pile’s conditions are outside of what’s best for normal composting.
I’d guess too wet and too much organics. You can either fix the ratio to encourage aerobic composting or keep feeding these guys to encourage them to break down the pile.
Throw in more leaves and dirt, that’ll make it less moist
Compost is almost never a lost cause. Add more browns and it’ll sort itself out.
I welcome my little soldier friends but it does look a bit moist. It doesn’t sound like you’re adding any water, so load up on browns for the next 1-2 weeks and give it a good turn when you do and check it then. As far as I know, as long as they aren’t bothering you, the larvae only help break things down. But typically they come with unfavorable conditions such as strong foul smell. End of the day, if it doesn’t look like it did when it first went in, it’s at least doing something in the right direction when it comes to compositing. I think it all just comes down to how fast you’ll get to where you want it, is all. Someone correct me if I’m wrong here at all or they should just pee on it more.
No its amazing and you should piss on them and add more rotten fruit (seriously, theyre composting).
Friend shaped
Thanks for your advice, folks! I I will do the following, if I understood correctly, based on my context ( I won’t piss or add fruits): add dry tree leaves 🍂, mix, put the next round of grass clippings only when they are dry, wait for improvement.
No but its wet. Add brownz
More browns.
Chicken time
Google “compost brown vs green”
Is that in your kitchen?
Black soldier fly larvae. They’ve never seem to harm, though they scare the 💩out of you when you open the cover and they fly out. They’re pretty big!
get a chicken, seriously, put it on the pile and let it live the life for awhile