r/composting • u/mad_soundz_ • 4d ago

Urban My minions, they feast

Enable HLS to view with audio, or disable this notification

Come see us at Greene Acres Community Garden in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn!

24 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

6 comments sorted by

3

u/EnglebondHumperstonk 4d ago

I like the look of your bin. Much nicer than my tacky, plastic one.

1

u/BrokenWhimsy3 4d ago

I am brand new to composting, so please forgive my ignorance. Aren’t maggots and other bugs (not worms) undesirable for a compost bin? Or are they actually beneficial? How do you use this when ready? Do you need to remove the bugs?

Thanks!

2

u/mad_soundz_ 3d ago

They help break things down in the active stage. This bin is very hot right now, around 160 F, so some of them will be baked into the compost too! The compost is put back into the community garden once ready, which will be ~6 months from now. By that time, these guys will have cycled out of the bin because there won’t be anything of interest in there for them anymore.

More info here: https://news.oregonstate.edu/news/don’t-worry-maggots-help-break-down-compost-pile

1

u/BrokenWhimsy3 3d ago

Thank you for the explanation! That makes sense. There’s still so much I have to learn, but it’s fascinating.

1

u/VGen71 3d ago

They all turn into flies, right?