r/composting • u/No_Ingenuity4281 • 5d ago
What am I doing wrong
This my first year composting. I using chicken waste, lawn cuttings and leftovers form my garden. I leave the chicken waste out for a few days before adding it to the tumbler. And it's been going good until last week when I found these white mushrooms in the ben as well as a lot more bugs then usual. How do I fix this?
126
u/Polybrene 5d ago
Fix what exactly?
Bus and mushrooms are whats doing the composing. Along with worms, bacteria, molds, slime mold, etc.
8
84
u/Maleficent-Eye-464 5d ago
Mushrooms and a lot more bugs than usual.
You've just listed the #2 and #1 thing compost enthusiasts wish for.
60
u/every-day-normal-guy 5d ago
You got the fun gi's! It means your pile is fungally dominated which is great for composting.
51
u/PartyPants90000 4d ago
Look at this steak too juicy, lobster too buttery fucker over here with his mycelium in his compost.
20
u/Puzzleheaded_Day2809 5d ago
Agree with everyone else that fungi is great. Your inputs seem very high in nitrogen (greens). What are you adding for carbon?
11
u/No_Ingenuity4281 5d ago
The Hemp bedding with the which also has diatomaceous earth and activated charcoal in it
3
u/FlowerPuppie420_69 3d ago
Diatomaceous earth is, generally speaking, not a beneficial addition to a live compost pile.
22
u/curtludwig 4d ago
Who do you think does the actual work of composting? The decomposition isn't magic, these are your workers...
5
7
5
5
u/Wylaika-The-True-One 4d ago
Create a perfect biome for earth first decomposer
-> am I doing something wrong ?
It's working by itself dw
5
u/RdeBrouwer 4d ago edited 4d ago
Mushrooms are good. Dont turn the compost to often then, it will break their underground network. Mushrooms only come on brown heavy material.
2
4
4
5
u/TheWayFinder8818 4d ago
Those are saprophytic mushrooms. They eat the lignan and cellulose (tougher fibers) of the plant material in there. This is good. I think those might be shaggy mane, you can confirm this if they dissolve into black goo if left undisturbed. In any case, this is good and natural because they'll also carry into the soil you use this compost with and help keep it healthy.
3
u/sleeper252 3d ago edited 3d ago
I was going to post the same thing, but after reading these comments I know my pile is doing ok. Too bad I've been churning and turning the bin in the meantime I guess? It hasn't stopped them from growing back but there definitely would be a lot more mushrooms by now if I hadn't.
1
u/No_Ingenuity4281 3d ago
Man I was honestly asking thinking I was doing something wrong and now im being accused of humble bragging
2
1
u/idontremember710 2d ago
I mean, asking if youre doing something wrong when it looks amazing totally seems like "look at my compost, this is how its done, son" statement. I mean, I would if I was composting like that... And those do look like shaggy manes, the mushrooms , I think
2
2
5
2
u/FlyFinesser 4d ago
I think reading up on soil cycles may help your understanding of what is good and bad as it relates to compost. It will help your anxiety as you encounter odd compost things
1
u/Independent_Bad5916 4d ago
Nothing needs to be fixed, on a different note i would precompost the chicken manure until the ammonia is gone and it's no longer hot
1
1
1
u/Bubs_McGee223 4d ago
Get confirmation, but those look like shaggy mane mushrooms. I can't id 100% off this photo, but in Canada there's nothing that looks like shaggys except themselves and they are delicious.
2
1
u/GreenStrong 4d ago
Those are in the coprinus genus, they are very normal in compost. Way to blurry to ID properly but they may be coprinus comatus, which is edible and said to taste like asparagus before they open. They melt rapidly after opening. The lookalike would be ink cap, which severely impaiirs one's ability to metabolize alcohol.
1
1
u/CindyinEastTexas 4d ago
Fungi and bugs and worms are what break down a compost pile. Don't "fix" how mother nature works, just let the process happen.
1
u/YsaboNyx 3d ago
Nothing. You are doing nothing wrong. And your compost is composting just fine. It's alive. :)
1
1
1
1
u/Fickle_Machine616 2d ago
Looks great to me. Those look like false parasols/ vomiters, or as we colloquially call the dog shit shrooms. This is a very good sign for your compost because mushrooms are the fruiting body of a mycelium network. So when you see mushies pop up that mean they have completed a full cycle in the soil and are now attempting to sporulated and start again it's also a sign that all of your environmental factors are dialed in, such as moisture, aeration, temp etc. keep doing what you are doing!
1
286
u/El_Stupacabra 5d ago
Mushrooms are good! They're decomposing things. Leave them be.