Kitchen Garden Forum

my compost is rotting down quite nicely, but it is swarming with life ants, flies etc is this normal? and is it ok to use? many thanks

Morning Doc and welcome to the forum.

The flies are probably fruit flies attracted by fruit and vegetable waste - annoying but not a problem. As for the ants, they are not really a problem in the long run; the heap may be too dry. Ants are not fond of damp so if you make sure the compost is wetter they will soon migrate.

Our compost bins are always full of these tiny flies but the moment the weather turns cold, they disappear. They have certainly never done any harm.

cheers guys i'll try and keep my compost a little wetter now.