Reeferkief said:

Black solider fly larva are great decomposers, the after product is up there with EWC. Both are great in different ways, BSFL eat meat and dairy products, much more efficient feeders, the harvested larvae are a high protein food source (great for chickens and reptiles), the combination sounds ideal (BSFL compost ran through worm bins). They are very fast at their job and take a little more effort to take care of and to breed (indoors at least). I recall reading about them not being able to breakdown certain things such as grass, paper, and a few other things. Since then I've always thought about a system incorporating worms and BSFL but have never actually played with BSFL. Also to keep it on topic, they could possibly be a chitin source ! DRY EM AND CRUSH EM!

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Nomadic said:

I forgot to add that we stopped composting food waste and fed it to "the barrel". I was shocked at the voracious appetite for chicken poop.

The pine flakes just did a normal compost with absorption of the larvae waste.

The larvae group together in cold weather like honey bees. I only had to buy them the one time. They would overwinter on their own (down here in the south which is actually colder than most places in CA, OR, and WA.

The actual fly form only live about five days and have no mouth parts....they exist to breed and lay eggs. They prefer to lay eggs over compost they came from...... it's a smell thang. Placing corrugated plastic strips or popsicle sticks over used compost is best. The eggs hatch and the larvae fall into the compost.

You can buy the worms and keep them in moist coco coir and feed them food scraps (no high acid food like tomatoes). When they stop feeding at the largest instar cycle.....the fly form will start to hatch out.....pour them into fresh compost outside with "egg strips" and you're on your way to hundreds, thousands, and millions.

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Ecompost said:

awesome :) I am happy to see so many of us tending the needs of a whole system and not seeing the plant as the sole point of focus. yes we want our plants to succeed, but more and more of us know this works better if we share our work with those organisms that have been designed for that purpose also. The more you think, the harder it is to justify a visit to a store that sells things we are learning are detrimental, if not to us, then to our childrens children

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Reeferkief said:

The larvae themselves are quite hardy. They reportedly can be fully submerged in rubbing alcohol for up to an hour without negative effects. Little literature is available regarding optimum Ph; however, cited in a paper by Dr. Newby is the following: “The larvae tolerate a wide range of pH and will survive well in compost derived exclusively from decomposing citrus fruits (Brues 1928).”

I'll have to give them a try someday!

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Savage Henry said:

An observational note:

This stuff (or at least the specific product I'm using) appears to knock down fungus gnats with a quickness.

My sticky traps started showing more fungus gnats than I feel comfortable with, so I mixed 1/2 c/gal with dechlor water and let sit, stirring occasionally for a half hour (as per the manufacturers instructions:http://www.onfrass.com/docs/One sheet_Applications and Benefits.pdf) and drenched my pots with 1 qt/per 3 gal pot of coco. I put up a fresh sticky trap when I did this to gauge its efficacy.

The next day I had 3-4 gnats show up on the trap and then none since, it's been about a week.

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Ecompost said:

chitin stimulates fungal mass, specifically the filamentous types which effectively trap and consume soft bodied insects, so this would include the larvae of fungus gnats. On application of liquid chitin, I noted a substantial increase in Lecanicillium and Trichoderma which might be responsible in part for the reduction you have witnessed here

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Ecompost said:

chitin stimulates fungal mass, specifically the filamentous types which effectively trap and consume soft bodied insects, so this would include the larvae of fungus gnats. On application of liquid chitin, I noted a substantial increase in Lecanicillium and Trichoderma which might be responsible in part for the reduction you have witnessed here

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Nomadic said:

What is your source of liquid chitin?

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Ecompost said:

I make it mate, I own a Nutrient company :)

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Nomadic said:

Well that is cool..... I think chitin is very important to plant health. Do you have a website?

I'm a chemist so naturally interested in how you get chitin to dissolve...perhaps in the chitosan form.

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Savage Henry said:

Not necessarily a "better" way, but chitosan oligosaccharide appears to have significant potential: http://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/3/4/757/pdf

Edit: Well, better solubility from what I understand, though the frass has significantly more fungal cfus.

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