[Community_garden] How to keep flies out of compost bin?

[yarrow at sfo.com]

At 9:56 AM -0700 5/30/08, Kate Kiefling wrote:
>How to keep flies out of my compost bin? I do not mind but neighbors do.

I get flies in warm weather because I dump the bucket of kitchen 
waste on top, then cover with garden waste as I work in the garden. I 
think some flies come from my neighbor's banana peels -- I compost 
their kitchen waste, and they eat a lot of bananas.

To keep away the swarm, I either get some free coffee grounds and add 
a layer of those, or I shred a bagful of newspaper and add a few 
handfuls on top. It's like magic! Either one of these makes the flies 
disappear from my compost bin. I don't have dry leaves or a way to 
shred them, but maybe those would work, too. If I have more time, I 
get a wheelbarrow full of mulch (we always have a big pile of mulch 
from tree trimmers available at the garden) and cover all the greens.

I almost never get around to turning my compost, either.

Despite not composting by the book, I get great compost in 3-4 months.