Braam received his YOLO Compost Tumbler at the end of August and he is eagerly looking forward to his first batch of compost.
“We are very happy with our YOLOs. Our first batch of compost is about to reach full maturity and the process has been quite amazing. It has also massively reduced our home’s waste output,” he writes.
Braam had a question about fruit flies. Three weeks in, he experienced a “fruit fly bloom”.
“It was quite insane actually and surprising as we never had any smells coming from the YOLO the entire time. Just one day all of a sudden a fruit fly bomb went off. We found airing the bins definitely helped.”
The fruit fly eggs were most likely laid on fruit cuttings left out overnight instead of being laid inside the YOLO. The reason for this is that once cuttings are added to your YOLO and are tumbled, they are mixed into the existing shell contents and are coated in the partially composted materials. Fruit flies like easy access to the fruit.
Of course, fruit flies or any other such insects in your YOLO will not negatively affect your compost. These organisms are all part of the natural composting process. When the available food runs out, so do they.
In summer, be sure to get your fruit cuttings into your YOLO sooner rather than later instead of leaving them exposed in a tub in the kitchen to reduce the chance of a fruit fly laying its eggs there.
