Thank you…Thank you…Thank you… It is 1:00 am here in Florida and I can finally get my mind to settle down. Thanks for your help. Thought sure I was going to have to harvest everything in the morning.

I have only had my worms for 3-4 weeks and I was feeding them composted horse manure. I just added the table scraps a few days ago. I did bury it in the compost but maybe not deep enough. I also have the bin covered with wood because we have a lot of raccoon and possum that would love to eat them. But apparently it needs to have the other cover you mentioned as well. We have had a lot of rain. Bin does seem a little wet but the worms seem to be munching away. Thought all was well, at least until today. YUCK… Anyway, I feel soooo much better that I am not going to loose them. THANK YOU!!!!! You have been a big help.

Dee

Wow! That doesn’t sound like fun, Yukky!

You say that they look too big to be maggots, Well I am going to say that I still think they are maggots, From a big fly.Not sure what type of flies you have in your area. (They will not harm your worms),They are composting your potato peels instead of the worms. Maggots typically have a 7 day cycle depending on temps and moisture in your bed, the maggots could be there a little longer.
I am guessing this bed is outdoors,Don’t water the bed, allow it to dry out a little, Give the maggots a little time to turn into flies, when the #’s of maggots has gone down,(in a week or so) bury the remaining potato peels,(I am Guessing you never buried the potato peels when you added them to your worm bin in the first place?). and cover your worm bin with black plastic, to stop the flies from laying more eggs.
The maggots will not hurt your bin in anyway, after a couple days you will need to start feeding your worms again, most likely you will still see some maggots at this point, If you continue to cover the bed with something ( black plastic bags, Even burlap works great) The burlap will give good air flow to your bed and as the burlap rots you just add another sheet of burlap. And in a short time you will be over your maggot problem.

1) So cover your worm bed with something to keep the flies out.
2) Make sure you bury your food waste well so the flies can’t smell the roting food.
keep these 2 tips in mind and you should have no more maggot problems.

Hope this helps ( keep me posted)

Jeff

First let me thank you for this blog. I have learned a lot from what has been published here. I am a “newbie” to the worm business and have run across my first big problem. I am wondering if you can help me figure out how to fix it. I started my first bed 3′x6′x9″ and all seemed to be going well, until today. I went out to check on the worms and I now have a new intruder invading my worm bed. Can you tell me what I have done wrong and what I need to do to get rid of these intruders? It appears that they are eating the potato peels that I placed in the bed a week ago. They are a white or cream color worm looking creature about 1/4 around and 1 inch long. At first I thought it was a maggot but they are to big. I am totally freaked out that they will kill of my worms. Please help.

Thanks;
Dee