Compost – Maggots

Q: I found a worm/grub in mass in my compost pile and am very curious as to what it might be.

They are very dark gray-brown and the head end is actually the pointed end. They are literally swarming in my compost pile, seemingly eating the kitchen scrap pockets rather than the surrounding grass.

If disturbed they burrow very quickly deeper into the pile. I do not want to be nourishing larvae of something that will come back to haunt me in the spring! Any ideas?

A: Entomologist Jim Howell says what you have is probably soldier fly larvae. The maggots are very common in compost piles, where they are effective decomposers.

Get more informations from OSU.

  • Advertisement