WIMB: Problems Arise

[Part 2 of Worms in my Basement]

A few weeks into worm composting, I began to notice fruit flies around the bin. Okay, I thought, some flies are tolerable; I had read about the possibility of fruit flies in my research and had learned that they are harmless to the worms. As anyone who has taken AP Bio can attest, fruit flies have a remarkable ability to reproduce. I soon found myself swatting away clouds of them as I approached the bin with a load of food scraps. For a few days, I was paralyzed by the problem and my lack of a solution: my cursory internet search had turned up nothing helpful. I told my roommates to stay away from the bin and declared myself the sole food scrap-deliverer.

The flies were not satisfied with our clandestine basement meetings. Their desire for more face-time and new spawning sites led them upward - to our kitchen and beyond. One too many fruit flies drifting lazily over their heads while they studied led my roommates to speak up. I was finally stirred out of my state of inertia. The worm bin was in jeopardy and it was up to me to save it. That night, I learned more about fruit flies than I thought possible.

After conducting a more thorough search, I learned that my problem was not unique and that there were a variety of measures I could take before declaring the whole thing hopeless. Thus, I was launched on Operation Fruit Fly Destruction.

To Be Continued.......