Compost Bins

[cheerschuck]

I have in my compost bin an ant nest. Will it cause harm and what shoud be done about it.

[Clanad]

Ants are probably the least of the critters that inhabit compost piles. If you were to check closely you'd discover all kinds of creepy crawlers. Really, though, that's a sign of a healthy compost. We have huge ones here in the western U.S. called silage pits. Corn stalks and other material are put into shallow pits, covered with black plastic and then, during winter months the silage is fed to live stock. When the pit is uncovered for feeding, you'd be amazed at the insect population. the cow's love it though!

[shylock73]

Don`t worry about ants in the compost, they do their bit to break down rubbish, but if they are in pots they can damage the roots in which case use Nippon or powder to eliminate them.

[woofgang]

if your compost bins are near the house you may want to be a bit more proactive about dealing with the ants as you don't want a housefull!