Using Blood and Bone Meal

Has anyone encountered maggots in the soil after using Blood and Bone Meal? I’m not sure if location have anything to do with it (as we tend to have more flies and bugs in the yard) but been getting lots of flies and maggots around soil. (didn’t have time to take pic of soil only applied peroxide)

Did I apply wrong? Was I supposed to only mix into soil as opposed to top dressing?

What conditions suit this best? I only notice that mildew was forming on top of soil probably since I had to plant in a place that was humid and little air circulation. Since then I’ve applied peroxide and seems to have solve the issue.

@Budbrother or @Mrcrabs maybe…

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I typically will only add amendments like that when I’m building a soil. Ideally they need time to integrate, otherwise you run the risk of burning plants or messing with pH.

I have occasionally added them to a tea I’m brewing.

The flies and maggots could be fungus gnats. Fairly common in overly wet soil conditions.
Easy to get rid of with BTi.

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Thanks a lot. Will keep that in mind. But what is BTi?

Blood meal can also be an attractant for scavengers because of the scent / odor.

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How I applied blood meal is to gently massage it into the top 2 inches( has to be decently dry) then if i have room throw an extra inch of soil up top , not a single problem since I added 3 weeks ago

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Happy cake day ! @beardless

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*Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis. A bacteria that will kill fungus gnats. It’s the active ingredient in mosquito buts. Also available in a pure powder from eBay.

Will Not affect Roots, pH, or other beneficials

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I top dress with many dry amendments when they are needed and sometimes will get a growth like your is showing but usually if using say ground barley malt or ground corm meal etc as it’s a food source for that.
It’s not a bad thing and I don’t try and kill it with peroxide as that will kill the critters in the soil…good ones and bad ones as it’s eating/breaking down things along with the bacteria and fungi etc in the soil if it’s a living soil.
As far as the growth fungus gnats eat that and will lay eggs and they hatch into larvae etc and can cause issues if left unchecked.
BTi

Looks like your plant is very small still. If so probably too early to be adding much if any nutrients depending on what soil was used and how big she is and how big a pot she’s in now.

Blood meal is fast acting with a lot of N bone meal is slow release and takes time to break down. Be careful adding blood meal especially if she’s still small.

Not knowing what exactly your seeing as far as the maggots etc can’t say if I would be worried or not.

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I don’t use blood meal and I make my own bonechar from cows that wonder Off and get lost and die By the river


I’ve never had issue with my soil…

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My dogs have dug our the bonechar thou

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Haha
Love your bone crusher tool!

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Saw that too and chuckled.

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When re-amending your pot, usually, you’d mix your amendments into some compost, and then top dress that mix.

Skydiver & Drinkslinger got you covered, but I can’t believe nobody added… Did you replenish the microbes and fungi that were killed by the peroxide?

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No I didn’t I just added Molasses and Compost and did ppm check

Some were replaced by the compost you used, and the molasses will help fuel the existing bio mass. If you have some other source of microbes, it wouldn’t hurt to add them.

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@Covertgrower @Skydiver… y’all know me… I’m a simple man… always Repurposing things

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