Try using red or white clover in your garden I have observed that grass wasn't growing near a part of our yard where we grew melons and watermelon so this year as an experiment we our going to thow white organic cloverseeds in our vegetable garden It is supposed to also fix nitrogen in the soil just as beas when planted with corn as Squash shades and protects of what's known as The Three Sisters.Oh White clover is supposed to be a good grass suppressor prevents grass from growing just whats needed in our garden.First we did a layer of 3 layers of the white ink less news paper wet it all down with our iltered garden hose then put cardboard around the whole garden fence then wet that down too alk done o a non windy day topoed with cow manure and some chicken manure then we put 3 inches of woodchips or woodchip mulch last year in the Spring but all that should have been done in the Fall! This year we are not planting plants but Only Organic Heirloom seeds and some Organic plants howeveryou need to keep tge woodchips away from the stems and keep around the drip area only! Put Toilet paper rolks around seedlings to prevent cutworms thise white cabbage montths lay.Spray aroundfir ticks aunts red yes and fleas Use Garlic online stuff I'll get back you thx medicine

I can't believe I'm thinking this, far less posting it, but... Not all flies spread disease, and there's at least one sort of non-pestiferous fly some folks do want in their compost, under certain conditions. (Not relevant to the OP, which referenced _tiny_ flies, but still.) Despite my personal squeamishness about the things, BSFL are welcome in any batch of new compost I've set aside for feeding to my composting worm colony; their leavings make the worms happy. And that is mixed hot compost, though I clock average temperatures more in the warm zone, 100+ but rarely as high as 140. I assume the BSFL would leave a pile that hot, but if it sustained those temperatures, I'd likely opt not to feed that batch to the worms anyway. Stirring doesn't bother BSFL all that much once they're larger than hatchlings, and I'm told their presence helps deter pest flies, though I can't say I've done any testing to verify that! DSF http://bokashislope.blogspot.com making compost one bucket at a time

Conpost makes an excellent mulch and it can be applied any time. In zone 7, there is little concern about soil freezing or plant heaving, so applying for winter protection (waiting to apply after the soil freezes) is moot. As kimmsr states, it is far better to have the soil covered in winter to reduce erosion and compaction from rain water than to leave it uncovered and fall, after plant foliage dies back and the soil is more exposed, is an excellent time to do so. But any mulch will work similarly. Compost is primarily considered a soil amendment, not a fertilizer. While it does provide an excellent source of organic nutrients, their concentrations are quite low and variable depending on initial ingredients. What it does provide consistently is improvement to soil structure and therefore tilth and drainage, replenishment of organic matter and a hospitable environment for soil organisms.

To those that said they have a heap of tiny white things in their bins, do they look like this? : http://photography-on-the.net/forum/showthread.php?t=620706 A lot of these turned up in my bins when I spread some rotten pear scraps in them and they have since multiplied. I did a bit of research and it turns out they are white "springtails". They are much smaller than the brown ones you see jumping around when you pick up some garden soil and they seem to just be helping to break down the compost, like the brown ones do (I love the brown ones, I spread them around all over the place, as they make the soil so light and friable- just cover the soil with something and they'll go to work underneath it). The white ones don't spring (jump) around though, in my experience. They get to the food first, then the worms take over. The easiest way to get rid of them I've found is to soak some paper towels/tissues/toilet paper/cardboard in some blended vegetable scraps, or rotten fruit liquid and lay them down in the bed. Within 24 hours you can bet that they'll be covered in these little white guys and you just pick the paper/cardboard up and put them out in the garden, in the rubbish bin, or whatever. Or you could just put them in your pot plants, as I don't believe they'll damage the plants at all and will just continue to improve the soil/potting media in them, as composting worms would/do. Some made their way into some of my potted roses and they don't look to have done any damage whatsoever (been in there about 3 months). I'm pretty sure they just help to break down the top layer of the potting media. I also put composting worms into my pots, as they seem to eat the potting mix and convert it into rich castings, dramatically improving it's richness/quality/moisture retention. This means the media stays "fresh" and doesn't dry out anywhere near as much, as potting mixes tend to do after a couple of years. I just cover the top surface of the potting mix with some cut up old carpet and feed the worms under it as I would if they were in the worm farm. As well as making it more moisture retentive, they will help the mix to get heavier and more compacted though, so if you need to keep it more free draining, it's wise to add some washed horticultural sand, or small rock type things like scoria, or the very small stones used in some potting mixes, when you're initially potting your plant up. That way, when the mix gets more compacted and heavy the sand or small rocks will stop it getting too compacted and wet. I learned this scoria tip from someone who told me his exhibition roses were growing in pots (that aren't even all that big) and that some of them had been in those pots for up to 15 years (most will tell you to re-pot every 2-3 years). He makes his own mix of 1 part scoria (which is apparently used for potting bonzai's) one part rich/aged compost and one part something else (may have been two parts compost). He reckons the roses grow extremely well, with very thick canes and bud unions and that if he took them out of the pots the worms in them would be as thick as your finger. I was amazed and I have started using the scoria in mine now, when potting up. I potted up some bare-root roses with scoria in the mix about 3 months ago and they're going really well (it's now 3 weeks into spring) and their first buds are coming out. Here is a link that might be useful: White springtails