what would a person do for a gnat infestation. they don't seem to be bothering the plants but i would really like them gone. any help?

i put sand over top of my soil and it seems to be blocking them

hey thanks man. its a good idea

cut back on your watering. Its the most effective IMO.

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Go on get that weed up in ya, you'll feel better!!

Cutting back on my watering helped a lot. I also bought a 3-in-1 organic spray from my local garden shop that has neem in it and sprayed my plants once a week. What really did the trick was one of those yellow no pest strips--not the sticky cards--the pest strips that kill flying insects. If you are nervous about putting sand in your pots (some say it suffocates roots) you can sprinkle diatomaceous earth on the soil, which shreds the little assholes. Good luck, and whatever your methods, be persistent!

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"Well, you know what they say...a JPEG is worth 1,024 words" -www.toothpastefordinner.com

hydrogen peroxide 3% solution (common strength found at grocery stores) mixed with water. It does nothing to the adults...so you have to outwait them and their very short lifespans...but it kills the larve in the soil so no 2nd generation.
PLUS...it's actually good for the plant's root system and it won't show up at anything bad in your smoke.

Here is the best solution.

Gets rid of them

Attached Images

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Yep! Keico's got the key! Everything else I did just reduced their numbers, but since I put one of those hot shot things in I have yet to see another gnat. I only paid 6.50 for one of those things btw, definitely worth it.

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"Well, you know what they say...a JPEG is worth 1,024 words" -www.toothpastefordinner.com

thanks guys. i think a mix of the hydrogen peroxide for the larvae and a hotspot strip will do the trick.

It is thought by some that the larvae eat root hairs, thus damaging your plant and disrupting intake in the rhizosphere. Others believe the larvae are simply competing for nutrients with the roots. There are probably more ideas, but those the ones from the top of my head.

Last time fungus gnats tried to move in...
- Used extra DE powder for pool filter* and covered the top of the growing medium.
- Cut way back on watering. Waiting for the plants to wilt before they got water. Fortuitously, the strain wouldnt wilt for ~10-14 days.
- Turned the fan up a little. The plants could handle some extra wind, but I don't think the flying gnats could that easily.
- Pest strips. Manage to get passed the hurricane and the DE? GL escaping glue.

*It's commonly said that pool DE is a lower and grade (less CaCO2, more SiO2) and should not be used to fight gnats. I went ahead and did it anyway because I was a lot of the shit laying around, and I figured "extra SiO2 can't hurt; it's ubiquitous in the earth's crust/soil." I'm not usually a 'ends justifying means sort of person', but the pool DE powder along with the other steps worked.