Miracle (Not Miracal) Grow Bugs?

Hey there...I have 3 seedllings that I was about to replant. Actually, I did repot 2 of them already. In both cases I used miracle grow. I started them in MG Continuous Nutrient Release. I repotted into the MG Organic Choice. Anyway....as I was about to repot the 3rd one....I noticed some type of bug running around in the pot. Im indoors and the plants have been from day 1.

Im wondering...are there bugs in MG soil? Im telling you....the hydro setup is looking better by the minute!

You are the third person I have heard this same complaint from regarding mg soil.

I started all of mine in the same MG soil you are talking about, the one that says it will feed plants up the three months, then just recently replanted them into the organic stuff.

No bugs at all, plants seem to have loved both kinds.

I got my bags of soil from the inside gardening area at Home Depot though. If you get the big bags that are outside stacked on a pallet, I'm sure bugs can get in there.

Unless you are just terribly unlucky, I would think it's just a fluke.

The bug was in the original pot before I moved it to the Organic...and the Organic was the one I was worried would have something live in it.

I gotta say...Im a lil pissed.

@ FTG - Thats one Im talking about...And I got min from Wal-Mart on the inside like you did. They dont even store gardening supplies on the outside at this location.

This was posted on Village Garden Web:

• Posted by pepcan 5 (My Page) on Sat, Mar 24, 07 at 10:38

This year I'm using PlantSmart Premium Potting Mix (that's just what is here). Last year I purchased a bag of Miracle Grow potting soil and it was full of bugs. As soon as I had opened the bag swarms of bugs everywhere. I threw the bag outside and never used it and because of that experience I will never buy another bag of MG again.
I usually use whatever seems to be at a reasonable cost.
I have a balcony garden so all my plants are grown in containers.

This was posted on Questions on soil, Ron Smith Horticulturist, NDSU Extension Service
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Q: I bought a large bag of Miracle-Gro potting soil. I used about one-fourth of it and then stored the rest in a watertight container. I went to get it to add to some soil for tomato plants, but the Miracle-Gro was full of black ants.

[/FONT]

yeah dude trust me, if you absolutley have to use miracle grow just get the regular stuff. None of that super duper grow bloom extravaganzah stuff that only needs to be watered once every three years haha. I tried this moisture control stuff and they didnt grow very well then i repoted them in the regular stuff and they love it! but if i were you i would buy that brand that you never even knew existed and is plain looking. And i just thought that I would throw this in here if you are growing in a clay pot, the clay pot will absorb a lot of moisture fast too so keep checking it (first had Exp.)
~HAYZE~

I have the same problem with the bugs and i just replantedmine to. Its wierd cause there little white bugs that you can hardly see and there running around the soil.

Yeah, too bad. Cause the plants were doing fine in the soil itself. I guess you get what you pay for.

@ Mogie- Thanks for the info. Good to know Im not the only unhappy grower using MG. I saw the threads attempting to steer me away from it. But you know how convenience is. It'll bite you in the ass everytime!

mogie... you know you put that twice?

Just use hydro. I used soil last time and used organic ferts. I found it more difficult to control fertilizer levels and had to contend with little pests. I am growing indoors and most of the pests I did encounter were harmless, but annoying indoors. I finally just blasted them all out with pesticide and luckily they never came back during flowering.

I setup a hydro system and I love the simplicity of the thing. Flood trays with Rockwool is just flat out the simplest system ever. I like pellets and clayballs, I think the level of oxygen available to roots is awesome, but the rockwool is much more forgiving if your timer fails, power goes out, etc. The rockwool holds enough moisture to keep your little girls safe.

I'm using MG soil right now and I did find some bug on my one plant. It made some kind of cocoon on one of the leaves and I killed it of course, since odds are it is some kind of leaf eater like a caterpillar.

Anyways I wouldn't blame the soil. Bugs get in your house all the time, but you don't blame the real estate right? The bugs probably didn't come with the soil, but found their way to the plant. Marijuana plants have a strong smell and my research shows that there are quite a few insect species that love making a meal of them.

Maybe you could go put a spider in your grow room? lol

I will blame the soil! I had some Miracle Soil and had a handful of bugs each day. Transplanted it to something else, gone. had to cover the MG completely.

Better off buying the generic store version just stay away from miracle grow (newbies love that time released crap).

No...they came with the soil...They were fungus gnats....no plants in the house before I started my grow. Opened the bag and saw them.

Day one from opening bag....nothing planted....gnats. No way around that. Gotta blame the soil.

Luckily they didnt live too long. It got worse before it got better. But all were dead by the 2nd-3rd week.

In the long run....the MG Organic isnt too bad. Not a seedling killer like the pretreated stuff that killed 2-3 of my oringal seedlings. I'd use the Organic again....but would have some gnat killer onhand.