Goddam Gnats

pizzle

Active Member
I have a few gnats flying around and a few crawling around in my soil....does anyone have any advice they could give me on getting rid of these pests...my plants are around 6 weeks old and i want to make sure i take care of the problem before it gets out of control or i start to flower them.

My friend had a big gnat problem and after he killed them all the little bugs got stuck in the buds resin and he couldn't keep them out of his soil.

thanks in advance:weed:
 
ive heard of using 3-4 drops of mouthwash in a quart of water and watering plants with it kills off gnats. not sure how reliable that info is, because i can't remember where I heard it
 
Im having a bit of a Gnat problen too. I know there is something called Gnat off that is in spray form. I need to look into this. If i find any helpful home remedies i'll let you know.

Hank.
 
in a high times i have they have an article about gnats and there is some stuff called gnaterol you can buy or i read of something called Entomite that has beneficial predatory mites that live in the top few layers of your soil and feed on fungus gnat larvae and thripe larvae but it costs 40$ for a bottle of 10,000 mites and im not sure i need that many....

thanks for yall's advice'
 
by Arzeena Hamir
Late winter and early spring is a great time to start seedlings and get the gardening season underway. Growing your own seedlings from seed is highly rewarding and can open doors to even more species that are not often found in garden centers. However, a couple of problems can sometimes curb the indoor green thumb and seriously affect the success of growing seedlings. Fungus gnats and damping-off are two afflictions that commonly affect gardeners. However, before you spend money on expensive chemicals, the solution to these problems may actually be much more low cost that you suspect.
Fungus gnats
These tiny, black insects seem innocuous enough as they buzz over your plants. While the adults rarely cause any problems to plants, if the young larvae are in large numbers, they can damage your seedlings. Fungus gnats search out moist soil in which to lay their eggs. When the eggs hatch, the larvae will feed on the roots of your plants. Healthy seedlings will often be able to withstand this feeding but any seedlings that have small root systems like onions and leeks and those that are showing symptoms of nutrient stress can be put back quite significantly.

The easiest way to prevent fungus gnats is to water your plants properly. Overwatering, which causes your potting mix to remain moist for extended periods of time, seems to attract fungus gnats. If your plants are already infected, allow the soil to dry out between watering. Alternatively, sprinkle a 1/4" of sand on top of your soil to confuse the adults. Since the sand drains water quickly, it can sometimes trick the adults into thinking the soil is dry.
Potting mixes containing peat seem to be particularly affected by fungus gnats. If the problem is reoccurring for you, think about switching from a peat-based mix to one that only contains perlite and vermiculite. Lastly, if the adult fungus gnats are bothersome, trap them by making your own sticky trap. The adults are attracted to the color yellow. Make your own sticky trap by smearing Vaseline or Tanglefoot on a yellow surface and hang it up close to where the adults congregate.
Damping-off
Not only will controlling your watering help to prevent fungus gnats, it will prevent the second most common problem, damping-off. This condition is caused by several fungi such as Phtophtora and Pythium. These fungi live at the soil line, just where air meets the moist soil surface. When your potting soil is kept continuously moist by overwatering, the fungi attack your seedlings. The telltale symptom is a constricted stem, just at or below the soil surface. Once seedlings are infected, they tend to fall over at the soil line.
As mentioned, allowing the soil surface to dry out will go a long way in preventing this problem. If, for some reason, your potting mix remains wet for an extended period of time, look to your kitchen cabinet to help prevent the disease. Cinnamon powder is a natural fungicide and has been shown to be particularly effective against damping-off. In addition, Weak chamomile tea (after it has cooled) is another natural fungicide.
Ensuring seedling success need not be complicated or expensive. Controlling your watering and a few home made remedies will go a long way to guaranteeing healthy seedlings.

Hank.
 
Adult fungus gnats fly around and are an annoyance, but they are not harmful to people. Each gnat lives for about 5 days. The trick is to get rid of the next generation - the gnat larvae that live in the top layer of the soil. The larvae feed on decaying organic matter. Decaying pine bark in potting mixes and decaying plants roots feed the larvae.

Try to keep the soil as dry as possible. Remove all loose soil from the surface and put a light layer of coarse coir (coconut husk) or sand or diatomaceous earth on the soil surface. These substances have sharp edges that carve up the larvae. (Recent studies indicate that fine-textured peat moss also deters gnat larvae.)

Another safe technique is to place ½ inch slices of raw potato on the surface of the soil. After a day or so, discard the slices along with the larvae inside. Repeat this until there are no more larvae in the potato.

For more serious infestations try Knock-Out Gnats to treat fungus gnats available from Gardens Alive for about $20. See http://www.gardensalive.com/item_display.asp?ProductNumber=1962.

Hank.
 
I had a problem with gnats when i first started, i let the soil go totally dry and then gave her some water treated with peroxide, i did this for the next 3 waterings no problem since
 
thanks for all yall's help......how much peroxide did you put into the water when you watered them to kill off the gnats
 
I am having big problems with the gnats. Are there any fogger tpye things i can use that wont hurt the buds? I need to get rid of the gnats i have millions of them now and they laugh at neem oil!
 
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