I'm having trouble with some bugs lately. They are in the soil and whenever I water it they come to the surface. It looks like thrip larvae or something, but I dont see any thrip damage anywhere. I've been doing some searching and it seems to be symphilids. It looks like them and from what I read they rise to the surface when you water the plants as well. Do thrips or fungus gnats run up to the surface when being watered? How do I get rid of them, I have plants that are 4 weeks in flower right now in hempys. How can I find out for sure its not fungus gnats or thrips?
What kind of bugs do I have?
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cannabineer
Ursus marijanus
Oh just stop.
Seriously, to tell that it isn't thrips or gnats, hang a flying insect trap.
You can control what you have by topdressing with diatomaceous earth. Be they larvae or symphilids, that should hold them in check. cn
Seriously, to tell that it isn't thrips or gnats, hang a flying insect trap.
You can control what you have by topdressing with diatomaceous earth. Be they larvae or symphilids, that should hold them in check. cn
imchucky666
Well-Known Member
Without pics, as far as I would venture to guess would be "Live" bugs.
Lol thanks for the suggestions. I have a couple yellow hanging fly traps I will hang up. The last time I did it, I didnt catch anything. They are way too small for my camera to take a good picture of. I will see if my camera can get a good pic, I have a pretty nice nikon camera. Its got tentacles and looks like larvae or something but it walks and can jump if it wants to maybe fly I'm not sure. I never see anything flying around though.
cannabineer
Ursus marijanus
If it can jump when it wants to ... springtails? Those are usually munchers of compost ... cn
YES they look just like that. I can only assume but cant be for sure though. With more searching around, it might not be symphilids afterall. Symphilid infestations should be followed up with dead leaves. My leaves are all healthy, nothing yellowing or dying. Also symphilids have more legs, the ones Im dealing with dont have that many legs and are pretty fast. Its kind of in color though, not white larvae looking.
If it can jump when it wants to ... springtails? Those are usually munchers of compost ... cn
So springtails can jump, can fungus gnats jump as well? I kind of have the culprit pin pointed out, I think they are springtails. Thanks Cannabineer.
Hey one more question. I have a mother in a smart pot sitting on a saucer. Sometimes when I water her heavy, I get lazy to empty the saucer. There will be white maggot looking things crawling around the outside of the smart pot and sometimes the saucer as well. These are really small, white in color and like the size of the springtails maybe smaller. Are they spring tail larvae? Other pests I can find from searching around are root maggots and possibly fungus gnats. I only see them when I water heavily and the smart pot is sitting in water. I dont let the water sit in the saucer like that anymore, but when I do, those maggot looking bugs are there again.
cannabineer
Ursus marijanus
These are fungus gnat larvae. Length 3 mm or 1/8 inch. Note the caterpillarlike black head. cn
Thanks for the replies, I ruled out gnat larvae because I see no flying insects in the room. Also not aphids because I see no damage from them and never see them around. I dont let water sit in the saucer anymore, so I dont see them crawling around nowadays. But if I do let water sit, they will all of a sudden start crawling around a few hours or so later. If I remember correctly, they didnt have a black head. I think they had tentacles. The plant also has springtails come up to the surface when I water so I'm thinking they are springtails as well.
cannabineer
Ursus marijanus
Springtails don't have larvae. As primitive insects, they have nymphs instead of larvae and pupae. Other familiar insects that have that life cycle are roaches and their relatives ... crickets and termites, and silverfish. cn
Thanks for all the help. I thought I had multiple problems, turns out they are the same. I will call them nymphs from now on.
imchucky666
Well-Known Member
If your plant has syphilis, throw it out.
J/K.
Can you check your camera to see if it has a 'macro' setting on it? It should have like a flower looking icon on the screen when you have it on, then the zoom works really well.
Otherwise, try holding a magnifying glass over the bugs, and snap a pic.
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