Help ......bzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I have been invaded with tennytinny nats in my house plants potting soil. How the heck do I get rid of these pesky little irritatating bugs. I can spray insecticide in the air to eliminate the flying ones but I would much rather eliminate them at their source. Please don't tell me to transplant all my house plants again as that would cost me a fortune. There must be something out there that I can put on the soil to get rid of these little buggers.HELP!

There are products out there for fungus gnats - for instance Gardens Alive sells Gnatrol, you mix with water and then water the plants 1X per week for 3 weeks. That kills the larvae in the soil so they can't hatch into more flies. Then you can use your insecticide to kill the fliers, or use yellow sticky traps to catch them.

Eileen

Oh my, that doesn't sound very pleasant! I've never had gnats but do get infested with tiny black fruitfly-like insects in the fall. Keep them under control by multiple washings of Murphy's Oil Soap and for the delicate African Violets, I just spray some insecticide on the very bottom of the pots where the holes are every few days and then taper off. (I hate to use insecticides with the cats but sometimes you just got to.)

Found a website that gives a few control measures from nematodes to chemicals. Hope that you can control these without too much difficulty. http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7448.html Good luck!

Try some sharp construction sand. Layer about a 1/4" pile all over the pots' surfaces. The sharp sand edges will kill the little larvae as they hatch. :)

Another solution is fairly thick potato slices , again, on the soil surface. You'll see the little larvae chewing on the potatoes - pull them out, and throw away. This is time consuming, but a couple days in a row of potato-feed will pull them into the potatoes, and out of the soil.

HTH,
Jennifer

Thanks everyone. Great ideas. I like the sand plan but I think I will get some of the Gnatrol to get rid of the ones I have now and then procede to place the sand on top of the soil.
Thanks

simply letting the soil dry out between waterings, almost to the wilting point. Female gnats like moist soil to lay eggs. Not as many larvae survive if the soil is dry. Also, be sure to empty any standing water from the saucers beneath the pots.
Trap the larvae by placing thin slices of potato on the surface of the soil. Hide these with a sprinkling of potting mix or a bit of Spanish moss.

Fungus gnat larvae prefer the top inch or two of soil (they also congregate around the drainage holes at the bottom of the pot) and will come up to feed on the potato. Every few days, collect and discard the potato slices (you may be able to see the tiny yellowish-colored worms clinging to the underside) and replace with fresh ones until the flies are gone.

Nab the adults right out of the air by placing bright yellow sticky cards near infested houseplants. Cards suspended horizontally above plants will catch more gnats than those hung vertically, the normal position for yellow sticky cards.

Gardeners can purchase yellow sticky cards from many garden supply companies now, but it's easy to make your own. Simply spray-paint 4- by 6-inch pieces of cardboard a bright yellow-gold color. Yellow is irresistible to many flying insects. Make them "sticky" by coating the entire card with a thin layer of motor or vegetable oil.

Suspend the cards a few inches above the surface of the soil with pencils or wooden dowels. It won't take more than a few days to reduce the number of flying gnats.

Save the yellow sticky cards (in case the gnats come back) by wrapping them in aluminum foil. Just re-coat them with a fresh layer of oil before their next use, and they're ready to go.

Parasitic nematodes can also rid soil and plant roots of fungus gnat larvae within 24 to 48 hours, and continue to stand guard for an entire season. Parasitic nematodes sound complicated, but they're as easy to apply as insecticides.

Predatory mites can be purchased from biological supply companies. Hungry little "mighty-mites" make short work of fungus gnat larvae, without any harmful side effects.




Try a houseplant spray that contains pyrethrum. Be persistent and you will soon have them under control.

I have even mixed rubbing alcohol with water, put in a spray bottle and sprayed the surgace of the pot, the plant and all around the room. Works pretty good.

Forgot to add that the spray can be harmful to Africian Violets and also wanted to add the mixture solution to spray on your plants, but always a good idea to do a test run first on your plants to see if it will do any harm to the leaves. As long as I have used the mixture, I have had no trouble with my houseplants, but perople grow different plants than others so be sure to do a test first.
Directions for spray:
Use only 70% isopropyl alcohol(rubbing alcohol): mix 1 to 2 cups alcohol per quart of water. Using undiluted alcohol as a spray is very risky for plants. You can also mix up an insecticidal soap spray according to the dilution on the label but substitute alcohol for half of the water required.
How to Use: Since alcohol can damage plants always test your spray mix on a few leaves or plants first. Tests results should show up within 2 or 3 days.



This message was edited Feb 26, 2004 3:30 PM

I have been fighting these little buggars all winter! It seems like I get rid of them all, then a few weeks later I'll see one or 2 buzzing around and realize I didn't get them all. I love the potato idea and I'm going to try it.

I have nematodes in my garden. Any ideas for getting rid of them? They mostly show up on my cucumber vines. I rotate plantings but they must be all over. Thanks.

Knock Out Gnats from Gardens Alive works like a charm on fungus gnats.

abbethel - this is probably a question best asked in a forum like "Garden Foes" or "Garden Talk".

Here , we discuss mostly houseplants, and their care. Folks that know a lot about nematodes, and cucumber vines might not see your question.

-Jennifer

Thanks Angelsign. Didn't realize I was in the Houseplants forum! Will try the Garden Foes forum.

Yes, that's the name of the stuff I used - Knock out Gnats from Gardens Alive. I think it does work well, I just must have missed watering the stuff into one plant or something. Also, Gardens Alive just sent me a new catalog with a coupon for $20 off a $40 purchase....

Eileen

I need Help I am sick about my House plants I don't know what I am doing to them? They all Look sick some of them have turned black on the bottom leave I use Miracle-Gro potting soil is that maybe to strong for the plants? and they all look thin they used to be thick in the summer I keep them in an inclosed porch because at night its gets cold I have about 50 or more and all seem to be lossing leaves and look sick. can anyone tell me or help me with this problem

I need Help I am sick about my House plants I don't know what I am doing to them? They all Look sick some of them have turned black on the bottom leave I use Miracle-Gro potting soil is that maybe to strong for the plants? and they all look thin they used to be thick in the summer I keep them in an inclosed porch because at night its gets cold I have about 50 or more and all seem to be lossing leaves and look sick. can anyone tell me or help me with this problem sorry put in wrong spot