Help! I need help with a couple of problems: Gnats& Mildew?

I seem to have an infestation of Fungus Gnats. They are little tiny black gnats that hang around the soil. And are extremely annoying!! Any suggestions as to how to get rid of them? Any home remedies? I tried a solution of cayenne pepper/dish soap/garlic/water - Not completely gone yet. Help...
Also, I have recently seen what looks like white mold/mildew on the top layer of soil. What is it? and how do I get rid of it?
Thanks!!

On a side note,
My cat keeps digging up my Spider plants! He only digs up and plays with these, I have many other plants with "fun" leaves but he only likes Spider Plants??? I understand they are poisonous and have moved them to every possible location that is out of his reach, but he somehow seems to find them. I have them out of his reach normally, but if I move them for watering or to hang outside he, without fail, gets to them. Any suggestions for deterents that won't harm plants?
Thanks Again!

I scrape the fungus off the top of the soil and add a little fresh soil, if necessary. Then I put about 1/4 cup vinegar in my watering can with the water and water with this solution for the next three or four waterings. It's always cleared up both problems for me.

On the cat vs. your spider plant--is he eating it? If so, he's likely an indoor cat? He needs some grass to chew on. You can buy "cat greens" at pet stores or in the pet section at Wal Mart. They're easy and fast to grow and will help satisfy his need for "salad" in his diet.

I would also back off on how much you're watering--I have never had problems with the gnats except when I was watering things too much. Some people also say watering with hydrogen peroxide will help with the gnats because it gets rid of fungus.

If the white stuff on top of the soil is mold, I would repot the plant right away in some fresh soil, if you've got enough mold to be that noticeable that is definitely the best thing to do. Shake off as much of the old moldy soil as you can and rinse the base of the plant and the roots in some diluted hydrogen peroxide. I'd also clean the pot out with bleach if you want to put the plant back in the same pot, otherwise put the plant in a new pot with some new potting mix. The other possibility on the white stuff is that it's buildup from fertilizer salts, hard water, etc. Again if it's pretty bad, and especially if the plant's been in that pot for a while, it's probably best to repot. Otherwise, make sure from time to time you give the plant a really thorough flushing with water to help prevent those salts from building up.

for fungus gnats i use apple cider vinegar and dish liquid. use votive candle holders and fill about 2/3 with apple cidar vinegar and a couple of drops of dish liquid. place these around your plants adn in about a week the gnats will be gone (dead). they are attracted to the vinegar but once in the cup, the dish liquid prevents them from flying back out.

Thanks to all who have replied thus far. I will give the vinegar a try and see if that helps. I think I may have been over-watering.
Regarding the mold....
All of my plants are newly potted - I would assume the white stuff IS mold since there hasn't really been enough time for "build-up" of hard water/fertilizer?? If I repot as you have suggested, what can I do to prevent it coming back in addition to using the Hydrogen Peroxide? In other words, do I need to do anything to the new soil or is the mold a result of my actions (ie: over-watering)?
Sorry to sound so completely clueless, I'm a newbie :)
Any suggestions on easy to grow houseplants? I'm moving soon and the new house has 2 sunporches that I would like to utilize for plants.
Thanks again to you all!

The mold probably did come from overwatering, so if you water appropriately, you shouldn't see it come back. If it does come back and you think you're watering properly, you should post a picture here and someone will hopefully know if it is mold or if it's something else. My suspicion is that you need to cut back a lot on watering--I've had fungus gnats before when I've watered a little bit too much, but I haven't gotten to the point of seeing mold on the soil, so that tells me that there was probably way too much moisture around.

Great advice on the Gnats! I have a small greenhouse and the moisture from this microclimate has provided a haven for them. I'll definately do the vinegar and dish liquid today as whenever I open it to water or air them out a bit, I get tired of swatting and clapping to get rid of them. lol

Bhaugh~ thanks for the new tidbit on the fungus gnats. My previous remedy worked well for all my indoor plants except for the fishtail palm. I tested your potion and boy is it fast acting and clean! Poured those ugly critters down the toilet... no swatting, no clapping, no annoying black gnats hoovering by... ; 0)

Hey Beckie, I am having Shaun pick me up some of that vinegar this morning to get rid of those little buggers! :)

I just had an infestation too = they came home with some new Xmas cactus. None of the remedies I came across worked until somebody suggested cinnamon - which has fungicidal properties - so I sprinkle a little cinnamon on the top of all my indoor plants! Works a treat! Smells good too!

glad to hear that it is working!!! in no time at all you will be gnat free for very little cost. glad to have helped.

Hey I like the cinnamon idea, too! :)

fancyvan, never heard of the cinnamon cure before...will it attract my cat to the plants? thats the good thing about the vinegar, although it does smell for a little bit, my cat won't go anywhere near it

Oh, cool! I needed a remedy for gnats. Thank you
bhaugh! That's just too easy...

Well the majoprity of my in door plants are not in such a position that the cats could get at them. The ones that are relatively accessible have been ignored --so far!

I might have to give that a try if i get the gnats back. I have large plants that are on the floor, so that is why I was wondering.

The gnat remedy also works in summer to eliminate fruit flies. It's excellent and cheap.

I have a small glass with vinegar and soap in it set
out now. I didn't have the apple cider. I hope this
will work as well. Is it true that if you have gnats,
they don't bother the plant much, but thier larvae
is what troubles the plant roots? Is this what is
called 'damping off'?

I haven't caught a single one yet!

None in my glass, either. Waiting patiently- I should
really get to the PO, instead of checking my
vinegar glass!LOL

Tammy and Truest....walk away from the vinegar solution...LOL...if you just put it out today, check on it in the morning and you will find little gnats at the bottom. You may also find them laying around it.

LOL Beckie! I still smell the stuff! HA HA HA

Tammy, you will smell it for a little while. The odor goes away quickly though.

bhaugh is 100% right. Check it in the morning and let us know what you find.

Patience is not my best virtue! LOL

Tammy you will need a little patience to get rid of them. Now go plant something!!

I already re potted two this morning! LOL I did get a truck load of pots from our dear Shirley today, though!

I put some in a shallow dish about 3hrs ago inside my small greenhouse and closed it back up. Nothing yet but the smell was intense. I unzipped the front and opened the greenhouse. Perhaps the smell was too overpowering in that small of a space. And, I also notices some spider mite webs on my sweet pea seedlings. Ahhhh!!!!!!

Hey, I caught two of the little stinkers now! LOL

I understand that something that is really bright yellow and sticky is supposed to attract them also - I did try it and it didnt work for me but you never know!

The vinegar concoction is easier by far. For the yellow sticky just use the yellow plastic lid from a coffee can, or any yellow piece of plastic, spread it with Vaseline and lay it down (vaseline side up) near where you find the gnats gathering.

Whooo! I caught one in the Gnat cocktail! lol

I'll put a Vaseline lid in there too for good measure.

Yay!

You'll probably check your vinegar first thing in the morning and be grossed out. I think I changed it every day while I had the fruit flies in the summer.

Aw, shucks. I am just too quick to judge. I
checked the top of the solution this
morning, and had a big fat nada. So, i poured it
out! silly me. I will try again.

I still yet only had the two this morning!

Are there many more flying around? If so, set up a few more glasses - they don't have to be large.

I will try to check after we get back from my son having surgery on his hand, but now that you mention it, I don't recall very many! :)

Good luck with the surgery.

Thanks, pirl! :)

Just out of curiosity, I put a white paper towel in the greenhouse before bed last night. This morning there was still that lone dead one in the solution but there were about 4 on the paper towel. Seems to be working.