I have had house plants that I bring inside in the winter for years, but this year I seem to have an infestation of gnats that are in the soil. From what I have read from others in ThriftyFun I think they are fungus gnats. I have tried the insecticidal soap and the sticky strips but nothing seems to work. They seem to be in all of my plants. Any suggestions of anything else to try?
You have fungus in your dirt. You need to change the soil and make sure tha tyou rinse the roots of your plants off as well and if you are going to use the same pot clean it really well and rinse it
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Request: Gnats on Plants
Archived on 02/08/2009
Are there any products around the house that I can use directly in or on the soil of the plant to get rid if the gnats that won't harm my dog or the plant? I already have lighted gnat traps and don't want to leave jars w with vinegar, wine or juice laying around the house. Those cut down the numbers, but aren't getting rid of them entirely. HELP.
Susanne from Durango, CO
Answers:
RE: Gnats on Plants
Diatomaceous Earth. You can get it at a nursery, we also had a pool filter that used this. It looks like flour and has no chemicals. It kills bugs with skeletons on the outside. Just sprinkle it on the dirt. Good on fleas, you can even put it on the pets and it won't hurt them. Very safe to use around pets and children. I sprinkled it on the carpets when we had a bad invasion of fleas and it got rid of the fleas but is very hard on a vacuum. Now I set small bowls of it around the house when I see a flea. We use DE all around the house for fire ants and for fleas as we live in the country and have all kinds of critters coming through our yard. (04/12/2007)
I too, had the problem of small gnats flying around my lovely plants and seedlings. A neighbor told me about placing about 1/2 inch of fine sand into each pot I have. The gnats like to lay their eggs in the soil because it stays warm and moist. The eggs can't 'breathe' or hatch with the sand over the soil.
Works great! (04/13/2007)
