Fungus Gnats

[nanoreefer22]

Ok well I have a problem, at first there were just a few in my plants, now there are hundreds. I put up those yellow sticky tape things that are made for catching flies and caught about 200 over the past 2 days!

Now there are still more and I want to get rid of them completely. I'm guessin that will mean killing the eggs and larvae as I can control the adults this way. I've read up on them and tried a Lowes spray for them, it doesnt work.

Has anyone ever dealt with them? I read that theres insecticidal soaps, that i could pour into the soil to kill the larvae, does it work?

Also someone mentioned covering the surface with sand about a centimeter thick, could this hurt the plant?

 

[duke62]

okay first things first.whats her name and where did u pick her up.need to know these things to tell ya what type of flies they are :lol2: joking.

 

[crox99]

:iamwithstLOL

What type of plant?

 

[nanoreefer22]

Mango tree and a dracnea

 

[crox99]

Did you try any spry?

 

[nanoreefer22]

I did..at first it was making a difference then it just stopped working...is there anything you can pour into the soil to kill off eggs and larvae?

 

[e.muehlbauer]

Get Gnatrol, may be called Knoxout Gnats now...not sure. Sold by Garden's Alive. Its a form of Bt (Bacillus thuringensis), a biological bacteria based pesticide...totally safe. It has to be given at least 3 weeks in succession...but it does work.

 

[nanoreefer22]

Thanks e

I put a light layer of sand over the surface of the soil maybe 3/8ths of an inch thick, is there anything wrong with doing this?

 

[KathyC]

The sand shouldn't be an issue Kris, but it won't cure the issue and they might just come out of the openings in the bottom of the pots

Have you considered repotting them? Maybe on Sunday when it is warmer take them outside & shake off all of the old soil and give them new? Might not hurt to upgrade the pot size too if they need it

 

[nanoreefer22]

Kat,

I repotted them not to long ago, maybe a month and a half or so. I read somewhere that clay pots also help reduce the gnats, but i'm not sure.

I didnt think thru the sand thing, i guess they can get out of the bottom of the pot

I might try shaking off the soil, if things don't get better soon. Only thing I'm worried about is the stress on the mango plant, from what i've seen messing with the roots = death

 

[KathyC]

So maybe try changing the pots..and possibly leave them out in the sun for a day? I'm not up to speed on mango plants/trees
How do those bugs fare with a soapy water solution?

 

[nanoreefer22]

Havent tried soapy water, how do you mix up the solution and apply it?

 

[KathyC]

A few drops of dishwashing detergent into a small spray bottle (don't shake it..lol). Usually a solution like this is sprayed on the leaves to get rid of pests. Not sure if it might work for your issue since it's based more in the soil.
I'd wait on my thought until other chime in. As I mentioned, I never had a mango plant and certainly don't want any harm to come to it!

 

[duke62]

if the bugs are flying into the soil cover the pot with a sullafane for a while and spray the top of the sullafane with the spray your using.leave it covered for a week or so and see if it gets any better.