Little White Bugs In Soil

Discussion in 'Growing Marijuana Indoors' started by XxJenxX, Mar 17, 2010.

  1. Hey GC,, I noticed the other week that on my Master Kush plant I have these small white bugs that move about in the soil when I disturb the soil. She has been isolated since the disturbance was first noticed and sits under her own 250w MH. I have gone through each leaf and have seen nothing on the plant itself. They seem to be in and on top of the soil. These critters are the size of a grain of sand. Everything is healthy as she is just starting out, I'm just concerned about what I have. I have caught a few using a toothpick and tossing them in a ziplock and viewed them under a scope. They appear very similar to spider mites, but here's why I'm not sure if they are, from what I've read, spider mites hang out and lay their eggs on the underside of the leaves. I've yet to see any of them on the plant itself, nor any eggs. Under the scope, they have 3 sets of legs, maybe 4, but the front ones look like antlers/feelers, with round bodies. I don't have a picture due to my needing of the lens for my camera to get that kind of shot. I'm not as concerned about what to use to rid myself of them as much as I'm concerned as to what kind of bug it is. If anyone has any questions pertaining to anything I might of left out, please ask. Anyone have any ideas as to what I got over here?
     
  2. Could it be fungus gnat larvae? Fungus gnats are bastards. :mad: The larvae'll eat the roots of your plant, the adults fly about and don't do much harm except for laying more eggs.
    I had 'em for a while and found them pretty difficult to get rid of. In fact I went hydro just to get rid of them in the end. :p

    You can try:
    Garlic on the soil
    A layer of sand on the soil to suffocate the larvae, put some stockings over the holes on the bottom of the pot or they'll get iin there too.
    Sticky strips for the adults
    Let the soil dry right out, they can't survive without moisture.

    Good luck!
     
  3. freedom4ever- Thank you for replying, I'm sorry for not being clear on that aspect of their habits, they don't fly at all, they strictly crawl. I have a Hot Shot Pest Control thingy sitting next to the plants pot and that has had no effect on the control. I have allowed my soil to dry out basically to its limits before I've watered and they are still around in some capacity. I've been hitting the soil and plant with a 1;1 ratio of water and 70% iso alcohol a few times since this was first noticed and the stock of these bastards has been less noticable but still present. My next watering will be with neem to see what that does. Knowing they're not gnats, any other guesses?
     
  4. Sorry man, no. :confused:

    Have you tried the sick plant guide in the sticky in that forum? Lots of info on bugs there. :)

    Hope you get it sorted, sorry I was no help. :p
     
  5. I appreciate it, I will check there and see. BTW, although I might be one of the boys to many, but I'm still just a lady that enjoys growing and smoking. No worries, not the first time I've been called 'man'.
     
  6. No offense intended, I call everyone man or dude, years of being a stoner. :rolleyes::)
     
  7. The only thing I can say is I've had that happen before too and they didn't seem to be a problem. Every time I watered in the last couple weeks of flowering, I'd see them crawling around in the soil. No insects whatsoever above soil, on the leaves, buds, anything. Never saw them when I didn't water. Just from personal experience, didn't really seem to do much harm. Just tiny white bugs in the soil. It also happened when using mollasses. Maybe this could be the cause?
     
  8. skunky-Thanks for the link, I will keep this as an option. I'm still curious to know what they are.
     
  9. stevie- Thank you as well for replying. I am currently vegging right now and did not want to introduce this plant to my flower room until I know if they can wreck me or not. No molasses yet. Did you ever catch any and scope them? If so, what did you see? If I go and just look at here without touching pot or plant, I might see one or two walking around the rim of the pot. Now then, when I blow on the soil or move soil with my fingers, then it's like a woken a small nest of them and they start moving about. Was this at all similar to your experience? I'm sure others have accounts of this behavior and maybe have insight as to what they are.
     
  10. #11 skunkybudluver, Mar 17, 2010
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 17, 2010

    If you have a hydro store near you and you can get some samples, I would think about taking them over there and showing them. Maybe they will be able to tell you what they are.

    Do they look look this?

    [​IMG][​IMG]
     
  11. #12 skunkybudluver, Mar 17, 2010
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 17, 2010
    Or how about this one?

    white bugs living in soil in my pots - Garden Clinic Forum - GardenWeb

    Scroll down till you see the little white bug compared to the dime. They are called springtails. They fed on decaying organic matter.

    Here it is magnified. Just click on the link at the top of the video player.

    [ame="http://www.flickr.com/photos/lordv/94484378/in/set-590338/"]White blind springtails on Flickr - Photo Sharing![/ame]

    [​IMG]
     
  12. I had them under my scope with x100 magnification and they were looking very similar to spider mites, the only difference being, not a single one of them hang about the plant or her leaves. They have strictly relegated themselves to the soil. They dont seem to be burrowing deep into the soil but just below the surface and on it. But to answer your question, the 2nd pic is closer to how they appear if not exactly. She is in dark period right now, I have a friend that has a scope for his computer that takes stills, later today hopefully I will get a shot of them and post. The hydro store would be nice but the change-over of employees there is quite high and they have been a good source for product but have proven unreliable with info.
     
  13. skunky-The white bugs next to the dime on the link you provided are definitely not what I'm seeing. The video is not available for some reason. I can't thank you enough though for the help and effort in finding out what these are.
     
  14. #15 skunkybudluver, Mar 17, 2010
    Last edited by a moderator: Mar 17, 2010
    You need to actually click on the words in the green bar at the top of the video window. it will take you to a pic of them magnified.
     
  15. Got it, unfortunately those springtails are not it. I'm inclined to think they're spider mites based on the looks but the fact they have not touched any of the greenery baffles me.
     
  16. That bugger is magnified greater than what my scope does, but that has 3 sets of legs like what I've seen on mine plus the 4th set that are either legs or feelers. The mouth portion on the link you sent, on my bugs, I can't tell if the mouths are the same. I'll just see about using my friends computer scope and throw a pic up later. I'm hopeful that will be more help obviously to determine what these non-paying guests are.
     
  17. The link I sent you for the sm-90L is supposed to be excellent for root health and bug control. My local hydro store said it was excellent stuff to use. IF you don't have a hydro store near you, you can get it on ebay or at the link I sent. My local hydro sore said it was about $20.00 He said it smells great too lol. First sign of bugs and that's what I am getting. I may even get it anyway just in case.
     
  18. You most likely have predatory mites living in the soil, they're not supposed to be bad but I still was not comfortable with them. I had the same problem using Miracle Grow Organic Choice soil. I ended up rinsing the roots and repotting them into another soil (FFOF) to get rid of them.
     

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