I know there threads on these buggy lil buggers, but I cannot seem to get the upper hand on these things!! I have tried many methods and nothing seems to be working! My mix has Neem Seed Meal @ 1/2c per cf. My first method was to add predatory nematodes, then re-add after 3 weeks... no results.. Next I tried Neem Oil soil soak and foliar every 3 days, no results after 21 days.. On to Spinosad (captain jacks) applied in the same manner as the neem oil, still no results!! I actually think the population has grown!! I just purchased some Thuricide with the idea of using bt, but this is btk not bti. Also smells like fuel, is this product safe? Would it be effective? Any ideas? Thanks in advance to whomever helps me defeat these winged demons!! The adults may just be a nuisance, but the larvae are wreaking havoc on seedlings at an astonishing rate!!
Really! ^^^^ With all that you have used to no result, just points to being too happy with the watering can. Let them dry out. Wet
I would love to believe that also, but I have been letting them dry to the point of wilt between waterings. I am fairly new to organics, but have been growing for quite some time. In the past I have defeated(or at least maintained) fungus gnat populations with these methods but this is a seemingly overwhelming infestation!
Dry them out like wet said and maybe even spread a little diatomaceous earth lightly over the dry soil? Took care of them in my garden in about a week!
Neem meal tea - After only 2 applications they were gone. None. Zero. I do believe that there is Neem, and there is Neem. Where did your neem come from? I bought mine from Ahimsa - Neemresources dot com and soaked neem meal in water for a week and then applied. make sure that you get the area between the soil and the pot well. 2 applications with this product.
Jerry, the oil is from DynaGrow I believe, and my meal is from Down To Earth. I tried bubbling a couple cups of the meal with a couple gallons of water, but after about 2 days the mix had my whole house smelling awful. I wasn't sure if this was normal so I didn't take any chances and just dumped the bucket outside.
[quote name='"jerry111165"']Neem meal tea - After only 2 applications they were gone. None. Zero. I do believe that there is Neem, and there is Neem. Where did your neem come from? .[/quote] Jerry, Im curious about what you think/ know about neem tree farms? Is the quality up there w neemresource?
I use Neem Tree Farm's neem meal and have not had any issues. According to a wise dawg in this forum, they're pretty much the mutts nuts also.
Here is my recommendation: 1 - Allow your plants to dry out significantly before watering 2 - Use a shop vac or canister vac and suck up as many airborne gnats as possible 3 - Water your plants and wait a short while after watering for the top of the soil to not be super wet 4 - Cover the top of your soil with ultra dried out soil and pat it down...hopefully by this point it won't suck up the water off the damp soil below 5 - Allow your plants to get quite dry again before considering watering 6 - Remove and dispose of the added top layer of soil 7 - Repeat at least 3 times from Step 3 and keep using said canister vac daily, if not twice a day ...also, make sure all your stored soil is sealed well and gnat free throughout this period. If they can smell it, they will get into it. CIR
If you've been letting them dry out, you do have problems. I hope one or some of the excellent responses do the trick for you. Wet
[quote name='"CommanderInReef"'] I use Neem Tree Farm's neem meal and have not had any issues. According to a wise dawg in this forum, they're pretty much the mutts nuts also.[/quote] Nice.. I knew I saw mr doggie dawg say that somewhere, have I mentioned I hate this app for my phone sometimes? Lol mainly just the search feature haha. Thx for the response though CIR
I recently noticed that adding protekt to my waterings put a serious dent in their numbers. I have been fighting the same war for a while and finally I'm winning but the only thing I added to my inventory was Protekt. All the other methods I tried just seemed to control their population but I have a perpetual grow and I always seem to get them in fresh transplants. So now I assume there is always fungus gnat eggs in the bag soil in my area. I have a home made brew of hot peppers, garlic and (recently added and LD recommended), cilantro. This mix drives them crazy, I use it to mist the top of my pots after waterings. Works very well as a repellent. Captain jack's is good stuff too, I had great results with this product, but cultivating good work ethic is the best weapon against these mofos. You have to keep up with it or else these buggers can rebound in 5- 10 days, then its back to square one.
Kitty its nice to see you in here. CIR - stored soil needs air my friend. Our bacteria needs to breathe. Glad to hear the Neem Tree Farm is treating you well. Dubb Sic - the neem tea WILL drive you out of the house. It will make your sewer smell like roses. It will make you want to vomit. Whatever you do don't splash it on you...*lol* Keep it brewing outside - a quarter cup in a gallon is pretty sufficient. Drench well, Making Sure! As Kitty said too, to hit the area at the edges between the soil and the pot. They love it in there. It works. It is effective. I had many, many gnats, and after several good drenchings, it seemed to take several weeks to break their cycle, but I have not seen a single gnat in 3 weeks now. Maintenance is key. So is keeping the neem meal tea outside and off your clothes. WHEW!!! Jerry
I just thought i'd add if you do splash neem tea on yourself, just remember days when it was worse and you may actually find it tasty.
also, planting no-till, communal plant beds, really improves water retention. i have 6 plants in 30 gallon smart pot, which i only water once every 2 weeks or so. the bottom still feels moist when the top is dried to a hard cake. when i dig with my finger from the surface, redworms move away from my prodding. I also use a bowl with sweet scented soap, for some reason the gnats all fly directly into there.
I agree, neem meal smells terrible. I've been dealing with spider mites and got the idea to top dress a couple handfuls of plants before watering. I come back in the next day to find a god awful smell in the veg room. Took me a day to figure out it was the neem meal. I now understand why it is repulsive to bugs! Good luck with the gnats, I've been using a foliar spray for mites every few days. 2 tsp of protekt and 2 tsp of neem oil. dynagro is the producer for both.+ Kush
Very true, but I find it's better to keep your bin sealed in between turning or opening it up here and there (during a fungus gnat problem), rather than have to throw out gnat infested soil.
I had a bad fungus gnat problem in a large parsley plant. It was in one of those large funnel shaped pots, 8-10 gallons maybe? I put neem meal on it, capt jacks in the water, mosquito dunks. I came to think the shape of the pot contributed to the problem. I got the gnats from my last batch of compost that I top dressed the parsley, other herbs and of course my MJ plants. But in all the other plants they went away fast. I finally cut the parsley down, split the roots and repotted in smaller pots. Now they are doing fine. I think the deepness of the pot helped them survive somehow. I could see how a 5 gallon pail would not be as good as a shorter fatter pot. But this is just a theory at this point.....MIW