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GNATS!!! What works??
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Posted by cadence 8b (My Page) on Fri, Jun 4, 04 at 19:49
Last year I had an infestation of gnats in my containers. Well, you guessed it!! The little buggers are back again.
I would like to know NOT what people have "TRIED" but what has actually WORKED! to get rid of these. Last year the garden centre told me to try "malathion" - This is a toxic chemical and I don't want to use it again. If I have to resort to toxic chemicals, I'd rather eliminate the plant altogether. |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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Someone in one of these forums said she put one of those mosquito dunks in her watering can & left it overnight. She then watered the plants with it.
She said it worked. I never tried it myself, but it's worth a shot. If you have a container with just dirt & no plants, you can pour boiling water throughit.
That, I HAVE tried & it seemed to work for me. |
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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| BTi (that's what's in Mosquito Dunks) will definately kill the larvae of fungus gnats. You'll have to water with it several times. BTi is also available in liquid form, but is much harder to find in small quantities. Yellow sticky traps will help control the adults. |
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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| Agree with the above AND do try to get those sticky traps as noted by seeker11, so that you can get those adults too before they lay more eggs. I had to use sticky traps last year because they managed to get into the mulch of a few of my smaller pots. The traps work quite well. |
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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| A simpler method is to let your plants dry out completely in between watering. Fungus gnat larvae need a consistently moist environment to survive. Once the soil drys out completely, their history! Harvestmaster |
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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| dryng out the soil a bit is a good idea. i read you can drench the soil with Gnatrol- it's a microbial pesticide containing a bacteria that kills the larvae. i'm personally not big on using chemical or pesticide but if the soil have fungus problem like that it'll be probably necessary to use them. otherwise they'll eventually die. i have plants that i lost like that. |
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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- Posted by szozu z9 SE France (My Page) on
Sat, Jun 5, 04 at 15:02
| I make a camomile tea infusion and use it to water the infested pot. It always works for me. Lana |
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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| Yes, Gnatrol is very effective, and quite convenient to use. ("Gnatrol" is a brand name for BTi in a liquid form.) However, it's a bit difficult to find in small quantities; Mosquito Dunks also contain BTi and are easier to find. I'm including a link to the place where I buy Gnatrol, in case you decide to go that way. They also have yellow sticky traps, btw. |
Here is a link that might be useful: Gnatrol source
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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| I killed mine out of my Strawberry plants by using 1 Tablespoon of Listerine per gallon of water. Worked like a charm. (I also mixed it with Canola Oil and Dish Soap and sprayed it on the spider mites, haven't seen a spider mite since ha ha). Best Wishes
Amino-X |
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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| I put a half inch of sand on top of topsoil.It suffocates them |
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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| Mosqito dunks left overnight in the watering can worked for me. But then I got some beneficial nematodes so I dont use the dunks now. |
Beneficial Nematodes.
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Beneficial Nematodes are the best thing ever for fungus gnat larvae.
Kills em before they eat your plants roots.
Chelsea Garden Center has 'em. |
RE: GNATS!!! What works??
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| Thank everyone for all your helpful tips. Winter will be setting in soon, but at least you've all got me prepared for next spring. |
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