Get Rid of Fungus Gnats - for Propagation and Houseplants
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- Опубліковано 6 чер 2024
- If you get these little black flies on your houseplants or greenhouse, they're probably fungus gnats - and it's best to wipe them out because the larvae can be damaging to young roots. I find them particularly annoying and damaging for my plants in propagation. In this video, I'll go over three kinds of biological controls to help you get rid of fungus gnats. I'll also briefly discuss how to reduce/prevent fungus gnat infestations ongoing.
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Photo credits:
Adult Fungus Gnat by John Tann CC BY 2.0
Shore Fly by Katja Shulz CC BY 2.0
Fungus Gnat Larvae by Whitney Cranshaw CC BY 3.0 - Навчання та стиль
![ПОЛНАЯ ИСТОРИЯ ЭКЗОРЦИЗМА [Топ Сикрет]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/qBySr6Bt0B8/mqdefault.jpg)
I've had great success with fungus gnat eradication by using a combination of sticky traps with a layer of horticultural sharp sand at the top and bottom of pots. Sticky traps take care of many adults while the sharp sand (fine silver sand is best) after a few waterings will compact into an impermeable barrier between adults and larvae, breaking the cycle.
Thanks for sharing your success Craig
I started taking care of my mother's roses after she passed about 3 years ago, now sometimes I just stare at the flowers blossom. I have learned a lot from your videos, I was thinking about building a dome but seeing how you did yours just made me realize I am overthinking, thanks!
been using diatamaceous earth for about 3 weeks, certainly reduced them, only seen 3 or 4 adults in that time, but need at least a few more weeks to get rid of them completely.but so far has worked well
It works for ants as too.
Thanks, Jason. I had such a big problem with fungus gnats last spring while propagating indoors. I later learned that a layer of sand or vermiculite would do the job. But now I am learning from you that there are some biological controls that can be used. Good advice. Thanks again.
Love these videos!! Keep putting them out.
Thanks so much for a timely video! It was just what I needed - you won't believe it but this whole time I thought the little mini fly problem was due to me doing something about the house not right - I tried mopping and vacuuming and blocking screens that had slightly bigger holes etc etc trying to find the source of those pesky things - but it was my plants!! I've looked and you're right!!! Merry Christmas and a happy new year!!
Merry Christmas, Jason! I love that you talk on levels that we can understand regardless of our plant knowledge. Your talks always encourage and it is appreciated!
Thanks for your kind words Celia. Merry Christmas to you and your family as well
Thank you for a perfectly timed video.
Just discovered them in my plants this morning.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from Pennsylvania, USA
Thanks - and a Merry Christmas to you and your family as well!
I haven’t watched your video about bind weed but these are the two pests that I find most difficult to deal with inside and outside in horticulture. I can’t wait to watch that one after this one. In fact, the reason I subscribe to it because you had the confidence to tell people how to get rid of bind weed and I thought if you’re strong enough to even stand behind the video then I’m going to listen to what you have to say.
Thanks for the great information, have a wonderful Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, GOD BLESS to you and the family.
Thanks - and a Merry Christmas to you and your family as well.
Yes, I'm battling them right now.
I pour boiling water on my starting mix to kill whatever in the soil, so far so good.
I stumbled across your channel at 2:30 this morning. I spend hours on a daily basis watching crafting videos and I have spent hours watching you now. You explain thing so well, love seeing pictures that helps tremendously!!! I have never seen a fungus gnat until this year and suddenly it was like a batch of fleas hatched and they were everywhere 😳!! Thank you for the information. I wish you could tell me what kinda mess my roses are in. I think the years of ground sterilizers that the previous owners used (30+ yrs of it) has just been slowly making everything sick. I will continue to binge watch and see if I can figure out all the issues. The soil all around this place is a hard packed dirt and when you break it up it's like fine powder. I can finally grow a few weeds in some of it. I have never been more saddened that I couldn't even grow weeds. I live in Southern Idaho and in the middle of farm 🚜 fields. I feel like I don't stand a chance!!
Hi Melanie. Nature seems to have a way of working through this kind of abuse. Organic matter (soil life), cover crops and consistent moisture can do a lot to reestablish the structure of the soil.
Yes all packaged soils quickly develop this problem. Can’t wait to see this
Great info. Thank you so much 🥰
Merry Christmas from fellow zone 8 New Westminster, BC 🎄⛄
Thanks Jason - and a Merry Christmas to you and your family as well.
Love the info, can't find those poppers in USA. I didn't know what those little bugs were or where they were coming from. Thanks.
This was great, thanks for sharing your knowledge! I'd love to see a video like this for dealing with mealybugs if you have any tips.
Thanks Briana. I'll add it to my list.
Very useful, thank you
Hi this is Pat from Michigan I would just like to thank you and let you know that I got the spray for my what I thought was gnats and I only had a couple I saw but it worked just fine thanks neem oil
Certainly helpful.
Since last summer I have been putting up with what I think are fungus gnats without success. Perhaps I have more than one type. The ones I have, have stung me painfully. I have found flies like those you’ve shown to us and black dots etc.
Please keep giving us more information. I would love to get rid of them for the health of my plants and home. This is really a most inconvenient plague. A real pest that doctors know nothing about.
Thank you most kindly Jason
Hi Ignacia. Interesting - but I don't think there's any indication that fungus gnats can bite humans. More likely to be a biting midge (No-see-um) - which also can be controlled with the mosquito dunks/bits if you can figure out where they're breeding.
I'm getting eaten by no see ums!
Good to know! Thanks! 👍🏼
Hi. Glad you came out with this video as I have a problem with house plants inside and vegetables in pots and raised beds outside. I tried mosquito grains to no avail 😞 small pebble mulch, diatomaceous earth, hydrogen peroxide. I wish you would have shown applying the mosquito pellets. Thank you.
Thanks Lulu - I probably should have included a shot of that. I take the big pucks (from this product) and just grate them evenly over the surface before watering in.
Thank you for another informative video. How do you use the mosquito dunks? Are they crumbled up and put on the surface of the pot? Thank you for your help.
I used a cheese grater to spread them evenly across the surface.
Can attest to the usefulness of those pucks, we had a massive infestation of Fungus Gnats in our last batches of potting soil. It took all summer, but we finally got them under control. We did use the yellow sticky pads, in combination to the pucks, primarily to get rid of the adults, which cut down reproduction.
Thanks for sharing your success - and happy holidays!
I forgot looking for help on this. I d ig didn't get what causes them ??
@@Patricia-uu6wo Adult Fungus Gnats look for wet soil to lay their eggs in. Simple as that. Most nurseries are full of them, so if you buy a new house plant for example they often come in that way. That is why it's best to isolate new house plants before put them with others.
In our case, they came in our potting soil. We were replacing old potting soil with new, and they were in it.
Hi Jason, I have been watching your UA-cam videos. These are really useful. I have a plum tree. It is full of infection with fungus growth. How to fix it?
Thanks Harjit. If you see advanced signs of fungal infection on a tree, it might be too far gone to help. If it's only on a branch or two, you could try pruning away those sections
Recently I had to move my collection to another house with storing them in between. While they were waiting to make it into my new home, they got over watered and developed a fungus and fungus gnat infestation. They smelled moldy, but I just ignored it. Once they were in my new home, they dried out and in a few weeks everything was back to normal. I think people that spend lots of effort fighting pest isn’t solving the core issue. Somehow you have cultivated an environment that is agreeable to pests. You can kill pests all day long; they will return until it’s not so agreeable to them.
Ive been microwaving my dirt- works well.
Really when before you plant or what and how
@@Patricia-uu6wo before i plant. I moisten the dirt in containers, then microwave for 3 mins then remove and cover. It kills off gnat eggs. It's been effective so far. Dusting with diatomaceous earth afterwards helps too. Some people bake their dirt and it also works. Lots of videos on YT
Thanks for these helpful tips. Is there any chance you could provide a link to the wood chips you used? I checked your Amazon store but I couldn't find them. Thanks!
Those I found from a local supplier - fine cedar chips. I think walnut shell litter would also be similar.
Thank you always🙏🙏🙏🥰
Great video. I had never heard or thought of the dry cedar chips on top. Top dressing with some things like small pebbles may actually encourage moisture but the cedar chips are a great idea.
Thank you so much for all the info. I have a question, do you have any advice on how to get rid off or prevent leafminers in the garden ? I’ve been removing all the leaves from the plants that shows damage.
Floating row covers can be helpful if they're appropriate to the crop
Jason, that is great information. I had a very bad fungus gnats . I knew it was a problem Bec they were in my roses or flying all over above roses. Problem was it is outside and I could not do much Bec of rain . I was having issues to dry the soil. I know they will be back and I was wondering what is your suggestion for outdoor areas and a bigger area. I didn't had this problem before until this year.
Thanks 😊
Ps : I used DE and it was useless. I even removed top layer ( a few inches) thrown Bec I was afraid of eggs and larvae. I even put mulch which did not help .
Some of the little flies you see "swarming" annoyingly above plants may be shore flies as well, which are similar in size. They like to have standing water (like mosquitoes). It could have just been a really bad year for them. Outdoors fugus gnats are also prey for natural predators, so diverse plantings of flowering plants is usually helpful in keeping beneficial insect populations up.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm
I hope I won't get it. I do have great drainage just I don't want those pests to be using soil as breeding grounds or attacking roots. I was told it was fungus gnats since my soil is damp, very rich and warm like perfect conditions for breeding. No standing water. The application you put in pots I need to do that but in bigger scale. So, is there something out in market that I can add to soil or water like your first treatment you shown in video that looks like an egg with a packet.
Jason, you have help me a lot and I do appreciate and very thankful to you. ❤️
Happy New Year Eve !! 🎉🎉🎉
Merry Christmas from Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia ☃️🎄❄
And a Merry Christmas to you and yours as well! Thanks
Lift BMC from Microbe Life seems to be a go to for many experienced farmers.
Thanks. That's the same active ingredient (BTi) as the mosquito bits/dunks, so it makes sense.
Hello. Thank you once again for a concise and helpful video.
Questions:
- If I want to support your channel by purchasing through the amazon link is it possible to have it connect to Amazon.ca here in Canada? The US site is less helpful to me.
- I have two or three roses on my wish list and wonder if you can provide a list in the new year of the varieties you will have in stock. Also wondering if you would ship these within the lower mainland of BC. (Chemotherapy/low immunity preventing outings for our household). All the best to you and your family.
Hi Wendy - thanks. Without getting too complicated, the answer on the Amazon thing is: no, I can't make the same kind of link into the .ca site. I think I probably can for the UK and Germany, but then I'd have to list 3 different sites in my video descriptions, and I just don't want to confuse the issue. So I appreciate your support, but for the Amazon thing we'll just have to let the US audience do the heavy lifting. As for rose purchasing, yes, I'll be updating our website in coming months with a listing of roses for sale within Canada. In the lower mainland we arrange for no-contact pickup but also I'll be working with some third-party delivery services this year, so there's a good chance we can work something out. Keep an eye on the online store for more details.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Thank you!
Thank you so much! Now I know that this is exactly our problem during soil propagation. I saw all these small dots and the adults. Unfortunately, we don't have such biological products here in Africa. Do you know an alternative method against fungus gnats? Thank you so much!
It would be down to moisture management then
Hi from Australia. Merry Christmas! Are those first two products safe to use on vegetable seedlings, i.e. as well as houseplants. Down here they seem to be found in Eco Neem oil and EnviroSafe drops. I've seen that, in some videos from USA, Neem Oil has been used on vegetables but down here the instructions seem to indicate that it shouldn't be used. Not sure about the Enviro drops which are designed for standing water basicaly. Ive never seen those mosquito bits here. Fungus gnat damage drives me nuts! 😖
I can't say for sure what's available in your region, but I think it's a safer bet to look for the generic species name of the biological control rather than the brand name I can find in Canada - Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (BTI, the bacteria), Steinernema feltiae (the nematode) of Hypoaspis miles (the predator mite). In all cases, these are perfectly safe for use on veggies, and would in fact be considered okay for organic production. Merry Christmas to you and your family!
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm - Wow, thanks for the speedy reply. :-) Yes, I did search for the biological control and found them in the products I mentioned. I think it may be that (Eco Neem Oil at least) is not yet approved for use on food plants in Australia but is probably ok. I do use "cider vinegar+little sugar+drop of dishwashing liquid" traps and these do catch a lot of adults to reduce the problem. I will apply the other methods you mention too, i.e. avoiding overwatering and using vermiculite top layer. Thanks again and may 2021 be a better one for you all there in USA than 2020 has been!
And I live in Michigan and I'm a senior and living chronic pain so could you give me something that I can go pick up a name that I can pronounce
How to use Mosquito Dunks ?
Hello Jason 🌸
I was just wondering is seed packet counts as forbidden items to transport from US?
Thank you
I've never had problems importing seeds in small quantities, but it would depend on the regulations on the destination country.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm thank you so much 🌸
How do you apply the mosquito dunks or bites. Do you sprinkle it on the soil or dissolve in water and then water your plants?
Hi Emilia - yes, break or grate it onto the surface of the soil. The mosquito bits are small enough to just sprinkle on without having to break them up.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm thank you! Always enjoy watching your channel.
What do you think about diatomaceous earth as a control
I have my doubts - the juvenile stage is below the surface, so no direct contact. I suppose if the layer were thick enough on the soil surface it might stop the laying of eggs, but not sure of that either.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm my thought is maybe work it into the surface
I head about pouring Senemom on earth while propagating, so the fungus don't like the smell and never come near?
I've heard that about cinnamon as well, but when I tried it, it didn't seem to make a difference.
I've been trying for two years and no success to root blue berries from cuttings with no success. Can you give me some ideas please 🙏.
I'm working on the problem as well!
I have some plants that LOVE to make a meal out of fungus gnats! They snack on them like chips.
Dang, wish I had seen this earlier today. I just dealt with 5 plants the old way this morning with a 1 to 3 hydrogen peroxide and tap water soil drench and top dressing of diatomaceous earth, although I'm not sure why the recipe calls for food grade DE. Mine has bentonite in it.
Hi yonder,
I have fungus gnats too and I also want to try the hydrogen peroxide drench. Now I am wondering if it worked for you so that I'm sure I should give it a try. Could you please let me know?
@@joriskunkeler611 Hi, yes it worked for me. I have used it before. I did it on every plant in the house. 15ish. I also threw some mosquito bits in for good measure, but that won't activate until I water. I have also placed Fraser Valley Nema Globe on my Amazon list to buy because I like options.
Wear a dust mask if you are going to use the diatomaceous earth, it's easy to breath into your lungs.
You may not know the answer to this but my fungus gnat issues are more with my pet insect and snails, they have to have moist soil so letting it dry out isn’t an option. So my question is, are those products safe to use around other insects/ will it only kill fungus gnats or are these products that would harm all kinds of invertebrates?
Each of these biological controls has an associated list of "target" pests they're going to attack, and as far as the three mentioned in my video, they're not targeted against snails. You'd have to do a bit of research on your own to make sure they're not going to harm your pets, but I think it's unlikely.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Good to know! Thank you! :)
I think I bought a bag of potting mix that was infested. I didn't know until I had potted a bunch of rooted cuttings. I tried hydrogen peroxide. Then I had to smash up a mosquito dunk and put it on the surface of the soil. I am not certain I have them under control. I heated some of the potting mix on my grill, to use this winter. I hope that killed them, but not sure?
And I'm new to all this so I please hurry hurry need help to get rid of this whatever it is
Probably Perlite will help?
Perlite as a part of the mix will encourage good drainage, so that's a positive.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm can you use perlite as a top dressing if you can't get mulch chopped that fine in your area?
Can I use vermicullite instead of cedar chips?
Vermiculite tends to stay a bit moist. How about perlite or pumice?
Thank you for the heads up. Perlite it is!
I think it's an answer what I came here for but I just noticed some little flying something when I just went to spray my snake plant cuttings how can I get rid of them I just saw it a few little something fly up when I started spraying they only been in the dirt for about almost a month
Hi Patricia, I'm I think the "Mosquito Bits" are widely available.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm would neem oil work also I just looked at both of those the one you just mentioned and the neem oil and I just ordered some neem oil spray from Amazon I don't have but a couple of plants and I don't really want to get a large quantity of any of this stuff so I was going to try the neem oil spray first
And thanks for the quick reply I need it 👍🏽👍🏽
Hi Patricia. Neem oil is effective on insect pests, but the soil can protects the larvae from direct contact. I'd suggest you apply a little bit on the heavy side to the top layers of soil so you have a better chance of reaching them.
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm ok thanks a bunch 👍🏽👍🏽
diatamaceous earth works great, most have died and gradually they are gone.
Oh, the Congo Rojo behind you.
And it just unfurled a beautiful new leaf!
@@FraserValleyRoseFarm Awesome. i have a new sheaf that has been there for at least 2 months. It's growing. Hopefully, mine will also unfurl soon.
Thank you always🙏🙏🙏🥰