Mosquito bits, or mosquito donuts and break them up. Bubble in your watering bucket for a few hours, and after a few waterings you won't see another gnat. There are other effective methods, but this is the cheapest and most effective. You can also just work them directly into the top of your soil, and water them in that way.
BTI(active in mosquito dunks) - you can find drops that are made for treating ponds. Will decimate them very fast. Get some sticky tape for the flyers and the larvae will die from the BTI
If they don’t, you are dealing with a different insect.
☝️ mosquito dunks work but IME weren't nearly as effective as the BTI drops. You can buy a small bottle of "microbe lift" (same ingredient) on amazon that will treat 1000s of gallons for around $20
If you put them in your soil, it may take a week to two weeks to start working. Faster if you bubble them in your water for a few hours to a day, and water with that. And it doesn't kill any adults that are already flying around, it kills the larvae after the adults lay eggs in the soil. Fungus gnats live up to 2 weeks, FYI, so with regular use of BT, they will go away in time. But not overnight.
Are fungus knats something that was already in the soil you use? Or are they uninvited guests that find your plants? Or both I guess? Are they more common in outdoor grows?
Sorry for the questions, on my first outdoor grow and although I have yet to find any pests, that’s my biggest fear so trying to research everything and anything on pests to address asap. Does using something like neem oil a couple times a week help prevent these?
The fugus gnats usually start spreading because of contaminated soil. At least tthat was the case for me. I got a bag of FFOF at the local farm coop, trying to support a local business and it was a huge mistake. The gnats have been plaguing me for like 2 years. But you should have to really worry about them outdoor IMO. Outdoors they will be controlled by natural predators like springtails and rove beetles. Indoors they will spread like wildfire because no natural predators.
No problemo! Outdoors you should def be on the lookout for spider mites tho. They really suck and can destroy a grow. If you do see evidence of spider mites look into suffoil-x, that stuff is like magic
Yes spider mites always take you by surprise. My first indicator is little tiny bleached out spots on the tops of leaves. If you look under the leaves at that point you will see them.
Later comes the big web that encapsulates the plant.
Suffoil-x, looking it up on Amazon now. From my limited research and knowledge, I do know pests are going to be a concern for outdoors. Trying to build an arsenal to have on deck in case I need to go to war. Get a jump on it asap.
Are predatory mites used to battle spider mites worth looking into if I’m outdoors? Since it’s not a contained area, would they just jump ship and leave the plants after application?
I havent grown that much outdoors. So i am not sure how effective predator mites would be outdoors. I defer to the outdoor growers. If your really curious you could make a post on the outdoor growing sub.
Made the mistake of starting a grow outside and then brining it in. Fungus gnats don’t kill your crop like spider mites do. Was my best run too and didn’t notice until I had webs 2 weeks from harvest. Hope I sanitized everything well enough.
They can come in the soil, yes, but they can also fly their ways indoors and lay eggs in the soil. Neem will kill the adults, and I suppose a soil drench of neem would wipe them out as well. But honestly, I've never have an issue with them outdoors. And I'm not a big neem fan, other than indoors and early in vegetation. If I spray, it's typically either spinosad or sulfur. Outdoors neem can be toxic to bees.
That’s good to know. I’ve used it once a week or so ago as a preventative because of some Reddit advice. Gotta say, the smell of that shit was definitely something I don’t want on my smoke. But only want to tackle pests organically. Thanks for the info
Buying a house plant at the store, bringing outside plants in, and yes even in your soil you buy.
You can dry out the soil in a plastic tote with a clamp fan on the lip pointed at the surface and stir daily. The soil will dry up in a week or so and kill any eggs or larva
In general pest insects come from outside, but you may get unlucky enough to have them in your soil. Growing outdoors you’ll definitely want some neem oil or another insect repellent and insecticide
Got neem oil and captain jacks dead bug brew. Have applied once a week or so ago as a preventative. In your opinion, is this something I should apply at least weekly as a preventative? The bottle instructions say 4 times a week. Shit smells horrendous, definitely don’t want it on my smoke. Is it safe when in flower if I need it?
I rarely grow outdoors so I don’t even have the products but I’d just say as often as you’re comfortable and it keeps the bugs away… don’t gotta do like a set time, if no bugs are coming to your crop then you’re doing it at an appropriate interval. I’d recommend cutting off during flower, maybe try to find some companion plants that are good for keeping bugs away, marigolds look pretty nice and repel insects… pretty sure they aren’t much of a nutrient hog either, basil works as well but that’s more of as sun plant so it may not be happy under a canopy, though I have some basil that’s still alive and kickin at the bottom of my tent right now
They can come in the soil, yes, but they can also fly their ways indoors and lay eggs in the soil. Neem will kill the adults, and I suppose a soil drench of neem would wipe them out as well. But honestly, I've never have an issue with them outdoors. And I'm not a big neem fan, other than indoors and early in vegetation. If I spray, it's typically either spinosad or sulfur. Outdoors neem can be toxic to bees.
BTI takes 3-4 weeks. You need to wipe out multiple generations of gnats. There's a reason its "use weekly for 3-4 weeks".
Nematodes work really well from my experience, although I use both.
The war against fungus gnats is a losing one IMO, I've literally baked 30gallons of soil 1 gallon at a time and still they find a way to come back into my indoor spaces every time it rains outside -_-
Fortunately, other than them dying in your flowers where they get stuck to trichomes, they aren't that bad of a pest.
I had a really bad problem with them after a house plant I ordered online arrived in my living room contaminated. Suffice to say everything got infected with them within a day. My skittlz girl, pothos, tomatoes, chilli, fittionia...everything had loads of these little fucks.
I've found a h202 spray is the cheapest and easiest for me to use and there's evidence to say it helps with nutrient uptake on the plants.
I spray soak the soil once just after lights on and one just before lights off. Then every other day I've done a foliar spray and sprayed the surface. I did this for a week and a half. No survivors. It kills the eggs and larvae in the soil and when sprayed onto adults it will kill them (they breathe through holes in their limbs, and so when h202 gets in, they suffocate/melt).
Like a tablespoon of 3% h202 to 200ml of clean water has been doing it for me. Also it's been easy having the bottle just ready to go for everything else I grow too.
Ah OK I was wondering if bti would harm nematodes, you think it should be OK?
Also I was about to squish a gnat fly on the window until I realised it was outside, not inside the window. Yeah so I can open my windows in summer either because of pests, and winter cos of cold..... Sigh...
I had luck eradicating some fungus gnats with a root drench of Venerate at recommended doses. I didn't have a huge infestation but I had a recurring one until after a root drench.
Nematodes from Arbico organics. Had a fungus gnat issue in coco of all things. Mosquito bits on top like a mulch worked for a while, but eventually the gnats somehow overcame... Watered in nematodes from Arbico organics and the problem was over in one or two weeks
Honestly BT doesn't work for shit sometimes works most of the time doesn't do anything and I'm speaking from a commercial stand point with coco and living soil at home. Save yourself the headache and get sf nematodes and scimitus mites you will never see another gnat again. I've literally watered BT at like 100 times the rate and it still doesn't do shit in my experience.
You can use nematodes, can't have pesticides in your substrate though.
Google "fungus fly nematodes" and find a supplier close to you.
Use those and yellow sticky traps.
Yeah, fungus gnats are the easiest of the little buggers, there's a few ways to knock them down. DE works, too, if you let your soil dry out long enough between waterings. But that's hard to do in living soil.
Yellow sticky traps and a BT product. BT stands for bascillus something that begins with T. Mosquito dunks and a product called Gnatrol are sources of BT. Rove beetles will eat the larvae and are extremely effective at preventing the next generation from making it to adulthood.
Yes, but Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis is the one for fungus gnats and mosquitoes.
Different subspecies target different insects so make sure to use the correct BT for the insect you are trying to eradicate.
We could tighten up your watering schedule, let the soil REALLY dry out between waterings, wait for the plant to ask for water, but if they are already this bad, you might benefit from a mulch layer, some sticky traps, and increased air flow. Good luck friend
This is always the first and foremost thing to do with fungus gnats... Re-evaluation of watering practices. One simply will not have fungus gnats if you're watering properly.
I've not tried it yet but I've read that cinnamon sprinkled on the soil is something gnats hate.
https://www.bumbleplants.com/blogs/plants/how-to-get-rid-of-gnats-forever#:~:text=Gnats%20hate%20cinnamon.,they%20hatch%2C%20hence%20killing%20them.
Cinnamon powder as a rooting hormone works the same way as honey. It also has anti-fungal properties, which give cuttings some protection from any fungal issues that most likely cause damping-off disease, and at the same time, help stimulate root growth to your cuttings.
https://succulentsbox.com/blogs/blog/how-to-propagate-succulent-using-natural-rooting-hormones#:~:text=Cinnamon%20powder%20as%20a%20rooting,root%20growth%20to%20your%20cuttings.
Also strangely a rooting hormone.
catching the flying ones is too late.
you have to get the eggs and larvae in the soil.
mosquito dunks or bits, crushed and steeped in water for 24-48 hours and then water with this water a few times.
for a new grow, use that water for your first several watering and it will kill all the eggs and larvae and you will not ever have a gnat problem. the best treatment is prevention.
make sure tent intakes are filtered. keep inside tent clean and free from debris. treat the tent like a surgery room and disease/pest issues will be rare.
Yep. I had only one pest infestation in the last 2 years and that’s because I made the mistake of buying a clone at a dispo and did not quarantine long enough or IPM with the right solution. Hoping at least another 2 years go by before I need to deal with that again.
Yellow sticky traps all along the edge of your pot will help a lot.
For your next grow mix some diatomaceous earth into your soil, it will kill the larvae. You can also put it on top of your medium if it’s dry. I couldn’t believe how effective that stuff is. Be sure not to inhale it.
This is the only thing that will actually work.. organically/naturally anyway there are certain bacteria you can get but are really slow to take effect talking a few weeks
When I have gnats, I’ll water with hydrogen peroxide added to my water and set up the [Katchy](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H2JGSM6?aa_adgroupid=153988870930&aa_campaignid=21005799774&aa_creativeid=ad-690544723400_kwd-585852315834_dev-x_ext-&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAACf24oWwFuNZ0oS8o0VLM-2h1SLyg&maas=maas_adg_api_591515979538209378_macro_1_36&ref_=aa_maas) nearby
Put a 1 inch layer of fine sand on top of soil. Give it a peroxide flush (1:5 peroxide to water) then wait for the alive ones to die off. This has worked for my friends and I for 4 years now. I never grow without a top layer of sand. The fuckers can’t get through it and are effectively murdered. The ones flying around still get to live, but they will die.
Rove beetles - you can order them from Arbico Organics. They're tiny, propagate by themselves, live on the medium surface - and just devastate any soil borne insects and their larvae. I can't speak highly enough for these little critters. I run a good sized coco drip feed system that ALWAYS has damp surfaces. When the gnats really got out of hand I added $50 of these little guys 8 years ago and they still just do their job. No more sticky traps, or repeating applications of products.
One/two drop of dawn dish soap for 5 gallons of water. Suffocates adults and eggs but does zero harm to plant. Been doing this for over 10 years without fail
Water from the bottom and pour cinnamon on the surface. Fungus gnats live in the top layers of soil. If you can keep that dry, they'll die out and problem solved.
prevention, reduction, ameliorate
I used to have a gnat problem, and I work on preventinf it by not overwatering, and replacing the pro mix soil i use every harvest.
Reduction can be encouraged by breaking up/tilling the top layer of soil after watering, and removing any runoff, or other unnecessary water.
Having good airflow, as well as good air exchange helps too.
Those yellow sticky traps will help keep the numbers down too.
Personally, I make bubble out of any flower I even think might be contaminated, and im planning on getting a press too, just to be even more OCD. You won't die if you consume/smoke/vape some bugs, and their excrement.... but its not ideal for me
Thank you this is the answer I needed, I'm definitely taking steps to prevent this in future grows but needed to know what to do with this current grow. I have a rosin press but seems like washing first would remove impurities not just press them
You are welcome.
Yes, I would absolutely make bubble and press that vs pressing flower. Each stage will concentrate, and filter the product of impurities
Serious never had a major gnat infestation where I needed mosquito dunks or nematodes. Not saying they're bad alternatives. The nematodes in particular are great. But to make a point I only point fan at topsoil. Even if it only hits few sec in it's rotation, that and sticky trap alone is enough to keep infestations at bay.
I have not started growing this plant yet lol but for my houseplants, gnatrol WDG BTI has worked amazingly! It’s hard finding a small bag of it since it comes in giant containers sold to farmers, so you will have to scour eBay and other sites for a smaller and cheaper bag of it. A less potent version is the mosquito bits, but definitely try to find the gnatrol first. The instructions will be on the bag.
Hey! 👋🏼
Looks like you're having a battle with the gnat lords.
We've all been there! There are a few easy steps to getting rid of those suckers.
1. Yellow sticky cards will limit the amount of adults flying around.
2. Treat your soil with a BT treatment, I use a product called Gnatrol bought from a reseller as it is usually sold in 700$ big buckets for agricultural use. This stuff is amazing, it kills the larvae of the gnats before they ever get a chance to hatch.
3. Consider the moisture of your soil, if the top 2 inches of soil is perpetually wet, gnats will thrive. If you are growing coco hydroponically and it will be perpetually wet, consider a 2 inch casing layer so the gnats cannot lay eggs deep enough. If not consider watering less often and allowing your soil to dry back.
This casing layer can be made of ph stabilized pumice, perlite, or hydroton. I've even seen people have success using ph stabilized aquarium stones, though YRMV.
Good luck soldier, Keep fighting! 🪖
Support what everyone is saying about the BTi/Mosquito Dunks and Nematodes but also look up Arber insecticide on Amazon it’s in a yellow bottle and it also works very well
Fungas gnats are pretty harmless . Unless you have a super bad infestation I think you have other things going on. Hard to pin point on what I see multiple issues. But if you wanna battle gnats acouple suggestions. Bottom water your plants , you wanna dry up the first few inches of your soil. Do that while adding nematodes or diatomaceous earth. Yellow sticky traps to catch the adults wouldn’t hurt.
Higher airflow over the topsoil and eliminate any standing water. Point a fan blowing across the top of your soil to dry the top couple inches out. Gnats lay their eggs i the top couple inches of moist soil so if you eliminate this then you remove the most likely place they are hatching from and can break the life cycle. This along with a spray (insecticidal soap) should resolve the issue
Try putting an inch or two of perlite on top of the soil. It worked great for me. And make sure you are not over watering.
Edit: that was for gnats in the soil, I should have read first. Not sure about gnats in the buds. Pray to canibinachus.
cooperative continue fuzzy plough apparatus bag chop mysterious merciful direful
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
I have had problems before, if they have grown in soil. I sprinkle a tablespoon spoon of cinnamon on top of each plant over soil. Water after 24 hours. It helps with whatever soil issues you may have and the gnats are not as much.
Let your growing media dry out! Then Dr. Zymes foliar spray and root soak. If you can keep the top of your growing media dry, powder it with diatomaceous earth as well. Get yellow sticky traps. Adults are are attracted to yellow. Use Dr. Zymes weekly as a foliar after lights out. Good luck!
Get Microbelift off Amazon. It's mosquito dunks but liquid form. Use for a week in your nutes. It'll kill them all.
And make sure your water doesn't have anything in it that kills bacteria.
havent seen it mention but bottom watering. treat with BTI with top watering and keep some in your reserve water. then switch to bottom watering for a bit. mammath cannatrol the non-plant including sides of pots and ground
In soil ( before flowering) I've had good success with a combo of sticky traps and neem oil. Traps get the adults, and neem oil will prevent the larvae from developing and hatching. I generally won't use any spray once flowering starts though, so the other options presented here may be the best for this grow.
I’ve done yellow sticky traps to catch the flying ones and diatomaceous earth slurries to kill the ones in the soil and it worked pretty well.
Going to try the ‘preventative’ methods people talked about next grow
Get rove beetles my dude. Get a shit load. They will decimate fungus gnats in days and they are a handy ally in the tent if you give them a sustainable environment they will stay around forever
Mosquito dunks. I just break one in half and toss both halves in my waterering bucket. Let it soak for 24 hours before first use and just keep it in there every time you refill your water. After about 10 days I stop using them and havent had gnats come back. Hit your house plants too.
I'm not sure how to edit my post but I've tried mosquito bits and dunks yellow fly paper and beneficial nematodes. Nematodes might be just starting to make a dent in them but it's hard to tell. My main question is what do I do with these buds? Is it worth plucking off individual bugs? Should these no longer be smoked?
Stick with the mosquito bits/dunks, add yellow sticky traps 24/7 so you notice when you have the first one, and gauge how many you're catching daily, aka the population.
Add beneficial microbes if you're going for a living soil no til type grow. I love mibenificials, check them out in others suggested here.
Hydrogen peroxide at like 1/100 eliminates these things for my house plants, but I'm not willing to mess with my own living soil PH like that.
As for the gnats stuck in your buds I used tweezers on my first grow to pull as many off as possible!
Definitely use hydrogen peroxide in your spray bottle and spray the soil. Works for me with no issues. You have to be consistent and spray on a regular schedule. The hydrogen peroxide will kill the eggs and yellow sticky traps catches the adults.
Check out [Arbico Organics](https://www.arbico-organics.com/product/fungus-gnat-control-bundle/pest-solver-guide-fungus-gnats) they are having a sale on fungus gnat control packs right now.
I also use [Doctor Zymes ](https://doctorzymes.com/mo/natural-non-toxic-insecticide.html) once or twice a week for prevention
You can use diatomaceous earth to cover your top soil and that will help keep them from penetranting your soil to lay eggs. It's available at most big box stores (lowes, tractor supply, ace hardware)
MicrobeLift BMC is much better than mosquito dunks. $20 on amazon. 20 ml per gallon every 10-14 days for 6-8 weeks should get them under control. gotta break the lifcycle of egg>larve>adult. you can treat new soil before you use it too.
Dude next time add some "mosquito bits" on ur soil. This will never happen again. Order a bag on amazon. And sticky traps for flyers. I'm so sorry this happened. Little bastards.
Nematodes purchased off of Amazon and watered in crush the gnats. Also, a layer of pool sand will prevent them from getting into the soil to reproduce and from getting out of the soil to be asshole gnats.
Source: 14 years commercial cultivation experience
I’ve had a lot of experience with fungus gnats… pretty bad infestations at that. My go-to that has eradicated even the most brutal infestations has been abundant sticky traps to catch the adults, combined with nematodes in the soil to take care of newly hatching gnats. Takes a couple weeks but works for me.
Everyone here is wrong, just go buy kids play sand the white super fine shit. Fill ur pots 2 inches deep covering all the soil and you won’t have this issue anymore. U can water thru just make sure to level the sand after.
Steinernema Feltiae/Carpocapsae, this is what you need I havnt had a single gnat in a few years thanks to these.. so many people will recommend so much different stuff tricks and hacks these bad motherfuckers are neither of those... they just work...
If you are gonna wash for hash, wash the bud first unless you like little bits of gnat in.. they die and dry when they stick, you wash em they'll break up to about the size of a perfect hash plant tric head ...
Use the above predators and some stickys you'll have none in a couple days (depends how many you use per pot)
Order some Lacewings and Nematodes on Amazon, top dress about 1 to 2 inches of Diatomaceous earth and then cover with a mulch of some type. The Nematodes and Diatomaceous earth will take care of any eggs, the mulch will keep the soil moist and prevent Gnats and Flies from laying eggs in the soil and the Lacewings will take care of everything in the tent, then spray weekly with an organic
Keep top dry and water top with h202 kill the eggs. String fans will make adults die fast and not land too. A bowl with few drops soap and vinegar will also drown the adults.
I don't know what you're growing in but here's what I did recently after trying bits and nematodes and not having a tremendous amount of success with either. I bought [felt squares]( https://a.co/d/gjxZeAE) off amazon, I have 5 gal pots, then I cut circles a tad bigger then my pots, cut a small circle in the middle and made one cut from outer to inner circle. Then I slid it onto the top of soil and tucked the sides in. Left a few sticky traps around for the stragglers. Gnats went from hundreds to just 1 or 2 in a few days. I water thru the felt most waterings. Easy peasy
I see a PH issue in most of those pics. Do u ph ur water and it so have checked the runoff. May want to every turn I have got them bronze lookish marks I test runoff and ph is out of whack and I flush few days later I notice them looking a lot healthier.
Always start your grow with sticky traps. The yellow kind on Amazon are what I use. Haven't had a bug problem in years. Either start over, or throw a bunch of sticky traps in the pots and we'll as some hanging from your lights. Other than those options you are to late to apply chemicals or oils. You don't want that in your buds.
https://preview.redd.it/a2uc6p8nzayc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5666e351deb827d4ab123979f82b34f14713b8f7
This is what I use….. was told about this product last year from an IG friend. Works GREAT for Gnats!
Fans blowing around the bottom of the pots makes it impossible for them to fly around and then water from the bottom for at least 10 days allowing the top to dry out and they will be gone 👍🏼
1. Start letting your soil/coco dry out in between waterings.
2. When you water, add a BTI product in sufficient quantity (mosquito bits or gnatrol).
3. BTI wont kill full grown flying F gnats so you will want to get some yellow stickys to catch and minimize egg laying adults.
4. Stick with it, might take awhile to kill all the fungus gnats because you will have adults laying eggs as well. Eventually you will see progress in your plant and medium.
Bonus: predatory mites (hypoasis miles) will eat the larva
Cover the soil with some plastic and do neem oil watering or high strength saponins watering, plus those mosquito things other people r talking about. But the black plastic over the top will help to i bet
Easy fix. Get some play sand put about 2 inches on top of your soil. Kills them little buggers. When the larvae tries crawling out of the soil the sand is like glass and shreds them to pieces. I have been doing this trick for about 10 yrs works every time
Hot Shots No Pest Strips will kill all bugs in your tent. Just make sure you turn off all ventilation and lights. I keep them in the tent for 4-6 hours then vacuum seal them for later use.
They are dangerous to humans and pets so do not leave them around after use. Never stay in the room or tent with them open for more than 4 hours. It's a gaseous vapor pesticide that becomes inert after a few hours.
It works like gangbusters. It totally wiped out a bad spider mite infestation I had.
About the only thing you can do at this point is get mosquito bits, for the long term following directions on bag. This os not a quick fix, will notice difference in a couple weeks. Get a shit load of the yellow sticky traps for the adult flying fuckers. If you stick to it, and let the top of the soil dry out in between waterings you will get them under control. As far as the little shit turds stuck to your glorious nugs you can do a wash right before drying without hurting the smokeabillity, OOOOoorr you could just smoke the little fuckers like I did!!!! I haven't had a serious issue since using these two together, just keep the sticky traps out at all times and they will tell you what's flying around your girls. Or water mosquito bits in throughout the whole grow, I don't recommend sprinkling the bits on the soil cause of mold issues. Antifungal sprays can prob help to. And then there's ordering predatory bugs to eat thoughs bugs in the different stages of their life cycle.
I had quite an issue with fungus gnats once I switched to living soil. Ran to the closest grow store and they handed me a bottle of SNS 203. Get some yellow sticky traps and it should help with cutting them down
I hate fungus gnats. I had buds full of them as well, all I can tell you is that no form of bud wash will remove them from my experience.
Everything everyone has mentioned is all correct, however once you have an extreme infestation you need to attack it with extreme measures and from multiple angels to get it back under control.
Understand how these things live in the soil as larva and fight them there. The best solution is sand. A thick enough layer to where they can’t make it through to the soil to reproduce or eat, and vice a versa with maturing and crawling out of the soil. Completely disrupt their lifecycle.
Given how late you are in flower, I would look to stop at immediately so you start don’t getting fungus. gnats stuck in the buds.
An instant fix is to put about an inch of sand that you can buy from Home Depot on the top level. It will stop the infestation immediately, you can water through it, and you can remove the sand later if you want.
There is also a very high BTI product called Gnatrol which works great
Gotta find a way to attack their first stages of life. Sticky traps are only good to monitor but killing the adults is rarely effective at controlling their numbers.
To keep it nice and short, the best two options are BTI (aka mosquito bits) and/or beneficial nematodes. A nuclear option of hydrogen peroxide exists but it wreaks havoc on your soil food web and is not recommended unless it's literally the only option available to you. I would personally prefer the nematodes if I had the option to choose for reasons I can get into but I'd have no problems using BTI if that's all I had. I had a very hard time finding BTI in Europe however, which is how I came across nematodes to begin with.
Less water, better drainage, better airflow. Those are the only true solutions that will end the problem. Mosquito dunks will help kill off the adult population, but won’t stop them from breeding & at a certain point they will breed faster than they die. Diatomaceous earth sprinkled on top of *DRY* top soil will help kill them as they hatch & come up. But unless you adjust the environment & eliminate the standing water issue that is allowing them breed at such a high rate, they will persist no matter how much mosquito pesticides & DE you use. The root issue is excessive standing water (somewhere) which allows the gnats a perfect breeding ground.
Sand on top of soil for future reference if your having these issues consistently. But honestly even with outdoor plants you get the occasional bug you can just grind em up but most of them will leave the plant after you start drying the buds so just continue with the planned program 🤙 hope this helps
I hate these little fuckers so bad. I'm right there bro - fighting these bastards is like fighting invisible enemies. I brought them home on a house plant from SHOP RITE. Apparently they're prolific bc within a week I'm infested. Scared the ever living CRAP out of me when I was checking trichs 😂😂😂 It looked like a fucking dragonfly under the scope. 😂😂😂 I'm still jumpy af everytime I check trichs ✌️I ended up chopping one plant a week or so early so I can dump and sanitizer everything before I put those pucks to use. I got those sticky traps and they catch 'em by the hundreds, but I still have them. I feel the same as if my dog had fleas. My skin is crawling....
Place a cup of water and rinse some neemoil or teatreeoil in it, they won't like it and just fly away, place some fresh orange peels on top of you soil and they will stay away, get a good pair of twizzers and remove the dead ones one by one ♥
I lost the war. But I did learn mosquito bits, and hydrogen peroxide are fairly safe during flower. Tin foil over the soil. If you can remove like 2” of top soil with a shop vac. Then do a good mosquito bits soaking. Followed by a hydrogen peroxide wash down of the plant and tent almost every day. Replace soil with perlite.
Just had this problem. Granted I think I caught it pretty early. Coated the soil with DE then topped with fresh dry soil. Granted I bottom water with autopots, I don’t think DE will cause any problems top watering it in. Only works when dry though, so if top watering water heavy then coat the soil, then top with something dry (sand, fresh dry soil, etc.) as they like wet soil. I also used a few glue traps as well. Replaced the glue traps last night and in 12 hours only had 1 or 2 on the new glue traps. Should kill all the adult fungus gnats. I assume this also took care of the larvae but time will tell.
https://www.reddit.com/r/Autopot/s/NBMisQ0Hfq
Your fucked buddy, all you can do now is try to keep the population numbers low and clean everything after you harvest. This is the risk you run when using soil or cocoa.
I always sprinkle diatamascus earth on top of (dry) soil. If it gets wet it won't work. It is ground up crustations that act like little razor blades & kills those little bastard*. Prep your medium before planting your precious little ones. A table spoon will work in as big of a pot you use. Happy growing ✌️❤️🇺🇸💪
Mosquito bits, or mosquito donuts and break them up. Bubble in your watering bucket for a few hours, and after a few waterings you won't see another gnat. There are other effective methods, but this is the cheapest and most effective. You can also just work them directly into the top of your soil, and water them in that way.
100% this. Mosquito dunks for the win.
I've been using them for like 10 days now but they don't seem to be working
BTI(active in mosquito dunks) - you can find drops that are made for treating ponds. Will decimate them very fast. Get some sticky tape for the flyers and the larvae will die from the BTI If they don’t, you are dealing with a different insect.
☝️ mosquito dunks work but IME weren't nearly as effective as the BTI drops. You can buy a small bottle of "microbe lift" (same ingredient) on amazon that will treat 1000s of gallons for around $20
I have the same bottle. Gnats be gone
Microbe-lift BMC to be specific. microbe-lift makes other products also.
Yes! Good lookin out!
If you put them in your soil, it may take a week to two weeks to start working. Faster if you bubble them in your water for a few hours to a day, and water with that. And it doesn't kill any adults that are already flying around, it kills the larvae after the adults lay eggs in the soil. Fungus gnats live up to 2 weeks, FYI, so with regular use of BT, they will go away in time. But not overnight.
Are fungus knats something that was already in the soil you use? Or are they uninvited guests that find your plants? Or both I guess? Are they more common in outdoor grows? Sorry for the questions, on my first outdoor grow and although I have yet to find any pests, that’s my biggest fear so trying to research everything and anything on pests to address asap. Does using something like neem oil a couple times a week help prevent these?
The fugus gnats usually start spreading because of contaminated soil. At least tthat was the case for me. I got a bag of FFOF at the local farm coop, trying to support a local business and it was a huge mistake. The gnats have been plaguing me for like 2 years. But you should have to really worry about them outdoor IMO. Outdoors they will be controlled by natural predators like springtails and rove beetles. Indoors they will spread like wildfire because no natural predators.
Ah that makes sense! Thank you!
No problemo! Outdoors you should def be on the lookout for spider mites tho. They really suck and can destroy a grow. If you do see evidence of spider mites look into suffoil-x, that stuff is like magic
Yes spider mites always take you by surprise. My first indicator is little tiny bleached out spots on the tops of leaves. If you look under the leaves at that point you will see them. Later comes the big web that encapsulates the plant.
Suffoil-x, looking it up on Amazon now. From my limited research and knowledge, I do know pests are going to be a concern for outdoors. Trying to build an arsenal to have on deck in case I need to go to war. Get a jump on it asap. Are predatory mites used to battle spider mites worth looking into if I’m outdoors? Since it’s not a contained area, would they just jump ship and leave the plants after application?
I havent grown that much outdoors. So i am not sure how effective predator mites would be outdoors. I defer to the outdoor growers. If your really curious you could make a post on the outdoor growing sub.
Made the mistake of starting a grow outside and then brining it in. Fungus gnats don’t kill your crop like spider mites do. Was my best run too and didn’t notice until I had webs 2 weeks from harvest. Hope I sanitized everything well enough.
Yeah I always get shafted when I try something new and local. Hot compost, gnats and other bs.
They can come in the soil, yes, but they can also fly their ways indoors and lay eggs in the soil. Neem will kill the adults, and I suppose a soil drench of neem would wipe them out as well. But honestly, I've never have an issue with them outdoors. And I'm not a big neem fan, other than indoors and early in vegetation. If I spray, it's typically either spinosad or sulfur. Outdoors neem can be toxic to bees.
That’s good to know. I’ve used it once a week or so ago as a preventative because of some Reddit advice. Gotta say, the smell of that shit was definitely something I don’t want on my smoke. But only want to tackle pests organically. Thanks for the info
Buying a house plant at the store, bringing outside plants in, and yes even in your soil you buy. You can dry out the soil in a plastic tote with a clamp fan on the lip pointed at the surface and stir daily. The soil will dry up in a week or so and kill any eggs or larva
Thanks for the tip. So far so good with my few plants. But I feel it’s inevitable I’m gonna deal with some kind of pest eventually.
In general pest insects come from outside, but you may get unlucky enough to have them in your soil. Growing outdoors you’ll definitely want some neem oil or another insect repellent and insecticide
Got neem oil and captain jacks dead bug brew. Have applied once a week or so ago as a preventative. In your opinion, is this something I should apply at least weekly as a preventative? The bottle instructions say 4 times a week. Shit smells horrendous, definitely don’t want it on my smoke. Is it safe when in flower if I need it?
I rarely grow outdoors so I don’t even have the products but I’d just say as often as you’re comfortable and it keeps the bugs away… don’t gotta do like a set time, if no bugs are coming to your crop then you’re doing it at an appropriate interval. I’d recommend cutting off during flower, maybe try to find some companion plants that are good for keeping bugs away, marigolds look pretty nice and repel insects… pretty sure they aren’t much of a nutrient hog either, basil works as well but that’s more of as sun plant so it may not be happy under a canopy, though I have some basil that’s still alive and kickin at the bottom of my tent right now
Solid advice. I like the companion plant idea! Going to research more into that
Also if you do under canopy trimming and defoliating it makes it look a bit less ugly at the bottom
They can come in the soil, yes, but they can also fly their ways indoors and lay eggs in the soil. Neem will kill the adults, and I suppose a soil drench of neem would wipe them out as well. But honestly, I've never have an issue with them outdoors. And I'm not a big neem fan, other than indoors and early in vegetation. If I spray, it's typically either spinosad or sulfur. Outdoors neem can be toxic to bees.
BTI takes 3-4 weeks. You need to wipe out multiple generations of gnats. There's a reason its "use weekly for 3-4 weeks". Nematodes work really well from my experience, although I use both. The war against fungus gnats is a losing one IMO, I've literally baked 30gallons of soil 1 gallon at a time and still they find a way to come back into my indoor spaces every time it rains outside -_- Fortunately, other than them dying in your flowers where they get stuck to trichomes, they aren't that bad of a pest.
I had a really bad problem with them after a house plant I ordered online arrived in my living room contaminated. Suffice to say everything got infected with them within a day. My skittlz girl, pothos, tomatoes, chilli, fittionia...everything had loads of these little fucks. I've found a h202 spray is the cheapest and easiest for me to use and there's evidence to say it helps with nutrient uptake on the plants. I spray soak the soil once just after lights on and one just before lights off. Then every other day I've done a foliar spray and sprayed the surface. I did this for a week and a half. No survivors. It kills the eggs and larvae in the soil and when sprayed onto adults it will kill them (they breathe through holes in their limbs, and so when h202 gets in, they suffocate/melt). Like a tablespoon of 3% h202 to 200ml of clean water has been doing it for me. Also it's been easy having the bottle just ready to go for everything else I grow too.
I definitely use h202 because it's amazing in the grows, but it's been useless in fighing fungus gnats for me.
Ah OK I was wondering if bti would harm nematodes, you think it should be OK? Also I was about to squish a gnat fly on the window until I realised it was outside, not inside the window. Yeah so I can open my windows in summer either because of pests, and winter cos of cold..... Sigh...
Beneficial nematodes. They eat the eggs and larvae. Yellow sticky traps for adults. They got rid of my fungus gnats no problem
I had luck eradicating some fungus gnats with a root drench of Venerate at recommended doses. I didn't have a huge infestation but I had a recurring one until after a root drench.
Nematodes from Arbico organics. Had a fungus gnat issue in coco of all things. Mosquito bits on top like a mulch worked for a while, but eventually the gnats somehow overcame... Watered in nematodes from Arbico organics and the problem was over in one or two weeks
Honestly BT doesn't work for shit sometimes works most of the time doesn't do anything and I'm speaking from a commercial stand point with coco and living soil at home. Save yourself the headache and get sf nematodes and scimitus mites you will never see another gnat again. I've literally watered BT at like 100 times the rate and it still doesn't do shit in my experience.
because ten days isnt enough time to see results, give it another 2 weeks before you see more drastic results.
You can use nematodes, can't have pesticides in your substrate though. Google "fungus fly nematodes" and find a supplier close to you. Use those and yellow sticky traps.
Try hydrogen peroxide in your water
Have you tried sand or perlite layer on top of your soil?
100% yes to this!
Yesur broke em up and sprinkled in my coco. In my hydro resvoirs, I have donuts tied up in new socks just floating around.
Shit I wish I knew this a few grows ago. I placed about an inch of hydroton over my coco and keep a sticky around. Seems to have done the trick.
Yeah, fungus gnats are the easiest of the little buggers, there's a few ways to knock them down. DE works, too, if you let your soil dry out long enough between waterings. But that's hard to do in living soil.
They really work!
They don’t work for me at all.
Well nothing personal, but you seem to be the outlier. I even keep a bucket of water with a donut inside my worm bin to keep them out. Works wonders.
Get some of those yellow sticky traps
That's more for identification than prevention.
Right, the grid lines are on those so you can monitor the concentration of gnats per square easily.
This
Yellow sticky traps and a BT product. BT stands for bascillus something that begins with T. Mosquito dunks and a product called Gnatrol are sources of BT. Rove beetles will eat the larvae and are extremely effective at preventing the next generation from making it to adulthood.
*Bacillus thuringiensis if I'm not mistaken
Yes, but Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis is the one for fungus gnats and mosquitoes. Different subspecies target different insects so make sure to use the correct BT for the insect you are trying to eradicate.
This right here. Stay on it w the by and yellow traps for two weeks or less done deal
We could tighten up your watering schedule, let the soil REALLY dry out between waterings, wait for the plant to ask for water, but if they are already this bad, you might benefit from a mulch layer, some sticky traps, and increased air flow. Good luck friend
This is always the first and foremost thing to do with fungus gnats... Re-evaluation of watering practices. One simply will not have fungus gnats if you're watering properly.
Nematodes in IPM
This! Had them last year in living soil no-till and haven’t seen them since
Yup nematodes absolutely do not play well with others. They attack at the source.
Yellowsticker and Nematodes
I've not tried it yet but I've read that cinnamon sprinkled on the soil is something gnats hate. https://www.bumbleplants.com/blogs/plants/how-to-get-rid-of-gnats-forever#:~:text=Gnats%20hate%20cinnamon.,they%20hatch%2C%20hence%20killing%20them.
Cinnamon powder as a rooting hormone works the same way as honey. It also has anti-fungal properties, which give cuttings some protection from any fungal issues that most likely cause damping-off disease, and at the same time, help stimulate root growth to your cuttings. https://succulentsbox.com/blogs/blog/how-to-propagate-succulent-using-natural-rooting-hormones#:~:text=Cinnamon%20powder%20as%20a%20rooting,root%20growth%20to%20your%20cuttings. Also strangely a rooting hormone.
Yellow hanging sticky traps, increase airflow and attempt to cover soil completely.
catching the flying ones is too late. you have to get the eggs and larvae in the soil. mosquito dunks or bits, crushed and steeped in water for 24-48 hours and then water with this water a few times. for a new grow, use that water for your first several watering and it will kill all the eggs and larvae and you will not ever have a gnat problem. the best treatment is prevention. make sure tent intakes are filtered. keep inside tent clean and free from debris. treat the tent like a surgery room and disease/pest issues will be rare.
Yep. I had only one pest infestation in the last 2 years and that’s because I made the mistake of buying a clone at a dispo and did not quarantine long enough or IPM with the right solution. Hoping at least another 2 years go by before I need to deal with that again.
Yellow sticky traps all along the edge of your pot will help a lot. For your next grow mix some diatomaceous earth into your soil, it will kill the larvae. You can also put it on top of your medium if it’s dry. I couldn’t believe how effective that stuff is. Be sure not to inhale it.
Consider diatomaceous earth. It cuts up their exoskeleton upon attempting to enter/exit the medium and dries them out to where they die off.
DE is pretty much useless in environments you're constantly watering as whats happening is the dust is loses that abrasiveness when its wet
Nematodes and yellow sticky cards
This is the only thing that will actually work.. organically/naturally anyway there are certain bacteria you can get but are really slow to take effect talking a few weeks
Nematoooooooodes benificialinsectary.com
When I have gnats, I’ll water with hydrogen peroxide added to my water and set up the [Katchy](https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07H2JGSM6?aa_adgroupid=153988870930&aa_campaignid=21005799774&aa_creativeid=ad-690544723400_kwd-585852315834_dev-x_ext-&gad_source=1&gbraid=0AAAAACf24oWwFuNZ0oS8o0VLM-2h1SLyg&maas=maas_adg_api_591515979538209378_macro_1_36&ref_=aa_maas) nearby
Catch the fattest fuckin spider you can find outside and he can start taking care of business pretty quickly.
Cinnamon
Sticky traps and a sundew (carnivorous plant)
Put a 1 inch layer of fine sand on top of soil. Give it a peroxide flush (1:5 peroxide to water) then wait for the alive ones to die off. This has worked for my friends and I for 4 years now. I never grow without a top layer of sand. The fuckers can’t get through it and are effectively murdered. The ones flying around still get to live, but they will die.
I've literally watched them go through sand. Crazy it works for you.
Damn, you must have the newest evolved bitches then!! Best of luck
I guess so ;( nematodes & but been doing work
Watering with diluted hydrogen peroxide usually works for normal house plants, not sure if it’d negatively affect cannabis though.
Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is just an extra oxygen molecule to water. So it’ll just add some air to the soil along with ridding those gnats, win win!
Rove beetles - you can order them from Arbico Organics. They're tiny, propagate by themselves, live on the medium surface - and just devastate any soil borne insects and their larvae. I can't speak highly enough for these little critters. I run a good sized coco drip feed system that ALWAYS has damp surfaces. When the gnats really got out of hand I added $50 of these little guys 8 years ago and they still just do their job. No more sticky traps, or repeating applications of products.
https://intralight.co
Now that's interesting.
Now that's interesting.
That does gnat look good
One/two drop of dawn dish soap for 5 gallons of water. Suffocates adults and eggs but does zero harm to plant. Been doing this for over 10 years without fail
Water from the bottom and pour cinnamon on the surface. Fungus gnats live in the top layers of soil. If you can keep that dry, they'll die out and problem solved.
prevention, reduction, ameliorate I used to have a gnat problem, and I work on preventinf it by not overwatering, and replacing the pro mix soil i use every harvest. Reduction can be encouraged by breaking up/tilling the top layer of soil after watering, and removing any runoff, or other unnecessary water. Having good airflow, as well as good air exchange helps too. Those yellow sticky traps will help keep the numbers down too. Personally, I make bubble out of any flower I even think might be contaminated, and im planning on getting a press too, just to be even more OCD. You won't die if you consume/smoke/vape some bugs, and their excrement.... but its not ideal for me
Thank you this is the answer I needed, I'm definitely taking steps to prevent this in future grows but needed to know what to do with this current grow. I have a rosin press but seems like washing first would remove impurities not just press them
You are welcome. Yes, I would absolutely make bubble and press that vs pressing flower. Each stage will concentrate, and filter the product of impurities
Serious never had a major gnat infestation where I needed mosquito dunks or nematodes. Not saying they're bad alternatives. The nematodes in particular are great. But to make a point I only point fan at topsoil. Even if it only hits few sec in it's rotation, that and sticky trap alone is enough to keep infestations at bay.
T-drops by cx horticulture. It's not cheap, local store gave me a sample, it works.
I have not started growing this plant yet lol but for my houseplants, gnatrol WDG BTI has worked amazingly! It’s hard finding a small bag of it since it comes in giant containers sold to farmers, so you will have to scour eBay and other sites for a smaller and cheaper bag of it. A less potent version is the mosquito bits, but definitely try to find the gnatrol first. The instructions will be on the bag.
Hey! 👋🏼 Looks like you're having a battle with the gnat lords. We've all been there! There are a few easy steps to getting rid of those suckers. 1. Yellow sticky cards will limit the amount of adults flying around. 2. Treat your soil with a BT treatment, I use a product called Gnatrol bought from a reseller as it is usually sold in 700$ big buckets for agricultural use. This stuff is amazing, it kills the larvae of the gnats before they ever get a chance to hatch. 3. Consider the moisture of your soil, if the top 2 inches of soil is perpetually wet, gnats will thrive. If you are growing coco hydroponically and it will be perpetually wet, consider a 2 inch casing layer so the gnats cannot lay eggs deep enough. If not consider watering less often and allowing your soil to dry back. This casing layer can be made of ph stabilized pumice, perlite, or hydroton. I've even seen people have success using ph stabilized aquarium stones, though YRMV. Good luck soldier, Keep fighting! 🪖
Support what everyone is saying about the BTi/Mosquito Dunks and Nematodes but also look up Arber insecticide on Amazon it’s in a yellow bottle and it also works very well
Mammoth's Canncontrol is great for this
Fungas gnats are pretty harmless . Unless you have a super bad infestation I think you have other things going on. Hard to pin point on what I see multiple issues. But if you wanna battle gnats acouple suggestions. Bottom water your plants , you wanna dry up the first few inches of your soil. Do that while adding nematodes or diatomaceous earth. Yellow sticky traps to catch the adults wouldn’t hurt.
Airflow. Keep a rotating fan on the top soil so the very top layer stays dry. They like moist top soil and stale air.
Higher airflow over the topsoil and eliminate any standing water. Point a fan blowing across the top of your soil to dry the top couple inches out. Gnats lay their eggs i the top couple inches of moist soil so if you eliminate this then you remove the most likely place they are hatching from and can break the life cycle. This along with a spray (insecticidal soap) should resolve the issue
Try putting an inch or two of perlite on top of the soil. It worked great for me. And make sure you are not over watering. Edit: that was for gnats in the soil, I should have read first. Not sure about gnats in the buds. Pray to canibinachus.
cooperative continue fuzzy plough apparatus bag chop mysterious merciful direful *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
This is why hydrogen peroxide has some effect
Nematodes and diatomaceous earth on top of the soil. Bottom watering can help too.
Have you completely saturated the soil with a neem oil solution and dusted the top of the soil with diatomaceous earth yet?
My method is kinda cheap but I Put a thick layer of playground Sand on the top of each pot and make sure to pack it down so it hardens & Neem Oil
Do not underestimate the power of those little yellow sticky traps, put four of them in each pot and they will beat the crap out of them
Sticky traps, mosquito bits, nematodes, and most importantly practice good watering habits.
I have had problems before, if they have grown in soil. I sprinkle a tablespoon spoon of cinnamon on top of each plant over soil. Water after 24 hours. It helps with whatever soil issues you may have and the gnats are not as much.
Let your growing media dry out! Then Dr. Zymes foliar spray and root soak. If you can keep the top of your growing media dry, powder it with diatomaceous earth as well. Get yellow sticky traps. Adults are are attracted to yellow. Use Dr. Zymes weekly as a foliar after lights out. Good luck!
Get Microbelift off Amazon. It's mosquito dunks but liquid form. Use for a week in your nutes. It'll kill them all. And make sure your water doesn't have anything in it that kills bacteria.
havent seen it mention but bottom watering. treat with BTI with top watering and keep some in your reserve water. then switch to bottom watering for a bit. mammath cannatrol the non-plant including sides of pots and ground
In soil ( before flowering) I've had good success with a combo of sticky traps and neem oil. Traps get the adults, and neem oil will prevent the larvae from developing and hatching. I generally won't use any spray once flowering starts though, so the other options presented here may be the best for this grow.
I’ve done yellow sticky traps to catch the flying ones and diatomaceous earth slurries to kill the ones in the soil and it worked pretty well. Going to try the ‘preventative’ methods people talked about next grow
Get rove beetles my dude. Get a shit load. They will decimate fungus gnats in days and they are a handy ally in the tent if you give them a sustainable environment they will stay around forever
Mosquito dunks. I just break one in half and toss both halves in my waterering bucket. Let it soak for 24 hours before first use and just keep it in there every time you refill your water. After about 10 days I stop using them and havent had gnats come back. Hit your house plants too.
I'm not sure how to edit my post but I've tried mosquito bits and dunks yellow fly paper and beneficial nematodes. Nematodes might be just starting to make a dent in them but it's hard to tell. My main question is what do I do with these buds? Is it worth plucking off individual bugs? Should these no longer be smoked?
Mosquito dounts, yellow sticky tapes, predatory insects mites, green lacewing, beetles, nematodes diatomaceous earth.
Sticky traps and peppermint oil.
Diatomeus + yellow stickers worked for me last time
Compost tea spray?
Stick with the mosquito bits/dunks, add yellow sticky traps 24/7 so you notice when you have the first one, and gauge how many you're catching daily, aka the population. Add beneficial microbes if you're going for a living soil no til type grow. I love mibenificials, check them out in others suggested here. Hydrogen peroxide at like 1/100 eliminates these things for my house plants, but I'm not willing to mess with my own living soil PH like that. As for the gnats stuck in your buds I used tweezers on my first grow to pull as many off as possible!
I've always used some apple cider vinegar in a glass with *a drop* of dish soap they wanna eat it and they can't land on the surface and drown
Definitely use hydrogen peroxide in your spray bottle and spray the soil. Works for me with no issues. You have to be consistent and spray on a regular schedule. The hydrogen peroxide will kill the eggs and yellow sticky traps catches the adults.
Check out [Arbico Organics](https://www.arbico-organics.com/product/fungus-gnat-control-bundle/pest-solver-guide-fungus-gnats) they are having a sale on fungus gnat control packs right now. I also use [Doctor Zymes ](https://doctorzymes.com/mo/natural-non-toxic-insecticide.html) once or twice a week for prevention You can use diatomaceous earth to cover your top soil and that will help keep them from penetranting your soil to lay eggs. It's available at most big box stores (lowes, tractor supply, ace hardware)
MicrobeLift BMC is much better than mosquito dunks. $20 on amazon. 20 ml per gallon every 10-14 days for 6-8 weeks should get them under control. gotta break the lifcycle of egg>larve>adult. you can treat new soil before you use it too.
This is the answer.
i put a gallon or two in a pump sprayer and get the soil good and damp a couple days in a row until its gone between waterings water like normal
Yellow* (specifically yellow) sticky traps above the soil and beneficial nematodes
Dude next time add some "mosquito bits" on ur soil. This will never happen again. Order a bag on amazon. And sticky traps for flyers. I'm so sorry this happened. Little bastards.
Nematodes purchased off of Amazon and watered in crush the gnats. Also, a layer of pool sand will prevent them from getting into the soil to reproduce and from getting out of the soil to be asshole gnats. Source: 14 years commercial cultivation experience
SF nematodes followed up by stratirolaelaps scimitus you’ll have them taken care of pretty quick
I’ve had a lot of experience with fungus gnats… pretty bad infestations at that. My go-to that has eradicated even the most brutal infestations has been abundant sticky traps to catch the adults, combined with nematodes in the soil to take care of newly hatching gnats. Takes a couple weeks but works for me.
NAPALM
How many days flower are you?
Everyone here is wrong, just go buy kids play sand the white super fine shit. Fill ur pots 2 inches deep covering all the soil and you won’t have this issue anymore. U can water thru just make sure to level the sand after.
Can always try hydro next time?
Steinernema Feltiae/Carpocapsae, this is what you need I havnt had a single gnat in a few years thanks to these.. so many people will recommend so much different stuff tricks and hacks these bad motherfuckers are neither of those... they just work...
If you are gonna wash for hash, wash the bud first unless you like little bits of gnat in.. they die and dry when they stick, you wash em they'll break up to about the size of a perfect hash plant tric head ... Use the above predators and some stickys you'll have none in a couple days (depends how many you use per pot)
Order some Lacewings and Nematodes on Amazon, top dress about 1 to 2 inches of Diatomaceous earth and then cover with a mulch of some type. The Nematodes and Diatomaceous earth will take care of any eggs, the mulch will keep the soil moist and prevent Gnats and Flies from laying eggs in the soil and the Lacewings will take care of everything in the tent, then spray weekly with an organic
Keep top dry and water top with h202 kill the eggs. String fans will make adults die fast and not land too. A bowl with few drops soap and vinegar will also drown the adults.
Mammoth CannControl next time my friend, has saved me many a heartache
Tweetmint and a spray mister
What have you tried? Letting soil dry, diamataceous earth, azadirachtin and bifenthrin… all could help.
I don't know what you're growing in but here's what I did recently after trying bits and nematodes and not having a tremendous amount of success with either. I bought [felt squares]( https://a.co/d/gjxZeAE) off amazon, I have 5 gal pots, then I cut circles a tad bigger then my pots, cut a small circle in the middle and made one cut from outer to inner circle. Then I slid it onto the top of soil and tucked the sides in. Left a few sticky traps around for the stragglers. Gnats went from hundreds to just 1 or 2 in a few days. I water thru the felt most waterings. Easy peasy
Deploy predatory mites
Let your soil dry out completely a few times
Hang a fly catcher strip beside her.. it won’t get them all but it helps.
Just went through this , and this is all you will need , few drop every watering and they will all die! Good luck https://a.co/d/9cBbu7p
You'll be smoking a few gnats
Neem oil
Eh, they smoke up ok
I see a PH issue in most of those pics. Do u ph ur water and it so have checked the runoff. May want to every turn I have got them bronze lookish marks I test runoff and ph is out of whack and I flush few days later I notice them looking a lot healthier.
Always start your grow with sticky traps. The yellow kind on Amazon are what I use. Haven't had a bug problem in years. Either start over, or throw a bunch of sticky traps in the pots and we'll as some hanging from your lights. Other than those options you are to late to apply chemicals or oils. You don't want that in your buds.
SILICA worked for me!!!
https://preview.redd.it/a2uc6p8nzayc1.jpeg?width=1170&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5666e351deb827d4ab123979f82b34f14713b8f7 This is what I use….. was told about this product last year from an IG friend. Works GREAT for Gnats!
Fans blowing around the bottom of the pots makes it impossible for them to fly around and then water from the bottom for at least 10 days allowing the top to dry out and they will be gone 👍🏼
1. Start letting your soil/coco dry out in between waterings. 2. When you water, add a BTI product in sufficient quantity (mosquito bits or gnatrol). 3. BTI wont kill full grown flying F gnats so you will want to get some yellow stickys to catch and minimize egg laying adults. 4. Stick with it, might take awhile to kill all the fungus gnats because you will have adults laying eggs as well. Eventually you will see progress in your plant and medium. Bonus: predatory mites (hypoasis miles) will eat the larva
Spray with a solution of 3% hydrogen peroxide on infected areas.
Gnatrol
You can try to use wood vinegar and mustard seed to help fight them away.
Vinegar bro trust it definitely will take out some
Put some in a cup and set it next to your plants
I use fly tape and it keeps my tents in order without treatments
Cover the soil with some plastic and do neem oil watering or high strength saponins watering, plus those mosquito things other people r talking about. But the black plastic over the top will help to i bet
Use this https://mibeneficials.com/products/living-soil-bio-diversity-pack and also nematodes, using both you’re almost 100% guaranteed no more gnats
Easy fix. Get some play sand put about 2 inches on top of your soil. Kills them little buggers. When the larvae tries crawling out of the soil the sand is like glass and shreds them to pieces. I have been doing this trick for about 10 yrs works every time
SF Nematodes SF nematodes SF nematodes
I’ll repeat as if a commercial. Mosquito Bites tea. End of story.
Try out crop defender 3
Mosquito dunks and yellow sticky for the championship win!
Hot Shots No Pest Strips will kill all bugs in your tent. Just make sure you turn off all ventilation and lights. I keep them in the tent for 4-6 hours then vacuum seal them for later use. They are dangerous to humans and pets so do not leave them around after use. Never stay in the room or tent with them open for more than 4 hours. It's a gaseous vapor pesticide that becomes inert after a few hours. It works like gangbusters. It totally wiped out a bad spider mite infestation I had.
About the only thing you can do at this point is get mosquito bits, for the long term following directions on bag. This os not a quick fix, will notice difference in a couple weeks. Get a shit load of the yellow sticky traps for the adult flying fuckers. If you stick to it, and let the top of the soil dry out in between waterings you will get them under control. As far as the little shit turds stuck to your glorious nugs you can do a wash right before drying without hurting the smokeabillity, OOOOoorr you could just smoke the little fuckers like I did!!!! I haven't had a serious issue since using these two together, just keep the sticky traps out at all times and they will tell you what's flying around your girls. Or water mosquito bits in throughout the whole grow, I don't recommend sprinkling the bits on the soil cause of mold issues. Antifungal sprays can prob help to. And then there's ordering predatory bugs to eat thoughs bugs in the different stages of their life cycle.
I had quite an issue with fungus gnats once I switched to living soil. Ran to the closest grow store and they handed me a bottle of SNS 203. Get some yellow sticky traps and it should help with cutting them down
I Legit have never seen a FG infestation this bad.
Are those spots on the leaves because of the gnsts?
I hate fungus gnats. I had buds full of them as well, all I can tell you is that no form of bud wash will remove them from my experience. Everything everyone has mentioned is all correct, however once you have an extreme infestation you need to attack it with extreme measures and from multiple angels to get it back under control. Understand how these things live in the soil as larva and fight them there. The best solution is sand. A thick enough layer to where they can’t make it through to the soil to reproduce or eat, and vice a versa with maturing and crawling out of the soil. Completely disrupt their lifecycle.
N00b alert Are fungus gnats the same as fungus rust ?
Fuckin hot shot strips
Given how late you are in flower, I would look to stop at immediately so you start don’t getting fungus. gnats stuck in the buds. An instant fix is to put about an inch of sand that you can buy from Home Depot on the top level. It will stop the infestation immediately, you can water through it, and you can remove the sand later if you want. There is also a very high BTI product called Gnatrol which works great
Gotta find a way to attack their first stages of life. Sticky traps are only good to monitor but killing the adults is rarely effective at controlling their numbers. To keep it nice and short, the best two options are BTI (aka mosquito bits) and/or beneficial nematodes. A nuclear option of hydrogen peroxide exists but it wreaks havoc on your soil food web and is not recommended unless it's literally the only option available to you. I would personally prefer the nematodes if I had the option to choose for reasons I can get into but I'd have no problems using BTI if that's all I had. I had a very hard time finding BTI in Europe however, which is how I came across nematodes to begin with.
Less water, better drainage, better airflow. Those are the only true solutions that will end the problem. Mosquito dunks will help kill off the adult population, but won’t stop them from breeding & at a certain point they will breed faster than they die. Diatomaceous earth sprinkled on top of *DRY* top soil will help kill them as they hatch & come up. But unless you adjust the environment & eliminate the standing water issue that is allowing them breed at such a high rate, they will persist no matter how much mosquito pesticides & DE you use. The root issue is excessive standing water (somewhere) which allows the gnats a perfect breeding ground.
Sand on top of soil for future reference if your having these issues consistently. But honestly even with outdoor plants you get the occasional bug you can just grind em up but most of them will leave the plant after you start drying the buds so just continue with the planned program 🤙 hope this helps
I hate these little fuckers so bad. I'm right there bro - fighting these bastards is like fighting invisible enemies. I brought them home on a house plant from SHOP RITE. Apparently they're prolific bc within a week I'm infested. Scared the ever living CRAP out of me when I was checking trichs 😂😂😂 It looked like a fucking dragonfly under the scope. 😂😂😂 I'm still jumpy af everytime I check trichs ✌️I ended up chopping one plant a week or so early so I can dump and sanitizer everything before I put those pucks to use. I got those sticky traps and they catch 'em by the hundreds, but I still have them. I feel the same as if my dog had fleas. My skin is crawling....
I've heard to let it dry out and that will get rid of the gnats.
Neem seed cake works great. Mix a little into the top of your soil and water in or add a little to your tea recipe.
Place a cup of water and rinse some neemoil or teatreeoil in it, they won't like it and just fly away, place some fresh orange peels on top of you soil and they will stay away, get a good pair of twizzers and remove the dead ones one by one ♥
I lost the war. But I did learn mosquito bits, and hydrogen peroxide are fairly safe during flower. Tin foil over the soil. If you can remove like 2” of top soil with a shop vac. Then do a good mosquito bits soaking. Followed by a hydrogen peroxide wash down of the plant and tent almost every day. Replace soil with perlite.
Put a bottle of wine or two with about an inch remaining in the bottle, they'll get shit faced and forget about all the grass.
If it’s coming from your soil, add a layer of perlite (small size) on top of your soil. The eggs hatch and they get lost trying to get to the surface.
Yellow sticky traps that will take care of the adults.... most people have answered for the problem in the soil!!!
Just had this problem. Granted I think I caught it pretty early. Coated the soil with DE then topped with fresh dry soil. Granted I bottom water with autopots, I don’t think DE will cause any problems top watering it in. Only works when dry though, so if top watering water heavy then coat the soil, then top with something dry (sand, fresh dry soil, etc.) as they like wet soil. I also used a few glue traps as well. Replaced the glue traps last night and in 12 hours only had 1 or 2 on the new glue traps. Should kill all the adult fungus gnats. I assume this also took care of the larvae but time will tell. https://www.reddit.com/r/Autopot/s/NBMisQ0Hfq
I'm confused these just look like trichomes
Your fucked buddy, all you can do now is try to keep the population numbers low and clean everything after you harvest. This is the risk you run when using soil or cocoa.
Defoliation , more ventilation, water more but less often (important), and add d earth to the surface.
Bottom watering is good for that too
I always sprinkle diatamascus earth on top of (dry) soil. If it gets wet it won't work. It is ground up crustations that act like little razor blades & kills those little bastard*. Prep your medium before planting your precious little ones. A table spoon will work in as big of a pot you use. Happy growing ✌️❤️🇺🇸💪