Fungus gnat are diminished flying insects that pose their eggs in the grow medium ofpotted indoor plant life , pass to an plague . Proper plant care can help keep fungus gnat infestations from occurring . When infestations do originate , it is often possible to get rid of gnats without using chemical pest control .
What Are Fungus Gnats?
Not to be confuse with yield flies , fungus gnat are tiny fly front that are about 1/8 of an inch long . Infestations are thought to be more plebeian in the downfall and winter .
Female fungus gnats lay eggs — as many as 200 per gnat — on the grime open of potted plants . The larvae that come forth from these eggs feed on fungus and organic matter in the soil that is decay .
It have about four calendar week for grownup fungus gnat to develop from the time the gnat nut are put . pornographic fungus gnats do not burn , but they can be teasing in large numbers .
Adult fungus gnat do not burn .
Gnats in My Houseplants
While experience a gnat trouble in the place can be a nuisance , adult gnats do not do any damage to plant . It ’s the larva , or young form of the insect , that can potentially feed on plants and induce legal injury , though the fungus gnat maggots need to be present in very large numbers for this to befall .
To determine if there are fungus gnat larvae present in the dirt of your houseplants , slit up a murphy and place the cut around the potting soil . If there are fungus gnat larvae in the soil , the maggots will make their way to the surface to flow on the potato slices .
Tip
While grownup fungus gnats do not harm industrial plant , in large figure , the feeding of their larva can result in injury to the roots or other industrial plant parts .
How to Control Fungus Gnats
A gnat problem can usually be resolved without the use of rough chemical . Let ’s expect at some mode to foreclose fungus gnat infestation and how to get rid of gnats on plants .
Cultural Control
Overwatering is usually one of the master causal agent of fungus gnat infestations . Therefore , providing only the amount of urine your houseplant require to avoid to a fault moist soil can avail keep these insects in curb . too moist soil should also be avoid because it can contribute to root rot .
As a linguistic rule of quarter round , you shouldwater houseplantsonly when the top layer of grunge , about an column inch cryptical , is ironical to the touch . Bottom watering is also an choice for hydrating the plant antecedent while stay fresh the top of the soil teetotal .
Overwatering is normally one of the main effort of fungus gnat infestations .
Yellow Sticky Traps
One way to get rid of gnat in flora is localize sticky gnat ambush near the plants to ensnare the adult . jaundiced sticky yap are uncommitted for purchase at many garden stores . vanish traps that ensnare adult fungus gnats can limit the number of females that make it to lie ballock and therefore reduce the plague .
Biological Control
Fungus gnats can also be potentially assure with production that contain the bacteriumBacillus thuringiensissubsp.israelensis(Bti ) , which wo n’t stamp out grownup fungus gnats or eggs , but can be impart to the soil about once a week for several weeks to ensure the louse at the larval stage .
Steinernema feltiae , a species of microscopical , parasitic roundworm known as roundworm , can also be in effect at controlling the larvae when applied to the soil .
