Tony O’Neill , expert gardener and best - sell source of the noted “ Simplify Vegetable Gardening , ” “ compost Masterclass , ” and “ Your First Vegetable Garden , ” combine lifelong love and expert knowledge to simplify gardening . His commission ? Helping you cultivate a booming garden . More on Tony O’Neill
{ “ statusCode”:401,”message”:”License key missing ” }
The carbon dioxide you breathe , your fruity deodorant , or your yellow t - shirt make you super attractive to adult fungus gnats . During their short seven - Clarence Shepard Day Jr. lifetime , procreation is choice , and they ’ll presently observe out you ’re not “ it , ” but you sure resemble their typical egg - lay environs .
Table of content
What Do Fungus Gnats Find Attractive?
Adult fungus gnats are obsessed with replication ; it ’s hardwired into them . In a mere seven sidereal day , they must mate while flying in a swarm and then find an optimum surroundings where they can lay their egg .
The optimal egg - set environment exudes carbon dioxide , smells earthy , and can be yellow(ish ) .
Why Carbon Dioxide Appeals to Fungus Gnats
Carbon play a important part in soil wellness due to its capacity to form several bond ( four per atom ) in many intricate constituent structures .
territory respiration ( discharge C dioxide from the soil ) results from decay organic matter and flora bedding by dirt microbe , flora roots , and soil fauna .
It is an crucial index number of soil wellness because it measures the level of microbic activity and the content and vector decomposition of constitutive matter . It also reflects the condition of a ground ’s chemical and physical environment .
The presence of carbon dioxide ( CO2 ) tells the distaff fungus gnat that the surroundings will be respectable for her larva and that there will be copious fungus kingdom , the larvae ’s primary food .
Why Fruity Smells Appeal to Fungus Gnats
A healthy land scent is reminiscent of pelting falling on sear ground . The scent is squall petrichor and is a product of actinomycete bodily function in the dirt , and their unconscious process get an alcohol-dependent chemical compound called geosmin .
Even humans can smell a very diluted assiduity of geosmin , but for the fungus gnat , it ’s almost consuming . The smell lets them know there is very goodish microbial action below – an idealistic place for egg - laying .
Fun Fact : Petrichor , a full term coined by two Australian soil scientists in the 1060s , combines the Greek words petra ( Harlan Fiske Stone ) and purulence ( referring to the golden fluid in the veins of immortals ) .
Also , fungus gnat connect yield with H2O and sound grease , another attractive prospect for a succeeding home for her precious larvae and pupa offsprings – the future fungus gnat generation .
Why The Color Yellow Appeals to Fungus Gnats
Yellow is the colour of straw and the sun . Other than that , I have no idea why they lie with yellow .
I know they do , and if you stick some yellow sticky fly trap cards up , the cosmopolitan theory will be proven .
Suppose you ’ve got an infestation problem ; the card strategy works . Flytrap cards are yellow for a determination , and fungus gnat ( and business firm flies ) love it enough to get in a viscid situation .
A product called Gnat Stix ( a sticky yellowish wit ) is broadly available online and at nursery . only place the adhesive add-in beneath the pot ’s canopy to snare fungus gnat .
The gnats will become stuck in the sticky area as they move near the yellow card , which help prevent female from laying eggs . A more square solution is to eliminate the ball and larvae in the land using 1 - to-4 H peroxide ( 3 % ) .
Can I Remedy Fungus Gnat’s Attraction to Me?
cease the eggs from hatching will hold on larvae evolution and is the best way of getting rid of fungus gnats . Interrupting the life bicycle before adults emerge is the best way to be complimentary of harmless yet thwarting adult fungus gnats .
You will continue to feel the discomfort of adult fungus gnats if you do n’t take aggressive measure to extirpate these insects sometime during their transformation stages in the grunge .
I do n’t advise you to make yourself less appealing – basically , you will need to stop breathing .
Why it’s Important to Deal with Fungus Gnats
The lifespan cycles of fungus gnats can continue indefinitely , with overlap genesis , in warm indoor environs with ordinary or gamy humidity .
When female fungus gnat look for a moist growing medium within , they can spread to other plants and infest them by tantalize on plants , plant raft , and soil . Examine any plant you bestow home from the store , as gifts , or from an position surroundings .
Summarizing Why Fungus Gnats Fly In Your Face
Carbon dioxide is a fungus gnat aphrodisiac , so when they ’re in your vicinity and you suspire their favorite smell out , they ’re on you like white on rice . The same exit for fragrances and the color scandalmongering .
nonstarter to proactively fight these dirt ball in their early development stage means you ’ll keep dealing with the pain in the neck of grownup fungus gnats .
