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!!!!!!! Gnats Gnats Gnats Gnats HOW DO I GET RID OF GNATS!!

 
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Basically the title says it all.

I recently repotted a philodendron in my classroom and I used a regular bag of bagged garden soil out of lack of time (I picked it up on the way to work).  I mentioned the problem to my wife and she thinks that the gnats are coming from the new soil--plausible.  Can anyone think of any way to get rid of all the gnats?  They are really a problem--I inhaled one yesterday while teaching!

I have set out vinegar traps and they have caught hundreds of gnats, yet the gnats keep coming.  I was thinking about covering the top of the soil with some proper indoor garden soil and see if I can bury the gnats, but I don't have much room left to pile up--maybe an inch.  Would DE laid down first and then soil on top work?


I am open to just about anything, I can't have these gnats around any longer.




Thanks in advance,



Eric
 
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I've heard a thin layer of vermiculite on top of potted plants can prevent fungus gnats.
 
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Are you SURE they are coming out of that soil?
Check for things like a rotted potato in the kitchen...

I use vinegar and dish soap in water with a light pointing straight down on to it.
 
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My suggestion would be to let the soil dry out completely and then water with a soapy solution.

If that doesn't work try hydrogen peroxide 50/50 with water.

After that water the plant from the bottom if possible.
 
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Anne Miller wrote:My suggestion would be to let the soil dry out completely ...


I've heard this also - it's a fine line between "dry out completely" and a dead plant, but if you can manage it, it does seem to at least decrease the problem.
 
Pearl Sutton
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I didn't notice it was in your classroom. Easy way is to repot the plant again. In better soil.
 
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Pearl Sutton wrote:I didn't notice it was in your classroom. Easy way is to repot the plant again. In better soil.



This was my thought, too.
 
Eric Hanson
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Thanks all!

Re-potting is one idea, but I just got the new pot—I don’t want to give it up so soon.

I was thinking maybe insecticidal soap to start, just to see if I can knock them down a bit.

Then I was thinking about DE and another inch or so of better quality potting soil.

Thoughts?




Eric
 
Pearl Sutton
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You don't have to give up the pot, just remove plant, remove all soil that you can, repack with fresh soil.
 
Eric Hanson
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Ok, crazy day yesterday that didn’t help the situation, but that’s a different story and more on that later.

This morning the gnats were pretty bad.  So I am trying a maybeish solution out of supplies I have on hand.

I know that gnats are attracted to ethanol as it created in rotting vegetation.  I don’t have a supply of ethanol at school, but some teachers probably think it should be available in faculty drinking fountains right next to the Valium salt lick!  But I do have some isopropyl alcohol and I wondered yesterday if that would substitute.  Turns out no.  So this morning I got a new idea that can only come from exhaustion, frustration or other cognitive impairment.  This morning I decided to soak a paper towel with alcohol, squeeze till just a bit over damp, and place in a ball on the soil of my plant.  Then I covered the planter with a series of paper towels such that it is not exactly sealed, but covered.  I want to see if I can get my gnats drunk, pass out and die right where they like to hang out!

I have no idea how Permie this is, but desperate times call for desperate measures.



Eric
 
Eric Hanson
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My tented plant
IMG_3291.jpeg
Gnat bar
Gnat bar
 
Eric Hanson
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Some appear to be falling down drunk!!
 
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When my home made potting mix contains organic matter that is not decomposed far enough,  it will attract gnats because they can utilize the materials for growth. When it runs out, the infestation will stop. It can take awhile. How about bringing in a pot of fly trap plant to catch and recycle the gnats?
 
Eric Hanson
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A fly trap plant?  I like that!

But I really need action now before maintenance does something first.

This morning when I came in, I looked down at my mostly empty desk.  There were dozens of dead gnats laying on it.  This has never happened before.  Did I give the gnats alcohol poisoning?  Is it possible that this hair-brained scheme is actually working?

The gnats do seem less this morning.  I guess we will see how the day goes.


Eric
 
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Every bag of potting soil I've ever purchased has had fungus gnats.

All of the above will help and eventually they will go away.

Mosquito bits, the stuff that you put in stagnant water. Add to the water and water in once a week or whatever the bag says.

https://summitchemical.com/products/mosquito-bits/

Let soil dry out in between watering. They like overwatered soil.

Edited to mention a small handheld vacuum can help more than you would think when the infestation is bad. The adults are easy to suck up while flying around the plants.
 
Eric Hanson
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OK, Today, Gnats—It’s ON!!

I decided to take on my gnat problem by the horns today and go on offense instead of playing defense.

I went out and bought insecticidal soap and Diatomaceous Earth.  I took them into my classroom with gnat-murderous intent!!  I went over to my tented plant, prepared to remove the tenting while getting myself ready for a swarm of gnats to fly into my face.  

But no, not really

As I unwrapped my plant, very few gnats flew out, as in single digits.  At the center of the pot was my little paper towel that I wadded up and soaked with isopropyl alcohol yesterday.  It was bone dry.  Meaning that all that alcohol evaporated into that tiny space that I bundled up.  There were a few gnats crawling around and I quickly sprayed them with the insecticidal soap, rendering them immobile, and beginning to succumb to the effects of the soap.  I ruthlessly sprayed any gnat I could see crawling on my shelf or flying into the air.  It was strangely satisfying to see a gnat fall out of the air once the soap mist stuck its wings together mid flight!  

After I could find no more movement, I opened the bag of Diatomaceous Earth and scooped up four plastic bottle caps (the only spreading tool I could find) and laid down a thin layer over the surface of the potting soil.  

It will take time to see how well the DE works and I left a mess from the widespread spraying—but that’s a problem for Monday morning.  I might check it out tomorrow, but today I struck my first blow against the gnat infestation!!



Mwahahahaha!!!



Eric
 
Carla Burke
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~Leads the cheer~ "BE Aggressive!! B - E Aggressive!! B - E   A - G - G - R - E - S - S - I - V - E!!! WOOOO!!! Yeah!!"" ~hurkey - cartwheel - roundoff - walkover - hurkey~


(It's a school - of course there is a need for cheerleaders, going to battle! Lol)
 
Eric Hanson
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That’s right Carla, it is a school, so you might have to be my only cheerleader—but I bet you can get my students worked up into a rousing roar!!

I will take a look tomorrow to see how much damage I inflicted on the gnats (just thought—gnats sounds like a really lame high school mascot.  That’s appropriate, I don’t want to give them any advantage at this point!!!

Eric
 
Eric Hanson
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Its Monday morning.

Get'em!  Got'em!

While there are a few gnats, it is nothing like Friday.  A few sprays of Insecticidal Soap and the remaining stragglers go down.  Oh yeah, this is working!!  We will see how my students see things in class today.


Eric
 
Eric Hanson
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I have become Gnat Death!  Destroyer of Gnat World!
 
Jay Angler
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Eric Hanson wrote:I have become Gnat Death!  Destroyer of Gnat World!


Yes, but are you wearing dark robes and carrying a scythe?
Wait - Hallowe'en is still 6 weeks away!
 
Eric Hanson
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No robes, no scythe--I am carrying a spray bottle of insecticidal spray.  If I so much as see one flying in the air near me I spray at the general area and watch the gnat's wings stick together and the little nuisance falls from the air!!


GRRRRRRRR!!!
 
Eric Hanson
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Most students were thankful that the gnat program was significantly better on Monday than Friday,  Some wanted me to spray all over the place, but I labored to explain that insecticidal soap is not a ‘cide in the traditional sense.  I did have one student who asked if she could use the spray bottle for a minute and she then proceeded to just spray randomly in the air, thinking that she was toxifying the air to gnats.  Other students then got worried that she was spraying ‘cides randomly all over the classroom air.  I tried to explain that it was harmless, but eventually I drove the point home by spraying a few drops on my finger and then licking it off.  Students were revolted/shocked/horrified/concerned for my safety.  But then I explained that it is simply a very weak soap solution—and it basically tasted like water, barely any soap taste at all.  Further, I explained that I bought it from the organic section and most students began to understand.  It HAD to actually hit the little bugger as it moved by and it was perfectly harmless to everyone else.

I think I got my point across, but the look on their faces when I touched my tongue to a drop on my finger was absolutely priceless!!



Eric
 
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Back in the day, I worked at a health care facility. To their credit, they used organic cleaners …and this was in the mid 70s. Of course, simply because they were organic did not mean they were not strong and effective.  Anyway, the distributor used to demonstrate their non poison nature by consuming some.   Well we got word he had been hospitalized with dysentery… he had killed off all the bacteria in his digestive tract.  His hospital visit was several weeks.
 
Jay Angler
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John F Dean wrote:...  Anyway, the distributor used to demonstrate their non poison nature by consuming some.   Well we got word he had been hospitalized with dysentery… he had killed off all the bacteria in his digestive tract...


Most people don't seem to get that we've got more microbes of some sort or another in or on our persons, than we have human cells.
Many things, like anti-bacterial soap, can cause more harm than good, and our digestive tracts just can't work without help from microbes, so this story doesn't surprise me.

Yes, I get it that the Gnats needed to go, but it's important to consider the risk of getting rid of good guys at the same time. Introducing a worm or two to the pot so they can excrete some good microbes into the pot, might be an idea to try. Or at least some fresh worm poop if available in your grass.
 
Eric Hanson
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John, Jay,

Your points are well taken.  And Jay, I have given a thought or two about getting some worms into the pot to try and mimic something of a real ecosystem.  

As far as consuming the insecticidal soap, keep in mind that the amount that I consumed was the amount that my tongue could gather from the thin film left from the single drop that hit my finger and then rolled off.  Mostly what I did was stagecraft to assuage a couple of mildly panicky students.

In addition to that, I do like to make my students think that I am a little bit nuts, unhinged.  It keeps them on their toes.  This bit of stagecraft really got their attention!!



Eric
 
Eric Hanson
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Mwah hah hah hah!  The gnats fear me!

My standard procedure in the morning is after walking in, walk straight over to the plant, grab my insecticidal soap and spray away at the gnats in the pot itself.  Each day the number of gnats is fewer and fewer.  This morning, hardly any even rose up after I gave the first spray.

I need to get another bottle of the spray (2 days left?), but it looks like the gnats are on the run!  And students have stopped complaining!  

YEAY!!!



Eric  
 
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