1st time organic grower seeing fungus gnats

[narmohare]

Hello AFN friends. I'm currently on my 5th plant total that I have started. My first 4(was my first grow, and mostly not finished yet) were all grown in coco/perlite. This is mainly because I was worried about pests. All the time spent watering coco gave me the inspiration I needed to go organic, and I was hoping to get a few grows under my belt before having any pest issues. Well, that's seemingly not what fate has decided. Upon checking my new plant, a purple punch by barneys farm one week from sprout, I noticed that there was a gnat flying around. A singular gnat. I was raised to think that if there is one bug, there are many more. So now I'm a bit overwhelmed with what I should do. Here's the situation. I have a 3x3 tent and a 4x4 tent. I was growing 3 plants in my 3x3, but one of them grew so big I had to move it to the 4x4 so it would have room. Its taking up about a 2.75 foot diameter. My 3x3 currently has two autos that are close to harvest (planned for 48 hours from now), and the baby purple punch auto with the gnats in the soil. So here my dilemma. I have to dry in a tent. I cannot have the smell leaking around my house. For the first plant I ever harvested(I only have one finished on my first grow, these two close to harvest will be the second and third plant I've ever harvested, the big one is the fourth.) I moved it to the 4x4, and hung and dried it in there. Well my 4x4 is occupied by my big plant, and the big plant doesn't fit in my 3x3 anymore when taking into account the space for humidifier and such. So my plan was to move the baby plant over into the 4x4, along with the light, and grow my big plant and the baby plant in the 4x4, while drying the two harvest ready plants in the 3x3. Now I have four concerns hopefully someone can address.

1) Is it okay for me to put the purple punch in my 4x4 with the bigger plant? I'm worried about doing this because I don't want the gnat(s) to spread, and my big plant is about 3 weeks into flower.

2) I have checked my two ready to harvest plants up and down and didn't see any gnats on them. Are they okay to keep? Should I throw them out or do a bud wash or something?

3) What should I do hereon out to avoid/ get rid of the gnats? I have heard of putting sand on the top layer of soil but it seems as if this could get messy really fast. I have also heard about nematodes, but it seems like they would take a couple days to get here, and then a couple days to work. I was also considering apply a nice fat layer of DE to the top of my soil so the gnat life cycle is interrupted, but again, the DE would take a while to get here.

4) Because of the gnat(s), do I need to completely disinfect my grow tents and the room I grow in? Not sure how pesky they are. If one gnat lives, will it cause an infestation?

What I believe to be the gnat is pictured below. This was the only picture I took before he flew off (I noticed he stayed below where my fans are pushing air around).

 

[Drownomatic]

I have some gnats too recently.

Try to water less, and make sure your grow bags are elevated from the tray so it doesn't get wet feet.

Peppermint or lavender oil on one end of a cotton swap will repell them, as will many companion plants commonly grown together.

Amazon has sticky traps, nematodes, DE, etc if they deliver to your area.

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

Fungus Gnats are a part of farming. They usually get started in soil that is too wet. They can come in your purchased soil or off your clothes, cat or dog. They can come from house plants or through a window or door. The damage of greatest concern is caused by the larval stage of the insects life cycle. They eat your roots and the damage opens the plants to secondary infections and molds.

Yellow sticky traps and either nematodes or Mosquito Bits will give you satisfactory control. If you re-use soil the nematodes is a good way to go. You need to be sure the soil never dries out to keep the alive. Mosquito Bits (Bacillus thuringiensis sp israelensis ) is organic and safe. Treat all of your pots and house plant's pots also.

The tents themselves do not need any special cleaning for fungus gnats alone.

 

[narmohare]

Fungus Gnats are a part of farming. They usually get started in soil that is too wet. They can come in your purchased soil or off your clothes, cat or dog. They can come from house plants or through a window or door. The damage of greatest concern is caused by the larval stage of the insects life cycle. They eat your roots and the damage opens the plants to secondary infections and molds.
View attachment 1422797

Yellow sticky traps and either nematodes or Mosquito Bits will give you satisfactory control. If you re-use soil the nematodes is a good way to go. You need to be sure the soil never dries out to keep the alive. Mosquito Bits (Bacillus thuringiensis sp israelensis ) is organic and safe. Treat all of your pots and house plant's pots also.

The tents themselves do not need any special cleaning for fungus gnats alone.

Thank you for the advice! I hadn't even thought to make sure to treat the houseplants pots. This seems like a good way to make sure I have a pretty good hold on things. Its also a relief to know I will not need to scrub my tents down right now