New Grower Fungus Gnat cures, preventions, and urban legends.

[dankstyle J]

@dankstyle J , I know these aren't your current enemy, but you have battled a lot of bugs

Yes my friend over the years I have studied an dealt with many insects a casualty of living near a forest an in the northwest.With fungus nats you want to keep your soil dry like a desert that will kill the generations fast if you have diamatous earth putting that on the top soil that slices an dices the flyers an there the ones that lay eggs so no flyers no eggs no larva .Green cleaner works great an so does worry free , an pest strips put near the soil work an so does mosquito dunks but I have never used em just heard I have found the best way is let the soil go dry dig it a lil an keep the top part dry spray it a lil but the main thing with any bugs is to make their environmental conditions not preferable an fungus nats like wet moist conditions with a lot of organic matter they don't like wind an there flying ablitys are limited they stay pretty close to the soil .If you can take your plants outside when the soil is dry tap the side of the planter an watch fly out now they live outside lol takes care of some of the flyers I have used a powerful vacuum before to suck em out of the air as well .

 

[dankstyle J]

I also have used a sliced potatoe put on the top of the soil it draws the larva an after a few days you can see there feeding marks on it , letting you know there presence an I have a theory that when that tater is thrown away its taking larva with it .

 

[trailanimal]

I also have used a sliced potatoe put on the top of the soil it draws the larva an after a few days you can see there feeding marks on it , letting you know there presence an I have a theory that when that tater is thrown away its taking larva with it .

thanks for the share J

 

[dankstyle J]

thanks for the share J

No problem friend I do what I can .

 

[orrganic]

Even though my pot is infested and its safe to assume the larvae are having a ball feeding on the roots it's in a 50L pot of no-till soil so I can't see the extent of their damage but am unsure if I can even notice an effect on the growth. I feed a kelp and microbe supplement 1-2 times a month for root health and attack the bugs with dish soap in my water bucket and recently started spraying essential oil and soapy water on the soil surface. Also, i'm watering from the bottom only to let the top dry out. I was hoping this would be all it takes but the lacewings life cycle is quite large and dependent on them completing it, so these mosquito dunks and employing some good sticky traps i think will finally do the job. especially as ive released them indoors and out.
Anyway.
Heres some info on the beneficial insects I've released.

Gracey is a green lacewing (Mallada signata) native to Australia. Adults feed on pollen and nectar but the juveniles are voracious predators and will feed on a broad range of pests. Gracey juveniles (sometimes called antlions) will eat almost any small insect or egg they can find. They are particularly effective at controlling aphids and can consume 60 in an hour.

Main Target Pests

• Aphids

Other Target Pests

• Twospotted mite
• Greenhouse whitefly juveniles
• Scale (not all species)
• Mealybug
• Thrips
• Moth eggs
• Small caterpillars

Release Information
Gracey should be ordered at the first sign of pests before their numbers get out of control. Do not order Gracey if systemic pesticides have been used within 4-6 weeks as most are harmful to beneficial insects. If pest numbers are already high spray with eco-oil or eco-neem first to reduce populations before ordering Gracey. These sprays are safe for Gracey as is the rest of the eco-organic garden range.

Gracey eggs come mixed with vermiculite and a small quantity of sterilized moth eggs for food. Tap equal amounts of mixture into the supplied release boxes and hang in plants close to pest populations.

A minimum of 1 to 5 lacewing larvae per plant is recommended depending on pest levels on the plant. It is best to release Gracey in pest ‘hot spots’ to ensure larvae have an immediate food supply.

If the pest problem is severe we recommend you order a follow up batch of Gracey after 2 weeks. Lacewings only eat pests during their larval stage so multiple releases will ensure a constant presence of larvae to get on top of large pest numbers.

Adult lacewings will establish and persist in your garden if nectar and pollen are present. The Bed & Breakfast Seed Mix should be sown close to where you would like Gracey to be actively working in your garden. Avoid the use of chemical sprays as most are toxic to lacewings. The eco-organic garden sprays are known to be safe however.

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

Over the years I have not only done battle with many insects I have declared war on them. Only after I learned to stop waging war have things gotten much much better. If you allow the beneficial insects to live and support their environment they will keep the harmful insects in check. It is a balancing act and you have to be willing to lose some of your crop as part of that natural process. You also need to plant beneficial attractive plants and not plants that attract bad insects. Marigolds come to mind; they will attract spider mites from long distances. There are a few exceptions to that idea. Ants farm aphids if allowed they will ruin the balance of an entire ecosystem and then just move on to the next fertile area as they are very mobile. The best organic control I use for ants is borax (20 Mule Team Boraxo) and sugar 50/50. Put a small amount near the nest at night and the workers will feed it to the queen - problem solved. I also use insecticidal soaps (Green Cleaner is one) and BT. So many of my nearby neighbors have chemical pesticide service on their properties that it is hard to keep my sanctuary running smoothly but every year I do identify new beneficials working in my garden. So this is outside!

Inside I am able to take a more controlled approach. Hydroponics is the key here and I try really hard not to let/introduce anything into the grow room. I know with soil that is almost impossible. Hence this thread.

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

Even though my pot is infested and its safe to assume the larvae are having a ball feeding on the roots it's in a 50L pot of no-till soil so I can't see the extent of their damage but am unsure if I can even notice an effect on the growth. I feed a kelp and microbe supplement 1-2 times a month for root health and attack the bugs with dish soap in my water bucket and recently started spraying essential oil and soapy water on the soil surface. Also, i'm watering from the bottom only to let the top dry out. I was hoping this would be all it takes but the lacewings life cycle is quite large and dependent on them completing it, so these mosquito dunks and employing some good sticky traps i think will finally do the job. especially as ive released them indoors and out.
Anyway.
Heres some info on the beneficial insects I've released.

Gracey is a green lacewing (Mallada signata) native to Australia. Adults feed on pollen and nectar but the juveniles are voracious predators and will feed on a broad range of pests. Gracey juveniles (sometimes called antlions) will eat almost any small insect or egg they can find. They are particularly effective at controlling aphids and can consume 60 in an hour.

Main Target Pests

• Aphids

Other Target Pests

• Twospotted mite
• Greenhouse whitefly juveniles
• Scale (not all species)
• Mealybug
• Thrips
• Moth eggs
• Small caterpillars

Release Information
Gracey should be ordered at the first sign of pests before their numbers get out of control. Do not order Gracey if systemic pesticides have been used within 4-6 weeks as most are harmful to beneficial insects. If pest numbers are already high spray with eco-oil or eco-neem first to reduce populations before ordering Gracey. These sprays are safe for Gracey as is the rest of the eco-organic garden range.

Gracey eggs come mixed with vermiculite and a small quantity of sterilized moth eggs for food. Tap equal amounts of mixture into the supplied release boxes and hang in plants close to pest populations.

A minimum of 1 to 5 lacewing larvae per plant is recommended depending on pest levels on the plant. It is best to release Gracey in pest ‘hot spots’ to ensure larvae have an immediate food supply.

If the pest problem is severe we recommend you order a follow up batch of Gracey after 2 weeks. Lacewings only eat pests during their larval stage so multiple releases will ensure a constant presence of larvae to get on top of large pest numbers.

Adult lacewings will establish and persist in your garden if nectar and pollen are present. The Bed & Breakfast Seed Mix should be sown close to where you would like Gracey to be actively working in your garden. Avoid the use of chemical sprays as most are toxic to lacewings. The eco-organic garden sprays are known to be safe however.

Orrganic:

Over the years I have released Green Lace Wings, Lady Beetles, Praying Mantis, several types of parasitic wasps and nematodes. There is other stuff I just don't remember now. They all overwinter and go to work every spring. Last fall I found a fly with a long proboscis poking a tomato hornworm.I have never seen one before and could not identify it? I am sure it was parasitizing it but my foot is a guaranteed hornworm killer. I like to take my cat out into the tomato patch in the early evening and watch her ears as she can hear them chewing the leaves. It is like having a hornworm detector; when both ears aim together I look and there will be one - squish. She only has enough patients to get a couple of them before her attention turns to something else. If the outbreak gets past just a few I use the BTk.

 

[dankstyle J]

Over the years I have not only done battle with many insects I have declared war on them. Only after I learned to stop waging war have things gotten much much better. If you allow the beneficial insects to live and support their environment they will keep the harmful insects in check. It is a balancing act and you have to be willing to lose some of your crop as part of that natural process. You also need to plant beneficial attractive plants and not plants that attract bad insects. Marigolds come to mind; they will attract spider mites from long distances. There are a few exceptions to that idea. Ants farm aphids if allowed they will ruin the balance of an entire ecosystem and then just move on to the next fertile area as they are very mobile. The best organic control I use for ants is borax (20 Mule Team Boraxo) and sugar 50/50. Put a small amount near the nest at night and the workers will feed it to the queen - problem solved. I also use insecticidal soaps (Green Cleaner is one) and BT. So many of my nearby neighbors have chemical pesticide service on their properties that it is hard to keep my sanctuary running smoothly but every year I do identify new beneficials working in my garden. So this is outside!

Inside I am able to take a more controlled approach. Hydroponics is the key here and I try really hard not to let/introduce anything into the grow room. I know with soil that is almost impossible. Hence this thread.

There are some insects where beneficials have little to no effect an should only be used after spraying .I had about 6 friends with much larger farms an one commercial farm put out an start with predator mites an they had worse luck then me battling the hemp russet an broad mites well southern Oregon is full of them .I use organics to battle them an to be quite honest most would suggest something else root aphids spider mites you name it predator bugs have success .Hemp russets are something that will hitch a ride on your cat an destroy your garden in a matter of days an you will only see them with a microscope .Had a buddy who released lady bugs an I kid you not they would cling to the legs of the lady bugs an attach themselves to the body for a ride to different plants .andersoni an swirrski predator mites work after a sulfur treatment or a good pyrethian spray but they don't feed enough to stop a hemp russet by themselves you gotta knock the population back first before there are effective .

 

[Mañ'O'Green]

There are some insects where beneficials have little to no effect an should only be used after spraying .I had about 6 friends with much larger farms an one commercial farm put out an start with predator mites an they had worse luck then me battling the hemp russet an broad mites well southern Oregon is full of them .I use organics to battle them an to be quite honest most would suggest something else root aphids spider mites you name it predator bugs have success .Hemp russets are something that will hitch a ride on your cat an destroy your garden in a matter of days an you will only see them with a microscope .Had a buddy who released lady bugs an I kid you not they would cling to the legs of the lady bugs an attach themselves to the body for a ride to different plants .andersoni an swirrski predator mites work after a sulfur treatment or a good pyrethian spray but they don't feed enough to stop a hemp russet by themselves you gotta knock the population back first before there are effective .

Yes, there are some real plagues out there. The cat is not allowed near the indoor garden just for that reason.

 

[Dudeski]

I don't know if it's been mentioned but sand on the surface really helps with gnats . Rips their wings off when coming out of the dirt, then can't fly and spread.