To do or not to do...

[Vizio]

Today I called my local hydro store & told him about the gnat problem. He suggested that I could try to put a thin layer of sand to suffocate the gnats. Just for the record I went out to Home Depot & bought a bag of sand. I added a thin layer of it on 2 of small veg plants & then I thought hold up wait lets go to the forum & see what the pros say about this.

There you have it.

 

[Vizio]

Thanks for the input but I found some soil drench that's supposed to be just what I need.

 

[Rosebud]

I think the sand will work very well.

 

[Delta9]

I concur with Rosebud -Actually I had this exact problem myself -up until a few weeks ago.

I added a layer of sand to my pots about an inch or so deep.
..and sayonara fungus gnats ..

The sand needs to be washed, as Multifarious recommends- NOT beach sand.
Just get a bag of the stuff you would put into a kids sandpit


It is important to let your soil dry out properly between waterings too -the larvae thrive in moist conditions. Try bottom feeding until you break their life cycle.

Combined with the sand, this method is very effective.

Good luck.

 

[Rosebud]

Bottom feeding is kinda cool. I had a smart pot filled with dirt ready for satori. I noticed i had over watered another plant so i took that smart pot and sat it in the very full saucer. Came back in ten minutes or so and all the water was gone. I love smart pots and from that i learned bottom feeding really is a good idea Delta.

 

[Vizio]

Thanks again fellas. Gotta try the bottom feeding. But i only have 1 smart pot. Eventually all my growing will be in a smart pot. How do you bottom feed an plastic pot?

 

[Rosebud]

Same way just set the pot in a big saucer and i would cut some extra holes in the pot if it only has a few... It will drink fast and then you can fill it again. Don't let the water set in the saucer for more then a couple of hours. If it hasn't drank it that time it is full.

And I excuse you for calling me a fella...

 

[orangesunshine]

ur pot needs to be in a container/saucer to hold water and ur plant will suck it up thru the drainage holes in the bottom of the pot

u could add hanging sticky fly strips and use diamatious earth to also keep them pesky gnats in check

 

[Vizio]

I didn't mean any disrespect RoseBud. It's just a figure of speech. Lol 1 love.

 

[Hushpuppy]

Would the sand on top still be a viable option for preventing fungus gants if watering through the sand on top? I had more issues with fungus gnats in my hydro tanks than in my soil a couple seasons back.