Yeah true, and try to let as many people know so that it doesn't mess with their season or crop
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fungus gnats, the things you don't ever want.
- Thread starter Sunbeam
- Start date
Yeah true, and try to let as many people know so that it doesn't mess with their season or crop
MICROWAVE your soil before use, it works wonders 2-3 mins on high let cool before use, problem solved! Good Luck.......Scroger
BTW, there was just a great thread up on the boards a couple of days ago, By LolaGal i think, she uses Mosquito Dunks(for ponds), just crumble ontop of pots/soil and water in, seemed to work for most, i like that one, cant have enough shit like that in your arsenal or lying about.
BTW, there was just a great thread up on the boards a couple of days ago, By LolaGal i think, she uses Mosquito Dunks(for ponds), just crumble ontop of pots/soil and water in, seemed to work for most, i like that one, cant have enough shit like that in your arsenal or lying about.
M
m00nchild
Just dust the tops of all your pots with some DE and your problems will dry up real fast. Who cares if there are fungus gnats in the soil? Fungus gnats are common in the world of rich organics. If you don't like fungus gnats, or you're unable to sprinkle some DE on your soil, then you should try switching over to hydro.
Diatomaceous earth. Highly recommended.
Diatomaceous earth. Highly recommended.
Kush Farmer
Member
Premiere Horticulture. Look for the pro series (HP/BX mixes)
MICROWAVE your soil before use, it works wonders 2-3 mins on high let cool before use, problem solved! Good Luck.......Scroger
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And how am i supposed to do that effeciently when I use 6-9 cu. ft. per run? Wouldn't it be easier to just buy safe sterile soil?
moon child I tried DE for over amonth hardcore and it didnt do shit, i still have a 10 pound bag here. and fungus gnats will get into a hydro set up also. They are a fucking nuisance beyond belief. they repude like cock roaches and seem to be able to fly into any nook and crany of your house and find places to lay eggs. i wonder if you could steralize your soil by drenchign it with water then tasser gun it for a couple seconds. would be even better if for a split second they could feel the most horrible death. ONCE AGAIN tho, send a link to promix. There are many brands with pro mix as a name.
bicycle racer
Member
it had to be root aphids gnats dont do that type of damage if its only gnats water with a bt product voila gnats gone. root aphids are another story by far the worst pest i have dealt with far worse than say spider mites thrips pm caterpillars etc.. sorry for you i lost many plants to a root aphid issue. i cured the problem with repeated soil/foliage drenches with pyrethrum 3 in total this will kill any gnats or aphids if done properly and at least 3 times.
bicycle racer
Member
if every time you water you use a bt product you will have no gnats its organic a simple bacterial extract. for the leftover adults i just spray them with 70% rubbing alcohol it does not harm my plants but kills the gnats immediately.
alot of times it is from where the soil is stored before you bought it!i never buy soil from a store that stores it outside.needed some and bought from the depot and then fought a ton of gnats for the next three grows.over watering makes them breed really fast also.if you let your pots dry out real good before watering it helps.i always do the lift test on the pot.after i slowed my waterings down the problem got alot better.i always seem to have a few going but by maintaining better conditions they dont become a problem
Kush Farmer
Member
Here is the link to the manufacturer's site. http://www.premierhort.com/eProMix/Horticulture/fHorticulture.htm
You are on your own to find a retailer. I only use the HP and BX mixes. BX for mothers and HP for flowering. Hope this helps. And Pro Mix is the only company to use that as the product name. They just off a very wide range of products including COCO mixes.
You never said that did you? & your not even the OP, cheeky begger! i was only trying to be helpfull, you can always use an oven instead and it could be done outdoors with the use of a lit fire, but yes of course you can just buy sterile soil, so why did you not in the first place man!????? The Mosquito dunk are supposed to be good though! Good luck in your soil quest man! I love hydroponics!
easy420dude
Active member
Organocide
Organocide
http://www.arborgrow.com/organocide.htm
OMRI listed. Just picked some up at Lowes - seems to be doing the trick.
Organocide
http://www.arborgrow.com/organocide.htm
OMRI listed. Just picked some up at Lowes - seems to be doing the trick.
Kush Farmer
Member
HA HA! I was only giving a "for instance." I run 80% hydro and have only used Pro Mix soils for years. I'm the one who suggested it in this thread. I was just making a point that sterilizing soil is about as much fun as washing 600 liters of hydroton. Seeing as I have no choice about the hydroton why not save my back the trouble of the soil as well. My moms love the BX mix. It holds a little more water than other soils do so less feeding and watering.
johnnybhang
Active member
Fungus gnats are relatively harmless it seems, but root aphids can screw you over big time. For those that missed retrogrow's link to a 45 page and growing thread on root aphids
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=159960 Aphids stuck to your buds and 25% reduced yield is not cool. I think one way of controlling them without pesticides is let soil dry out as much between waterings and use a mulch or other type of cover to reduce the flying aphids. They will still be in the roots which is where they do the most damage. However they can be controlled to a point that the plant will make a decent harvest. Again if what you have is adversely affecting your plants and looks like nute deficiency its mostly likely a root aphid not a fungus gnat. Be sure to check out the thread in the link.
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=159960 Aphids stuck to your buds and 25% reduced yield is not cool. I think one way of controlling them without pesticides is let soil dry out as much between waterings and use a mulch or other type of cover to reduce the flying aphids. They will still be in the roots which is where they do the most damage. However they can be controlled to a point that the plant will make a decent harvest. Again if what you have is adversely affecting your plants and looks like nute deficiency its mostly likely a root aphid not a fungus gnat. Be sure to check out the thread in the link.
Fungus gnats are dangerous, because they spread other diseases, like pythium, etc.
Fungas gnats will be completely wiped out by spreading broken up mosquito dunk particles on top of the soil before watering.
Just get some mosquito dunks, crush them up, and spread the resulting powder on top of the soil. Problem solved, permanently.
bicycle racer
Member
mosquito dunks and products containing bt are the same thing a bacterial extract harmless to mammals and effective.
you can have your cake, and eat it too, so to speak
it is possible to pasteurize(not sterilize) your soil with dry heat
i had the same issues with MG Organic Garden soil, fungus gnats
heat in oven at low heat, generally under 180f for about a half hour or so
this kills the pests, but leaves the beneficials
commercial greenhouses do this routinely, there also is steam pasteurization
GanjaPharma
Member
any soil that is stored outdoors can come loaded w gnats and other meanies. lots of big hydro wholesalers do this and they dont care....they ship it to your local shop and get paid.
gnats chew holes in the roots of hydro plants as well as soil, and i have seen terrible root rot that im sure was transmitted to hydroponic systems via fungus gnats from houseplants. in the PNW gnats are EVERYWHERE and the strips dont kill em and neither does neem nor garlic, nor any foiar spray except nicotine which is a real good way to get tobacco mosaic virus (try diagnosing that one on the internets)
bt (dunks&crumbles but not powder) work in hydro and soil/coir (the crumbles work for weeks).
in soil diatomaceous earth is a wonder but only during veg.
best o luck
gnats chew holes in the roots of hydro plants as well as soil, and i have seen terrible root rot that im sure was transmitted to hydroponic systems via fungus gnats from houseplants. in the PNW gnats are EVERYWHERE and the strips dont kill em and neither does neem nor garlic, nor any foiar spray except nicotine which is a real good way to get tobacco mosaic virus (try diagnosing that one on the internets)
bt (dunks&crumbles but not powder) work in hydro and soil/coir (the crumbles work for weeks).
in soil diatomaceous earth is a wonder but only during veg.
best o luck
Skunklover
Member
FFOF user here too, and just battled a nice little infestation of fungus gnats. Nice to know I was right when I told my hydro guy there was no way these things came into the room other than through the soil. He swore to me I was wrong. I will be showing him this thread tomorrow
I seem to have it completely under control now. Used a bunch of yellow traps to monitor the situation, sprayed my plants with an organic soap spray (plants didn't like that very much), watered once with a mix of neem oil, then put Diatomaceus Earth on top. Seems to have done the trick, really haven't seen any since.
I just started my second round, and of course like a dumb ass am using the FFOF again. This time I mixed some DE in with the soil though.
I like the mosquito dunks idea, will definitely use that if they come up again.
Will never use Fox Farm again.
I seem to have it completely under control now. Used a bunch of yellow traps to monitor the situation, sprayed my plants with an organic soap spray (plants didn't like that very much), watered once with a mix of neem oil, then put Diatomaceus Earth on top. Seems to have done the trick, really haven't seen any since.
I just started my second round, and of course like a dumb ass am using the FFOF again. This time I mixed some DE in with the soil though.
I like the mosquito dunks idea, will definitely use that if they come up again.
Will never use Fox Farm again.
Skunklover
Member
One other thing. This is in a tent which I am using CO2 in. Weird thing once I started using it, they all seemed to be hovering around in the top of the tent trying to find a way out. Is it possible the high amounts of CO2 were driving them out from the base of the plants?
If your that pissed with the Hydroton man, check out this interesting new substrate, its clean, light
& has all the properties of a good airy medium without all the hassle, been looking into using the stuff myself! Its Called stg-'HAIL' Here's the link:
http://www.suretogrow.com/
Good Luck!
