Gnat problem? lil help plz :)

[fishhen]

Hey everybody me and my roomie are on our first grow and we decided to start off with some bagseed just so we wouldnt ruin our awesome nug seeds haha (Joey's NLxC99 seeds :D). But now that the plants are probably around 2.5 weeks old or so I have started to notice lots of little gnats fluttering around in the soil of the pots and some are flying around in the grow room and I was really wondering if anybody knew what they were or if they are detrimental to the plants. I really dont like them being in the grow room at all and if anybody has any ideas on how to get rid of them it would be greatly appreciated.

happy tokin
- fishhen

[Greenthing]

These a gnats, can you confirm these are your problem.
http://i122.photobucket.com/albums/o240/asgreenasgrass/1134fungas-gnat11.jpg

[rhizome]

Fungus gnats, which suggests that things are too wet.

Google " Bacillus Thurengensis Isreali"

[stinkyattic]

...and let your catch-trays dry out! If you have built in catch trays, remove them and get in the habit of rinsing them out frequently, and not letting water jsut SIt there, because gnats love it wet.

[fishhen]

Yea greenthing those would pretty much be exactly what is plagueing my grow room right now. So far I've been keeping the run off trays pretty clean, but the soil is usually fairly moist :(. But as to fixing the problem? I can't just let everything go bone dry and hope they just leave my plants alone can I? And are they harmful at all our just annoying?

[Greenthing]

Fungus gnats like to feed on roots of the plants and organic matter. Adults and larvae live in moist, shady areas. The adults lay there eggs on top of the soil, near the base of the stem and takes about 4 days to hatch. The larvae will start by eating the root hairs of the plant then working their way up the plant, Fungus gnats like to eat organic matter so they will be stealing away nutrients from your plants,
Put potato slices on the surface of the soil. The larvae like it and will be drawn to it.. After about 4 to 5 days, remove the potato slices with the larvae.

[GoldenGraham84]

wow, really with the potatoes? just re-treat as necessary? nice to know! thanks GT

[Greenthing]

There are ways to get rid of the adults I will dig out some more info later, I am a bit busy at the moment.
watch this space.

[Greenthing]

To get rid of them you can do a lot of things like either use a NO pest strip, neem oil or putting sand on the surface of the soil will suffocate the eggs and get rid of them as well. Tobacco juice kills them, and works well for re-occurrences!
They can be in or on the soil and can fly. In order to get rid of them you can use neem oil, sand on the surface again kills them, and no pest strips catch the ones that fly.
Some info I came across when I had a problem a while ago, cant remember who wrote it sorry, I dont suppose they will mind as it's all for a good cause.

[GoldenGraham84]

awesome man. my friend has been having trouble with them, and the pest strips haven't been enough. could you explain what you mean by tobacco juice? thanks for posting GT.

[Greenthing]

could you explain what you mean by tobacco juice? thanks for posting GT.
Hi Graham,
You get a few cigarettes or some rolling tobacco and make a tea bag and soak it like making a cup of tea, when it is cool pour the tobacco tea in the plant pot.:thumbsup:
repeat if the problem is not solved.
Got to go out now back later.

[fishhen]

Awesome info, thanks a ton greenthing!

[GoldenGraham84]

indeed GT, thank you so much! hate to keep bugging you, but will the tobacco juice mess with the pH? my friend grows 2x4 ScrOG under CFLs, with soil as his medium.

[420F4i]

We had a bad case of fungus gnats at my friends because he didnt like to empty the catch trays. One day a little spider moved in and set up a web. Within a week the gnats were gone. Of course keeping it dry is the real answer, but I just wanted to tell you guys about the spider.

[Greenthing]

indeed GT, thank you so much! hate to keep bugging you, but will the tobacco juice mess with the pH? my friend grows 2x4 ScrOG under CFLs, with soil as his medium.
Sorry Graham I missed this post, the answer is no but I must say it was my mate that used the tobacco juice and it did not cause any probs with his grow.
The is another way to get rid of pests but it is probably more expensive, you can buy predators from hydro shops they will order them for you and that can take time to get them from the supplier.
Let me know how you get on with the wee beasties.:thumbsup:

[Greenthing]

We had a bad case of fungus gnats at my friends because he didnt like to empty the catch trays. One day a little spider moved in and set up a web. Within a week the gnats were gone. Of course keeping it dry is the real answer, but I just wanted to tell you guys about the spider.
I bet that spider got real big eating all those gnats, I never kill spiders they keep the fly population down and ladybirds are a good friend too.
Thanks for your post made me laugh.:)

[justanotherbozo]

awesome man. my friend has been having trouble with them, and the pest strips haven't been enough. could you explain what you mean by tobacco juice? thanks for posting GT.

if by 'pest strips' you mean the kind with the sticky tape to catch the gnats
then you're right, they don't work worth shit. what you need is the kind of
no-pest strip that contains Dichlorvos. they look a little like a deoderizer that
you'd hang in your closet and they exude a vapor that will kill those babies dead
and keep them gone for up to 4 months. they also kill mites which is why i
bought the 'No-Pest' strips in the first place.
(thank you Opie Yutts for the tip)

i hung one in my flower room 2 months ago, since then, no fly's, no mites.

heres a link to Amazon.com although they're not the only place that sells them.

Amazon.com: no pest strip (http://www.google.com/aclk?sa=L&ai=BEhTHVZL0SK2TJoqmeb6TuIcPxaO1e-_85scI6qnpFfCTCQgAEAIYAigCMAA4AVDF0MiVBGDJvraM1KSo EMgBAcgCmc_zAtkDTgeoQdLgRmzgAxA&ggladgrp=6841628759192805573&gglcreat=5655873043083388073&sig=AGiWqtyHH6Uc0XZEIBGvfNGDryrArVCD6A&q=http://www.amazon.com/s/%3Fie%3DUTF8%26keywords%3Dno%2Bpest%2Bstrip%26tag% 3Dgooghydr-20%26index%3Daps%26hvadid%3D2206421411%26ref%3Dpd_ sl_7x1330aehp_b)