Fungus gnats (again!)

[maldivemoment]

I’ve tried everything; nematodes, those yellow sticky things, etc.
They have definitely reduced significantly but are still around.

Don’t think I can face repotting every house plant! With this in mind, do you think I could solve the problem if I simply covered every plant with gravel and water from the bottom? Would that be enough?

Or is the reality I will need to get more nematodes, put the yellow sticky things in everything in the house that doesn’t move, wrap every plant in bags (to trap the little bastards) and relax every evening, enjoying the beauty of this image!

Argh!!!! I hate them!

And breathe…

Thank you

OP I had this on several of mine, I covered the top layer of soil with conkers, and within maybe a week, no more gnats. Just because I happened to have spare conkers lol.

I posted about these a couple of weeks ago.. they're so annoying aren't they.

I bought some nematodes from Amazon and they've made a huge difference. I waited til the plants were as dry as I dared let them get then watered them all on the same day and have them all a new yellow sticky.

About 5 days later there were a few on the stickies but not many.

I then watered them all with fungus gnat pellets.. again from Amazon..

At the moment they all seem clear but I'm going to continue with the pellets in the watering water. Much simpler than the nematodes

Don’t think I can face repotting every house plant! With this in mind, do you think I could solve the problem if I simply covered every plant with gravel and water from the bottom? Would that be enough? Eventually, yes. The current crop of grubs would hatch and emerge from the soil, but the female flies would be deterred from laying new eggs. Eventually the population would decrease. Squishing any flies you see, or spraying with an indoor fly spray would speed the process.

Reassured!

Thanks folks. I’m squishing every one I can!

Next question; where do I get gravel? 🤦🏼‍♀️
Garden centre? Are there different types?

I solved it with the bottom watering, gravel topping and sticky trap combo. I use RHS horticultural grit which is available at most garden centres.

Also - if you eat quinoa, soak some in plenty of water, then drain the water into watering can and apply. Something in it kills the buggers

Garden centre. Get as fine gravel as you can. If you get horticultural grit you can also use it tomake compost more free draining for plants that need it

I've also seen advice to use sand.. I guess this would work but not sure if it would eventually wash in to the compost.

I have had some success with a mist of a weak water and dish soap solution.

You can get different gravels from garden centres, DIY stores, and builders merchants, and also pet stores in smaller quantities - but often quite expensive as it is generally washed ready for aquariums.. I would go for a 4-6mm pea gravel for larger plants, or a grit for smaller plants.

I use horticultural grit because builders stuff my have nasty things in it that your plants won't like. Not worth the risk imo