Another way to get this bacteria in your soil is by sprinkling Mosquito Bits or Mosquito Dunks over the surface and watering them in. You can use these both indoors and outdoors. They aren’t just for mosquito killing! As they break down, they release Bacillus thuringiensis var. israelensis into your soil where it can get to work killing larvae. Mosquito dunks are larger and take longer to take effect.

Now stir or shake the water to make sure the BTI is thoroughly mixed in. Then use the “BTI tea” to water the soil or potting mix of houseplants and container plants. This treatment controls fungus gnat larvae present in the soil at the time of application. For best results, use your Mosquito Bits/BTI tea solution within 48 hours. After 14 days the larvae will stop eating and begin their pupal stage to emerge as adul Some growers will even cook new soil to make sure any fungus gnat larvae are dead before letting their cannabis plants or clones near it.

Top Dressing

Concentrated azadirachtin naturally occurs in neem oil. It’s safe in hydroponic use as well as in greenhouses, gardens, and indoors. Use it per the manufacturer’s directions in the same way you would use neem oil.

BTI, which is short for Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis, is deadly to mosquito larvae and fungus gnat larvae but harmless to other living things. The bacterium is nature’s way of keeping fungus gnat and mosquito populations down. But fortunately, BTI has no effect on other insects (such as bees and butterflies). Nor does it harm animals, fish, birds, plants, pets or people. a b "11 Sure Ways of Getting Rid of Gnats". Cover Images. February 23, 2016. Archived from the original on March 28, 2016 . Retrieved 2016-03-18. Fungus gnats are really only of concern if they are causing damage to seedlings or cuttings; established plants are not harmed. Various methods of controlling or eliminating fungus gnats with biological pest control have been developed. For example, Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (BTI) is known to produce proteins that can kill fungus gnats larvae and some other insects like mosquitos. [17] [18] [19] [14] BTI is a naturally occurring bacteria that has been used for decades—the United States EPA reports that it has no toxicity to humans. [17] Several dozen products containing BTI have been approved for residential, commercial, and agricultural use in the United States. [17] The israelensis subspecies is suggested because other types of Bacillus thuriniensis (BT), such as those for controlling caterpillars, are ineffective at controlling fungus gnats. [14]For the older, hardier, more established plants we have never really seen any damage caused by the gnats. But plants such as herbs, impatiens, hoyas, and vegetable seedlings seem to really suffer once the fungus gnat larvae take hold in the soil. Seedlings fail to thrive. Other plants drop leaves or succumb to fungal infections. Apparently the larvae are capable of carrying pathogens that can cause real damage to vulnerable plants. Another option is to use a systemic insecticide. Unfortunately, these are not available everywhere and some countries don’t allow their use. Mosquito Bits are not just for mosquitoes – these bits also kill fungus gnats larvae in the soil. Mosquito Bits are a biological control – Bacillus thuringiensis – that is non-toxic and is a naturally occuring bacteria. There are a couple of ways to use Mosquito Bits – either dissolved in water, or directly on top of the soil. A fungus gnat is so small it’s thinner than the width of a quarter. They commonly appear when cannabis plants are watered too often. If you let the top inch of your soil dry out before watering your plants each time, fungus gnats often naturally go away on their own. However, if you have a really bad infestation, it can take weeks of good watering practices before you get rid of all of them unless you also do something to directly kill the bugs and bring down their numbers. Read on to learn how to get rid of fungus gnats on your cannabis plants for good. If you do all 3 of these things, you will have gone a long way to minimize huge infestations. Be diligent for 3-4 weeks, and you can be successful!

Fruit flies can start buzzing around poorly composted soil which contains kitchen scraps, but otherwise, fruit flies are uncommon in the grow room unless there’s ripe/rotting fruit or other tasty bits for them to eat. Speaking of cannabis clones… I know this article is about fungus gnats, but I want to mention something else that’s very important about cannabis clones. While fungus gnats are a big nuisance, they are not the worst pests a grower can get from cannabis clones. Fungus gnat problems pale in comparison to the horrible affliction of getting cannabis-specific spidermites (aka “the borg”). If the fungus gnat infestation gets out of hand, even adult cannabis plants start looking unhealthy, showing many symptoms such as wilting, yellowing, drooping, spots

DE was very effective in killing off both larvae and gnats, with good results within a week. After around three weeks, the population was all but gone. Although it is effective, it is also quite expensive and because it indiscriminately kills all small insects, it can be a risky choice, especially for outdoor plants. Generally, it’s not recommended to add kitchen scraps to a compost pile for cannabis, since cannabis requires specific ratios of nutrients to provide the best growth which can’t be achieved easily with kitchen scraps. However, if you are adding new kitchen waste to your compost pile, bury it in the middle of the pile so it’s not on top for the fungus gnats (or fruit flies) to feed on. Learn about how to compost your own organic super soil (using this method, it’s very unlikely you will be hit by fungus gnats or fruit flies).

Sprinkle food-grade Diatomaceous Earth over exposed parts of compost pile – this kills some of the gnats and larvae, but is completely harmless to humans. Diatomaceous Earth is very sharp on a micro level, and will pierce the outside of tiny bugs or larvae, killing them. Yet to macro creatures like dogs, cats and humans, Diatomaceous Earth is completely harmless and can even be eaten This type of bacteria produces a toxin that hurts the larvae of fungus gnats and prevents them from being able to eat (it also kills mosquito larvae), but doesn’t affect your plants or roots. Products that contain this bacteria are sometimes listed as “BT” or “BTi” (to indicate the subspecies israelensis– which is particularly effective against fungus gnats). It is also safe for fish, pets, humans and pretty much everything besides larvae. It is safe for organic grows, even in the middle of the flowering/budding stage, and won’t hurt other microbes living in the soil. Follow the product label to prepare the azadirachtin pesticide for use. The recommended rate is usually about 1 tablespoon of azadirachtin per 1 gallon of water. If you’d rather make less than a gallon of the solution, an approximate equivalent would be 1 teaspoon of concentrate per 5 cups of water. STEP 3: Apply the azadirachtin solution to the soil (optional). I sometimes use Bonide Systemic Houseplant Insecticide and it is very effective to kill fungus gnat larvae. You simply apply it to the potting mix as directed on the label and water it in.It’s the fungus gnat larvae in the soil that damage your plant roots and cause growing problems, especially to seedlings or young plants. Mosquito Bits ® and Summit ® Year-Round ® Spray Oil are available at home centers, hardware stores, garden centers and at www.SummitResponsibleSolutions.com . Can BTI Be Used to Control Mosquitoes? Fungus gnat adults don’t do much direct damage to plants. It’s the fungus gnat larvae that are most damaging. A fungus gnat infestation involves damaged roots that stunt plant growth, especially in young plants. In houseplants that have too much moisture in their potting soil, high populations of fungus gnat adults and larvae are associated with the death of plant matter. Before that, it’s difficult to tell whether or not the issue is feeding larvae or overwatering infections by fungi, or generally unhealthy roots. Interestingly enough, a common household item is one of the top recommendations that I have for controlling these pests. Hydrogen peroxide (the standard 3% topical variety) can be used as a soil drench.