Gnats

[Vince]

How strong can i mix the dawn dish soap? For some reason this does not seem to work for me, even if i spray everyday. Everyone swears by this trick it seems.I dont have huge explosions of them just enough to know they are there. Im sure it will change in the summer though If there is something i can buy to kill these pests please let me know. Im willing to take the plants out of the cham cage for a coupe days to do this. I have enough fake stuff i could put in for a couple of days. I JUST WANT TO GET RID OF THESE WORTHLESS STUPID GNATS!!!!

 

[sandrachameleon]

let the plant soil Dry out (they need it damp to survive)
cover plant soil with several inches of rocks (hard for flies to lay more eggs that way)
or use beneficial nemotodes

 

[Vince]

let the plant soil Dry out (they need it damp to survive)
cover plant soil with several inches of rocks (hard for flies to lay more eggs that way)
or use beneficial nemotodes

Thanks i will give this a go. I have used rocks but not several inches of them.

 

[veiledchamguy]

Using a Sarracenia 'Judith Hindle' carnivorous plant in the room helps clear up those dirty gnats coming from your potted plants.

Has worked for me

 

[Vince]

Using a Sarracenia 'Judith Hindle' carnivorous plant in the room helps clear up those dirty gnats coming from your potted plants.

Has worked for me

Thats cool. I would order one of these but im sure it would freeze somewhere on the way. Do you own one for this same reason? Do they have an odor of any kind? and how hard are they to take care of? I had some venus fly traps and could not keep them alive.

 

[Lille]

Do you think a little Venus Fly trap would work on them? I have them too, it's really annoying!

 

[veiledchamguy]

Thats cool. I would order one of these but im sure it would freeze somewhere on the way. Do you own one for this same reason? Do they have an odor of any kind? and how hard are they to take care of? I had some venus fly traps and could not keep them alive.

They wont freeze they will be fine they get sent with heat packets. Yes i specifally bought these for this reason Those damn gnats. No odor.
Not hard to take care of they need to sit in a bog of water roughly about an inch or a tad more. Venus fly traps are a waste IMO. Here is a rough sketch i did in paint hope you grasp the concept what im trying to convey

 

[Lille]

http://www.houstonherp.com/SaleSxJudithHindle.htm

ON SALE! My favorite words!

 

[veiledchamguy]

http://www.houstonherp.com/SaleSxJudithHindle.htm

ON SALE! My favorite words!

there ya go all you need is one

 

[Lille]

I got a small one (my house has really REALLY small rooms). Even then just got it without soil and it's only $11 after shipping! Not bad, not bad at all.

I might buy all of my plants from there from now on! I'll make my house inpenitrable fortress!!! Mwahahahaha

 

[veiledchamguy]

I got a small one (my house has really REALLY small rooms). Even then just got it without soil and it's only $11 after shipping! Not bad, not bad at all.

I might buy all of my plants from there from now on! I'll make my house inpenitrable fortress!!! Mwahahahaha

LoL! when i get home im going to make a indepth thread on how to plant them and supplies you will need along with pictures so stay tuned later today

 

[Lille]

That would be wonderful!

 

[SnowMan]

Excellent thread. I just noticed my own gnat problem today. Bought a steam cleaner to take care of it for now, but I like the idea of a small pitcher plant as well. You keep them in the cage or elsewhere?

 

[jv2]

hey i have the best solution i grow plants and i get gnats everyonce in a while there is an organic spray you can spray on the top of dry dirt called gnatrol buy some it works in 1 -2 week depending on your infestation

 

[Vince]

Cool i will look into this. Thanks

 

[dodolah]

hey i have the best solution i grow plants and i get gnats everyonce in a while there is an organic spray you can spray on the top of dry dirt called gnatrol buy some it works in 1 -2 week depending on your infestation

Gnatrol is another choice. It is actually not a type of spray as in spraying poison to the gnat.
what you are spraying on the soil is actually a bacteria that will paralyze the larvae and stop them from eating.

Another choice is using parasite called entomopathogenic nematodes (sold by millions! )
Google search on how they kill the gnats. Strangely, using this method seems to inflict more pain on gnats sorry, I hate gnats!

They are imo better choice than bacteria one, since they will continue kill gnats for a year.
I have not try any of this method. But, I am very tempted to try.

They both claim that the products are safe for human and pets.

 

[Vince]

http://www.bghydro.com/BGH/itemdesc.asp?ic=PCGNAT32

So everyone think this would be ok to use in with a cham? I would be using it with a jackson he could care less about the dirt and is hand fed everything accept for the once a day silky he takes from a branch. Therefore, i would not be worried about him eating any of it.

In the ingrediants, if you click on the N/A PDF file in the link at the top it says something about "Toxic units" what is that all about?

 

[dodolah]

http://www.bghydro.com/BGH/itemdesc.asp?ic=PCGNAT32

So everyone think this would be ok to use in with a cham? I would be using it with a jackson he could care less about the dirt and is hand fed everything accept for the once a day silky he takes from a branch. Therefore, i would not be worried about him eating any of it.

In the ingrediants, if you click on the N/A PDF file in the link at the top it says something about "Toxic units" what is that all about?

I am leaning toward suggesting nematodes more so than bacteria actually.
From the sites i read the nematodes seems to specifically attack the gnats' larvae as host.

Since they sold by millions, you can use some for other pots as well.
I believe they have short shelf life.. so before they all dead, probably just dump the rest on your lawn?

 

[dodolah]

Here some more info:
http://www.hort.uconn.edu/ipm/homegrnd/htms/39nemat.htm
http://www.mastergardeners.org/publications/nematodes/beneficial_nematodes.html
http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/ent/biocontrol/pathogens/nematodes.html

Where to get them:
http://www.planetnatural.com/site/beneficial-nematodes.html
http://www.thebeneficialinsectco.com/beneficial-nematodes.htm

They sell by millions.
And the Bacteria one:
http://www.planetnatural.com/site/gnatrol.html
http://www.bghydro.com/BGH/itemdesc.asp?ic=PCGNAT32

 

[alhickabee]

I solved my gnat problem by taking the following steps:
1)After setting up a temporary cage for which to house the cham for ~4 hours. I placed a large container with very hot water and dry ice in the cage and wrapped the whole cage in saran plastic wrap. The CO2 given off by the dry ice reacting with the water will kill any insects in the cage. Plus it gives the plants a boost. Let it alone for a few hours then unwrap and let it air out for a bit before putting the cham back in. (I got this from someone on the forum, summoner I believe, works pretty well)
2)Water, don't mist, the plants with soapy water daily for a week or two after to kill any larvae left in the soil. (~5 sec squirt of dish soap to a gallon of water is what I do) I water the plants with this mix once a week or so to ensure the gnats don't come back.
3)Adjust watering/misting schedule to allow the soil to dry out. My schedule now includes a drying period from 12-4pm, as in there is no water running through the cage during the period. (I use automated dripper and mister systems)

Hope this helps...