Soil mites?

[mschultz]

I have a potted hibiscus. Previously is was getting way to much water. I have fixed that, it now drains easily. However recently I removed the river rocks to given them a quick rinse (river rocks to cover soil) and I noticed that the soil is still staying very damp. The hibiscus doesn't mind, but now I think I have soil mites.

Will the soil mites bother my chameleon? I think they stay under the river rocks.

 

[Blang]

They might be what's known as springtails in your soil! They are very tiny & crawl around in the dirt & leaf litter!

 

[MissMeela]

I have a potted hibiscus. Previously is was getting way to much water. I have fixed that, it now drains easily. However recently I removed the river rocks to given them a quick rinse (river rocks to cover soil) and I noticed that the soil is still staying very damp. The hibiscus doesn't mind, but now I think I have soil mites.

Will the soil mites bother my chameleon? I think they stay under the river rocks.

You should leave the rocks off of the top for about a week or so till the top inch or two is dried out. That's where the flies lay their eggs; they love moist soil! After its dried, you might still have some flies, so you should then add a layer of corse sand or aquarium gravel on the soil.. That will help smother the larva that's in there and keep the flies from continuing to lay more eggs. You should maybe even add your river rock on top of the gravel so your chameleon can't accidentally eat a small piece of gravel or sand and get impacted in his/her belly. Eventually all the flies will die and you won't have any more larva...IF you keep your soil dry! Only water when the top layer is dry not when it's still moist!
Hope this helps! I'm in the waiting process now.. this happened to my umbrella plant recently. Waiting for the flies to die off!!

 

[mschultz]

There is no way the soil will dry with my dripper, and I want to keep the plant in there with the chameleon. Do you think adding sand will work? I could do that easily.

And they're not fly larvae... they are defiantly soil mites... they move really fast and are not worms.

 

[MissMeela]

There is no way the soil will dry with my dripper, and I want to keep the plant in there with the chameleon. Do you think adding sand will work? I could do that easily.

And they're not fly larvae... they are defiantly soil mites... they move really fast and are not worms.

I strongly suggest that you try something like this... You'll never get rid of those flies if the soil is constantly moist. I added a small bucket to catch the water instead. Then you can water when the plant NEEDS it!

 

[Carlton]

I strongly suggest that you try something like this... You'll never get rid of those flies if the soil is constantly moist. I added a small bucket to catch the water instead. Then you can water when the plant NEEDS it!

IT sounds as if flies are not the problem.

 

[MissMeela]

IT sounds as if flies are not the problem.

What would you suggest Carlton?

 

[Carlton]

What would you suggest Carlton?

If you want to speed up the plant's soil drainage (which will help it dry out faster and may discourage as much mite production) you can add perlite, pumice, or coarse sand to the lower part of the pot. Enlarge the pot drain holes. Don't add FINE sand as that will just make the problem worse. Fine sand will suffocate the roots as it fills in all the air spaces. If you use a pot saucer make sure no water sits in it.

However, once the soil is full of invertebrate eggs and larvae they'll keep reproducing. You would have to get rid of all that soil and start over. But, springtails aren't bad to have if that's what they are. They won't hurt anything and are often beneficial. Fungus gnats can also breed in wet soil and they are annoying...lots of tiny flying things in the house. I think that's what MissMeela was referring to. Again, you have to dump the soil or cook it to get rid of them.

 

[mschultz]

Thanks!

I think I'll need to re-pot the plant... honestly its getting a little too tall for the cage anyway... I might need a new one... the soil mites appear to be spring tails and do not venture above the river rocks. I have a system of containers set up to catch the drainage, and lift the pot up out of the water. Its not pleasing to the eye... but it gets the job done. I'm waiting for a tray that will fit the bottom of my cage before I start working on a more permanent drainage system.

The flies are actually in the BACK of my classroom... I'm teaching a unit on plant biology and tried to grow small plants in the back... they also grew fruit flies like crazy... I moved them outside. The flies never moved over to the hibiscus. But the drainage is slowly causing erosion of the soil. (Its funny, all my students thought the water in the drainage container was her pee... I then had to explain she doesn't "pee", but her excrement is more like a birds)

TLDR:
- Soil mites appear to stay in soil - no flies - probably spring tails.
- Drainage cause soil erosion - need to re-pot, possibly get new plant.