fungus gnats!!!

[HItransplant]

anyone ever have these take up residence in and around a hop plant. Im not normally bothered by bugs.. but my EKG is only a few months old and I dont want anything nibbling on its roots.


how do I get rid of them?

 

[theredben]

No need to get rid of them. They don't really do any damage, even if you actually have them (many people mislabel completely harmless midges for basically harmless fingus gnats.)

 

[HItransplant]

No need to get rid of them. They don't really do any damage, even if you actually have them (many people mislabel completely harmless midges for basically harmless fingus gnats.)

Huh... I guess the impression I got was that they were harmful.


Here's an example...

http://forum.grasscity.com/sick-plants-problems/544536-how-kill-fungus-gnats-hydrogen-peroxide.html

At the very least im thinking I need better drainage in my planter.

Thanks for your reply ...I'm just a nervous first time hop grower

 

[bigljd]

Huh... I guess the impression I got was that they were harmful.

Here's an example...

http://forum.grasscity.com/sick-plants-problems/544536-how-kill-fungus-gnats-hydrogen-peroxide.html

At the very least im thinking I need better drainage in my planter.

Thanks for your reply ...I'm just a nervous first time hop grower

I'm assuming you are growing your hops outside - fungus gnats have a tendency to become a nuisance to indoor plants (I bring citrus and other tender plants in for the winter and usually have gnats around the plants). Fungus gnat larvae can be a problem to seedlings indoors, as they can cause root problems, but there are usually enough predator bugs outside to keep gnats under control.
I didn't click on the link since I'm at work and I know what the topic of that forum is, but I don't think you have anything to worry about with your hop plants as long as they look healthy. Drainage is important as you don't want the soil waterlogged. I'd be more worried about that then the gnats - in fact if you let the soil dry out a bit your gnat problem will likely go away.

Edit: MORE INFO

http://www.learn2grow.com/problemsolvers/insectsanimals/insectdamagecontrol/fungusgnats.aspx

How do you control fungus gnats?
They key is prevention, and you can do this two ways: The first is to avoid overwatering your plants. Overwatering, to fungus gnats, is like laying a big steak on the floor in front of a starving dog – they can’t resist it. The second way to prevent the problem is to inspect the soil of a plant before bringing one home. Do you see gnats buzzing around it? If so, that’s not a good sign. Put the plant down and just walk away.

 

[HItransplant]

I'm assuming you are growing your hops outside - fungus gnats have a tendency to become a nuisance to indoor plants (I bring citrus and other tender plants in for the winter and usually have gnats around the plants). Fungus gnat larvae can be a problem to seedlings indoors, as they can cause root problems, but there are usually enough predator bugs outside to keep gnats under control.
I didn't click on the link since I'm at work and I know what the topic of that forum is, but I don't think you have anything to worry about with your hop plants as long as they look healthy. Drainage is important as you don't want the soil waterlogged. I'd be more worried about that then the gnats - in fact if you let the soil dry out a bit your gnat problem will likely go away.

Edit: MORE INFO

http://www.learn2grow.com/problemsolvers/insectsanimals/insectdamagecontrol/fungusgnats.aspx

How do you control fungus gnats?
They key is prevention, and you can do this two ways: The first is to avoid overwatering your plants. Overwatering, to fungus gnats, is like laying a big steak on the floor in front of a starving dog – they can’t resist it. The second way to prevent the problem is to inspect the soil of a plant before bringing one home. Do you see gnats buzzing around it? If so, that’s not a good sign. Put the plant down and just walk away.

Yes, outside in a container. I guess I should have written a disclaimer about that link...I figured it was appropriate since the two plants are cousins. I'll paraphrase--he suggests diluted hydrogen peroxide, stating it would kill the bugs and not bother the plant.

Thoughts... I'm going to put more holes in the pot tonight.

P.s. Bigljd-- thanks for the monster response

 

[bigljd]

No problem - I love gardening and plants more than I like brewing beer, if that's possible. I've heard of using diluted hydrogen peroxide to provide additional oxygen to the roots of plants that had poor drainage and were waterlogged (after the drainage problem was fixed first), but I don't know how it affects gnats or their larvae. I would just go with the additional drainage holes and let the soil dry out a bit. It sounds like the plants are doing ok, so sit back, have a home brew and watch them grow...

 

[ChshreCat]

On a partially related note...

If you get the gnats in your plants when you bring them inside, you can put a layer of playground sand on top of the soil in the pot. That way, gnats can't get down to the soil to lay their eggs. After a short time, you won't have any gnats.

That, or repot them with fresh potting soil.

 

[HItransplant]

No problem - I love gardening and plants more than I like brewing beer, if that's possible. I've heard of using diluted hydrogen peroxide to provide additional oxygen to the roots of plants that had poor drainage and were waterlogged (after the drainage problem was fixed first), but I don't know how it affects gnats or their larvae. I would just go with the additional drainage holes and let the soil dry out a bit. It sounds like the plants are doing ok, so sit back, have a home brew and watch them grow...

Cool, thanks.

 

[HItransplant]

On a partially related note...

If you get the gnats in your plants when you bring them inside, you can put a layer of playground sand on top of the soil in the pot. That way, gnats can't get down to the soil to lay their eggs. After a short time, you won't have any gnats.

That, or repot them with fresh potting soil.

Potting soil is brand new...so I don't really want to go there... But the sand is an awesome idea.

 

[ChshreCat]

Potting soil is brand new... But the sand is an awesome idea.

Keep in mind that if you put sand in the pot with your hops, it might make it hard for shoots to come up. I've mainly used it for established plants that I was moving inside or for houseplants. Basically, stuff that had the plant already growing so I didn't plan on anything new coming up. Not sure what effect it might have.

 

[MikeRoBrew1]

The soil is retaining too much water. The gnats lay eggs in the soil. Watering less will not make them go away once you already have the gnats.

You should seriously consider putting an inch of sand on the topsoil and the gnats will go away. This will not stop new shoots in the slightest bit. This has worked for me like a charm in the past. It won't 'mess up your new potting soil' in any way either.

 

[HItransplant]

The soil is retaining too much water. The gnats lay eggs in the soil. Watering less will not make them go away once you already have the gnats.

You should seriously consider putting an inch of sand on the topsoil and the gnats will go away. This will not stop new shoots in the slightest bit. This has worked for me like a charm in the past. It won't 'mess up your new potting soil' in any way either.

All right...another vote for sand. What about diatomaceous earth?

 

[MikeRoBrew1]

< What about diatomaceous earth?>

That will work too, however it holds more water than the sand, so I still recommend sand. It's just a little sand, it doesn't hurt the plant in the slightest. A little confused at your hesitation?

After the gnats are gone, the sand can be mixed right into the soil if you transplant or add some new soil, etc if you really want, but I would leave it there so they never come back.

Next time just use some different soil that is lighter (ie more peat, perlite, etc.) or mix those things into the soil you already bought.

Fungus gnats are called 'the Borg' and can be hard to get rid of. They have a slow but life-sapping effect. The sand will kick their butts.

 

[HItransplant]

< What about diatomaceous earth?>

That will work too, however it holds more water than the sand, so I still recommend sand. It's just a little sand, it doesn't hurt the plant in the slightest. A little confused at your hesitation?

After the gnats are gone, the sand can be mixed right into the soil if you transplant or add some new soil, etc if you really want, but I would leave it there so they never come back.

Next time just use some different soil that is lighter (ie more peat, perlite, etc.) or mix those things into the soil you already bought.

Fungus gnats are called 'the Borg' and can be hard to get rid of. They have a slow but life-sapping effect. The sand will kick their butts.

Not hesitant, just curious... Just a few mm will do? Oh, and is there a particular type of sand? Does the sand defeat the larvae?

I think my problem is I had the pot in the dirt alongside my house where the rain could still hit it... Its been a wet and cold spring so the soil has stayed pretty wet (plus, the plant isnt sucking much up since it's so small).

I'm worried about mixing things in at this point as I don't want to disturb the plant...

Thanks!

 

[ChshreCat]

Playground sand is what you want. It's cheap and it doesn't retain water. It's the stuff meant to go into sandboxes for kids to play with and it's used because the rainwater will wash through it rather than stay in it.

 

[MikeRoBrew1]

Yup, Chshre has it right. Just any old cheap playground sand will do. The sand does not retain ANY water, the water passes right through it. The sand creates a dry barrier that the gnats cannot lay eggs in. That is the key. Sand won't disturb the plant at all, whether it's laying sand on the surface or sand mixed with the soil. I would recommend about 1/2" of sand at least.

A couple of mine are outside in small pots and they have gotten drenched too. I try to move them under the eaves of the house before a big storm, but taking the tray out from under the plant seems to do fine.

 

[HItransplant]

Yup, Chshre has it right. Just any old cheap playground sand will do. The sand does not retain ANY water, the water passes right through it. The sand creates a dry barrier that the gnats cannot lay eggs in. That is the key. Sand won't disturb the plant at all, whether it's laying sand on the surface or sand mixed with the soil. I would recommend about 1/2" of sand at least.

A couple of mine are outside in small pots and they have gotten drenched too. I try to move them under the eaves of the house before a big storm, but taking the tray out from under the plant seems to do fine.

Do I need to do anything to kill the larvae or just put sand and let mother nature to the rest?

thanks.. im off to find a playground .

 

[theredben]

No need to kill the larvae, change the environment and you fix the problem.

 

[ChshreCat]

You'll have to put up with one last generation of gnats, but they won't be able to reproduce.

edit: Oh, and their lifespan is only about a week so you'll see them going away almost immediately.

 

[HItransplant]

You'll have to put up with one last generation of gnats, but they won't be able to reproduce.

edit: Oh, and their lifespan is only about a week so you'll see them going away almost immediately.

Great!
Thanks to all for the help.

One more question...the pot I originally planted in wasn't very big, but it was all I had at the time...well I found a bigger pot (it's going to drain better too).

Is there a problem if I carefully repot now?

 

[HItransplant]

ok, so i just repotted... mostly to put in a bigger pot with better drainage.. had a little trouble keeping the plant completely un-disturbed, however, I think the rootball stayed intact with its dirt, so hopefully this little guy wont take too much of a break before it settles into its new home.. so much nicer.

I added sand mixed into the soil per the guy at the nurserys suggestion-- to help increase drainage. I also added a half inch of sand on top after repotting-- looks like a Japanese rock garden.

There was definitely wet soil in the bottom half of my pot (probably because the roots only go about 4-6 inches down)... suggesting the overwatering theory is likey the culprit.

anyway, Im gonna let it go a couple of days before watering, in order to make sure it dries out completely. And, when I start watering, im going to try to add enough water only to wet the top few inches---

sound like a good plan?

thanks everyone.. im a little neurotic, so pardon my 20 questions.


p.s. In the time its taken me to figure this all out, 3-4 days, this plant has reached the edge of the pot and I was able to put up the first string tonight after repotting.. hopefully this is the start of a beautiful relationship

 

[MikeRoBrew1]

Sure, repotting will help if you increase the drainage. Light fluffy soil with perlite and peat. Sometimes I put golf ball sized rocks at the bottom. Sand on top for sure if you have gnats still. Resist the urge to water it until the soil is dry to the touch an inch down. Maybe once or twice a week tops, with 1-2 cups of water unless its bigger.

 

[HItransplant]

Sure, repotting will help if you increase the drainage. Light fluffy soil with perlite and peat. Sometimes I put golf ball sized rocks at the bottom. Sand on top for sure if you have gnats still. Resist the urge to water it until the soil is dry to the touch an inch down. Maybe once or twice a week tops, with 1-2 cups of water unless its bigger.

Yeah, I think my problem was too much water rather than watering too often....I wasn't keeping the size of the root ball in mind.

I think I'll give it a cup once a week until 1. The plant gets bigger, and/or 2. It gets hotter...we are still in the 70s here for a high.

The new pot has a ton of big drainage holes along the bottom edge...plus, I broke up some clay pots for the bottom 2-4 inches...Oh, and I added sand into the soil...just a little

Thanks again for the help...any ideas why my first few leaf pairs have white in the grooves ?


Recent pic

 

[MikeRoBrew1]

Ya, nice pic, that new pot looks great. Update us in a couple weeks if the gnats are gone. White leaf veins on only the older leaves may be related to the gnats or the stress the plant received. If the new growth looks okay, I wouldnt be too concerned. Lookin good!

 

[HItransplant]

Ya, nice pic, that new pot looks great. Update us in a couple weeks if the gnats are gone. White leaf veins on only the older leaves may be related to the gnats or the stress the plant received. If the new growth looks okay, I wouldnt be too concerned. Lookin good!

Thanks man...
I saw some gnats the day after repotting and had some concerns... But the following few days they seemed to disappear. We will see what things look like when I get home tday

 

[MikeRoBrew1]

Well the flying ones are annoying, but it's the egg-laying that is the big problem. They breed INSIDE the rootball, if you were to break it open you would gag LOL. The sand prevents them from laying eggs AND keeps the larvae from turning into adults. It may be a couple weeks before they totally disappear.

 

[HItransplant]

sand seems to have worked.. that, or the increased average temp. thanks again for all the help!

 

[MikeRoBrew1]

Very glad to hear it! How are the hops doing? Mine are about 12' tall, starting to put out hop cones now too. My shortest one is still about 5' tall.

 

[HItransplant]

Very glad to hear it! How are the hops doing? Mine are about 12' tall, starting to put out hop cones now too. My shortest one is still about 5' tall.

Good. Approaching 10 ft.. I'm trying to plan for where they will go once they reach the roof...probably along the gutter.

No cones yet, but mine is a first year...I'm surprised to see some have already harvested...is this normal?

Pics: