How to combat fungus gnats during cook?

Northwood said:

I don't think bagged sifted worm castings have a lot of nematodes or predatory mites in it, and I bet not even many live worms either. For the real benefit of worm castings, you pretty much have to use fresh castings straight from your own worm bin.

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The Wiggle Worm was loaded with hypoaspis miles and nematodes. I'm using the BAS stuff now from Colorado Worm Company. But they had some other stuff before that had other critters too like Big Eyed Bugs. Watched a Big Eyed Bug eat a mite right before my eyes under a microscope a couple years ago.

PadawanWarrior said:

The Wiggle Worm was loaded with hypoaspis miles and nematodes. I'm using the BAS stuff now from Colorado Worm Company. But they had some other stuff before that had other critters too like Big Eyed Bugs. Watched a Big Eyed Bug eat a mite right before my eyes under a microscope a couple years ago.

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Cool! You're lucky in that regard. Around here they just sell stuff in bags lying in the sun in garden centers during spring-summer. They don't even store them in the fridge or anything. It's always very sterile unfortunately The good news is that some bacteria are likely still alive that survive the processing and stuff. But no way would you even find a viable worm cocoon!

Northwood said:

Cool! You're lucky in that regard. Around here they just sell stuff in bags lying in the sun in garden centers during spring-summer. They don't even store them in the fridge or anything. It's always very sterile unfortunately The good news is that some bacteria are likely still alive that survive the processing and stuff. But no way would you even find a viable worm cocoon!

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Never saw any worms or cocoons, but lots of hypoaspis. The were probably eating fungus gnats in the warmed up bag in my recroom.

There was cocoons in some of the stuff from BAS though.

It was like I was breeding them kinda. I still have the bag downstairs. I'm sure everything is dead or dormant by now, but I should look sometime for the hell of it.

Years ago, I got thousands of little black ants from a couple bags of Wiggle Worm Castings.

hillbill said:

Years ago, I got thousands of little black ants from a couple bags of Wiggle Worm Castings.

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it pays to be on guard .

Another option and powerful product to have in your garden to break the larvae cycle of the gnat is to integrate the use of MICROBE-LIFT/BMC into your watering's once your begin using the soil. A little goes a long way and I've found it to be very effective.

CaliRootz88 said:

Another option and powerful product to have in your garden to break the larvae cycle of the gnat is to integrate the use of MICROBE-LIFT/BMC into your watering's once your begin using the soil. A little goes a long way and I've found it to be very effective.

Amazon.com : Microbe-Lift BMC Liquid Mosquito Control, 2 oz : Patio, Lawn & Garden

Amazon.com : Microbe-Lift BMC Liquid Mosquito Control, 2 oz : Patio, Lawn & Garden

www.amazon.com

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Needs repeating so I did.
Gnatrol works the same and as well.
The Mosquito Bits and Dunks are weaker than we want.

CaliRootz88 said:

Another option and powerful product to have in your garden to break the larvae cycle of the gnat is to integrate the use of MICROBE-LIFT/BMC into your watering's once your begin using the soil. A little goes a long way and I've found it to be very effective.

Amazon.com : Microbe-Lift BMC Liquid Mosquito Control, 2 oz : Patio, Lawn & Garden

Amazon.com : Microbe-Lift BMC Liquid Mosquito Control, 2 oz : Patio, Lawn & Garden

www.amazon.com

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Won't this technically hurt the nematodes. I suppose they're cheap enough to replenish.

hillbill said:

Needs repeating so I did.
Gnatrol works the same and as well.
The Mosquito Bits and Dunks are weaker than we want.

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I'd imagine I could run this through my blumat pump system without issue? I have a fertilizer doser in line with the pump system and a bypass manifold. All irrigation or fertigation cycles are pushed through blumat bluesoak.

Northwood said:

Cool! You're lucky in that regard. Around here they just sell stuff in bags lying in the sun in garden centers during spring-summer. They don't even store them in the fridge or anything. It's always very sterile unfortunately The good news is that some bacteria are likely still alive that survive the processing and stuff. But no way would you even find a viable worm cocoon!

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I just don't go to garden centers/hydro shops for mine, we have a few places within an hour or so that will sell bulk vermicompost/castings I pay like 350 bucks for 100gallons and thats usually enough for all of my indoor and outdoor gardening for the entire year. You'd probably be surprised if you looked on Reddit/Facebook marketplace/Craigslist in your area what's available, we even have a place that sells bulk rabbit manure near me.

McShnutz said:

Won't this technically hurt the nematodes. I suppose they're cheap enough to replenish.

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This will not hurt nematodes. They can both be used together to break the larve cycle of fungus gnats.
Products such has Gnatrol/Mosquito Bits/Dunks and MICROBE-LIFT/BMC have the active component BTi. (Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis (Bti).
This is only harmful to mosquito and fungus gnat larvae.
I recommend MICROBE-LIFT/BMC because its more concentrated and liquid form. Mosquito dunks and bits are not as concentrated. With dunks and bits you typically want to use a strainer bag when soaking them in your water (added step) vs. MICROBE-LIFT/BMC you add two drops per 5gal of water for a more potent and easier mix.

@McShnutz MICROBE-LIFT/BMC is water soluble and safe for irrigation and hydroponics.

Gumdrawp said:

I just don't go to garden centers/hydro shops for mine, we have a few places within an hour or so that will sell bulk vermicompost/castings I pay like 350 bucks for 100gallons and thats usually enough for all of my indoor and outdoor gardening for the entire year. You'd probably be surprised if you looked on Reddit/Facebook marketplace/Craigslist in your area what's available, we even have a place that sells bulk rabbit manure near me.

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Yeah I was referring to non-fresh castings that they sell at places like Home Depot that are most accessible, or from popular brands online. Having your own perpetual supply of fresh castings from your own bins isn't bad a bad thing though. 100 gallons is a LOT of castings though for me to produce! Lol

VincenzioVonHook said:

Hey all, I'm trying to cook an organic mix. It's your usual peat/compost with Neem, kelp, alfalfa, coconut, soybean and alfalfa meal. Dolomite lime, ground phosphate and volcanic rock as mineral.

Within three days of cook in a bin there is hundreds of fungus gnats.

Is there anything I can mix in that will deter gnats while keeping the medium safe for use?

This is the second time I've tried to cook an organic mix, and within a week it's a swarm in my back yard.

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diatomaceous earth, nematodes and BT. I was told nematodes will not reproduce in BT infected host but if this is true it will still get what grubs that the Bt dosent.
You can try neem but my 1st time using neem I saw adults walking across dry neem in the soil. Maybe it works better for grubs

BestBudz_Grow said:

Hypoaspis Miles and yellow sticky traps hanging above or mosquito bits

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Sticky traps is a nice touch as catching 1 adult female prevents up to 200 eggs being laid in your garden

Thanks for all the advice in this thread. I have been dealing with the same problem in my grow and just grabbed some gnatrol granules and sticky traps today. Gave them a good soaking and placed traps where I could fit them in. Good luck with your issue OP.

After 3 months of using peroxide to try and deal with these little bastards one drench with the Gnatrol and hanging the traps has cut the population down more than I could have even hoped for. I still have a couple flying around but I need to be follow up with a couple more gnatrol applications to break the breeding cycle. Thank you guys so much. I was getting ready to go with napalm. It was getting personal.

FirstCavApache64 said:

After 3 months of using peroxide to try and deal with these little bastards one drench with the Gnatrol and hanging the traps has cut the population down more than I could have even hoped for. I still have a couple flying around but I need to be follow up with a couple more gnatrol applications to break the breeding cycle. Thank you guys so much. I was getting ready to go with napalm. It was getting personal.

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You're going to have to continue repeated applications of Gnatrol to keep populations under control, as Bti doesn't reproduce indoors, or persist for long periods of time. It's just the nature of the bacterium trying to compete with preexisting microbial populations in your soil mix.

If needed, there are better long term control options in Hypoaspis miles and/or Steinernema feltiae, available here....

https://www.naturesgoodguys.com/

"Three commercially available biological control agents can be purchased to control fungus gnats in pots or container media (Table 1). These include Steinernema nematodes, Hypoaspis predatory mites, and the biological insecticide Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis (Bti). Several Bti products (Mosquito Bits, Gnatrol) are readily available in retail nurseries and garden centers, so these products may be the most convenient for home gardeners to use. Bti does not reproduce or persist indoors, so infestations in potting media might require repeated applications at about five-day intervals to provide control. Nematodes and Hypoaspis mites must be mail-ordered and are live and perishable products, requiring immediate application. Nematodes can provide relatively long-term control of fungus gnat larvae, and they can be self-reproducing after several inoculative applications to establish their populations. Steinernema feltiae is more effective against fungus gnats than other commercially available nematode species. Mix Bti or nematodes with water, and apply as a soil drench, or spray onto media using a hand-pump spray bottle or other spray equipment, following label directions."

The predatory mites are what I want to go to eventually but for now it was a cost issue. The Gnatrol was 22 dollars for a bag that will make a ton of applications and the shipping costs for the predatory mites was like 38 dollars just for the shipping. I like the idea of natural solutions and good bugs play a part in my outdoor garden with praying mantis and lady bugs so I hope to bring these predatory mites into my tent to help soon. Thanks for the advice on them and reapplying the bti. I'm about due to reapply but waiting for the soil to dry out a bit more. I'm just happy as hell to see an improvement in their numbers. Every one of them stuck on the cards makes me smile which is kinda sick I know, but these things drive me crazy.

Richard Drysift said:

Yes I just drape mesh over top of the bin; over the lid. There is some space (3-5 cm) between where the vermicompost lays and the lip of the bin. Under the lip mesh is secured with a bungee. I would guess many hundreds of fungus gnats born of the bin tried finding their way out only to die of exhaustion…their rotting carcasses consumed by worms..the poor little bastards.

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Your name and avatar makes me want to watch Jaws

CaliRootz88 said:

This will not hurt nematodes. They can both be used together to break the larve cycle of fungus gnats.
Products such has Gnatrol/Mosquito Bits/Dunks and MICROBE-LIFT/BMC have the active component BTi. (Bacillus thuringiensis subspecies israelensis (Bti).
This is only harmful to mosquito and fungus gnat larvae.
I recommend MICROBE-LIFT/BMC because its more concentrated and liquid form. Mosquito dunks and bits are not as concentrated. With dunks and bits you typically want to use a strainer bag when soaking them in your water (added step) vs. MICROBE-LIFT/BMC you add two drops per 5gal of water for a more potent and easier mix.

@McShnutz MICROBE-LIFT/BMC is water soluble and safe for irrigation and hydroponics.

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Got mine!!!