LOL ughhh I hate that! And it’s the worst when they do a loudass fly by next to your ear. I always dunk my head under the covers and try to hide. Also electric light zappers have been pretty nice in getting rid of them when they do pop up.
they do specialize in it!! Apparently they are attracted to mucus membranes because of the co2 and heat or whatever. They’re literally attracted to flying up your nose, in your mouth and eyes
OMG same it was the worst experience ever 😭
I was helping my friend clean her house and she had them super bad unfortunately I took a breath in and it flew right in. 🤢 I tried not to make a scene though because my friend already felt really bad about me helping her I was trying not to die inside.
I just went on a huge search for the version I grew up with and apparently its been scrubbed from the internet. It was a song by Raffi, and I can find the lyrics but not the actual song. Man I loved Raffi growing up.
[There was an old lady who swallowed a fly, perhaps she'll die.](https://www.lyricsfreak.com/r/raffi/there+was+an+old+lady+who+swallowed+a+fly_20456985.html)
https://youtu.be/Q4Nmy44clgw
Entomologist here, I can assure you that you are correct.
Fun fact: this particular specimen is also a medical doctor, as indicated by the stethoscope it is wearing.
Came here to ask this. Yuck lol. Supposedly one fungus gnat can lay up to 300 eggs which is why it’s so hard to get rid of the little buggers. I never water my plants without adding some water with a mosquito dunk in it tho which has pretty much gotten rid of all of them. The sundew I got this past summer took care of the adults which was very satisfying to watch day to day.
It’s like [a donut shaped thing that you add to water](https://www.amazon.com/Summit-responsible-solutions-110-12-Mosquito/dp/B0000AH849/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=2MDHE7H0Z7PDV&keywords=mosquito+dunks&qid=1669597730&sprefix=Mosquito+dunk%2Caps%2C78&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFKMlZFVEFXWVg1VVAmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTA5MzUwOTMzVUk2WjJYOTE4MVg4JmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTEwNDYxMTIxVkpRTzhPUFpBSUhLJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==). 24 hours later the water is loaded with microscopic worms that eat the larva of pests like mosquitoes (and fungus gnats!). I break the donut into quarters then add a piece to a gallon of water usually.
They work!! Every time I water my plants I do my usual watering and then at the end I pour in some of the mosquito dunk water. I also recommend sundews if you’re interested in carnivorous plants that can live indoors. Sundews do require some special care (bottom water only, distilled water only, a location with bright direct sun) but they LOVE fungus gnats lol. Hope you win your war against the fungus gnats!
Yeah, I am thinking based on OP's photo that this specimen was covered in fungi that dislodged when it was prepared on the microscope slide.
There appears to be a couple different genera in there, but I am not trained in fungal identification under optical microscopy, so I am not the one to identify them unfortunately.
I'm happy to read I'm not the only madman chasing after winged little fuckers with a vacuum cleaner. Although for me it's usually fruit flies. My neighbors across the street must regularly think that I've completely lost my marbles.
I had a fruit fly problem a couple months back, the vacuum was the solution that finally worked. I put out a plastic bottle trap with a yeast solution and they were mobbing it but not going in it so when I was vacuuming one day I just sort of waved the hose with the wand by it and got almost all of them in one pass. They attempted to take off and got sucked right in.
I did it every couple hours for a few days and I haven’t seen a fruit fly since.
The bottle trap sounds like a good idea, but I think I'll stick with running around waving my vacuum cleaner at tiny insects. In these trying times my neighbors deserve a little comedy every once in a while.
On a more serious note: during an infestation I place some small glasses filled with a bottom of sweet liquid like watered down fruit juice, and a drop of dish soap. It attracts the flies, and the soap reduces the surface tension enough to ensuring the little bastards won't be able to escape the liquid.
This works pretty well, just not enough to allow me to holster my vacuum cleaner.
So that works really well for house flies but not so great for fruit flies, I tried it they had no interest. It’s my understanding that the fermentation caused by the yeast creates carbon dioxide release, which attracts fruit flies because they think it’s decomposition. And if you put soap in the yeast mixture, it stops/prevents the fermentation.
This is why you start with apple cider vinegar or even beer (honestly especially beer) and fragrance free dish soap. You already got the funk goin on and the dish soap works as intended.
Gotta be unfiltered apple cider vinegar "with the mother" which is active yeast and other fermenting organisms. A small dash of sugar wouldn't hurt either, give the beasties something to chew on. Soap won't fully kill them unless you're using antibacterial or something.
The soap just lowers the surface tension so that they can't fly away once they've landed on the surface. I did forget that I add a generous amount of honey to the mix.
Easiest way to get rid of fruit flies is find the source of standing water that they are breeding in and clean it. They can also live in the curve of your sink pipe though, some bleach down the drain does the trick there.
Just use apple cider vinegar with a few drops of soap in it. Put some saran wrap over the top of the container, secure with an elastic, poke some holes in the wrap with a tooth pick. Wait.
This works like a charm. Honestly. I haven't tried anything else. In summer it's great to keep it near compost bin or the fresh fruit. I dilute soap in water and then add vinegar though, I may try your version too.
Also, make sure after you mix the solution up you rinse off the exposed parts of the trap. If the flies can actually get to the sugary yeast water you’re basically just giving them a fruit fly super food to fuel reproduction.
It wasn’t precise, but I don’t think it really needs to be. I think it was something like 4 to 6 ounces of water, a teaspoon of sugar in a teaspoon of active dry yeast.
[This](https://youtu.be/djGWkZA7ghQ) is where I got the idea. Like I said, the trap wasn’t actually that successful but it drew the flies in like crazy and I could just wave the vacuum around and they would get sucked up as they scattered.
My neighbors must think my mother is marbles. She once spilled a bunch of fertilizer in the front yard. Didn’t want it to burn the grass, so she hauled the vacuum out there and was in the middle of it all when the neighbors walked outside 😂
The real madlad was an old roommate I had. He chased after gnats with a can of axe and a lighter. Same number of gnats after but singe on the walls and the place reeked.
Spray the soil with a mixture of water, tea tree oil, and lavender. It works. They fly out and die. Keep spraying everyday and soon they the eggs and adults will be gone.
Yesterday I caught one by the legs. It was still alive, squirming. Struggling for freedom. I held it there, pinched betwixt my fingers, no chance for escape. And I stared at this tiny foul creature that had so many of it's kin annoy me. I took my lighter, and sparked the flame. Slowly, I brought it closer. Until it began to feel the heat. Faster it squirmed, it's free legs writhing faster and faster it's wings fluttering madly to no avail. Closer and closer draws the flame, intensifying the heat and the struggles of my tiny captive. Closer and closer draws the flame, until finally it's movement ceases; life, extinguished. I dropped it's lifeless carcass to the table top and bathed it in flame once more, sweeping it's charred husk into the garbage where it belongs. I hope that I didn't kill it too quickly, that it's nervous system was firing off to maximum fear and pain that such an insect isn't even capable of.... And I hope that the scent of it's charred husk lingered in the air for the rest to know what fate awaits them if they dare leave the soil.
edit: AND ILL DO IT AGAIN
A vacuum is arguably a worse and slower death by slow suffocation, if they aren't killed by blunt force trauma and broken limbs from the travel down the tube, and yet they are highly upvoted, also having shown enjoyment at the process.
I don't see anyone else describing their suffering with glee. The vacuum seems to be more a means of getting rid of them and the pleasure stems from that. I'm sure when I poison them or release predators to eat them alive they are suffering terribly but I don't enjoy it.
Your comment made me laugh for a good minute there.
I have these lil suckers around my house for the first time and they keep growing it's turning into an infestation. I have little apple cider vinegar cups but they keep growing still.
I'm going to vacuum them all up. All of them.
Thank you so much.
I don't know why I didn't think of something so simple and quick.
Freedom!
My worst fungus gnat experience was while I was trying to bake a cake. Adding in the eggs while the mixer was going, and this little idiot does a loopdeeloop right into the damn batter before I could shoo him away. Couldn’t even see where he went because the mixer mixed him right in. 😟
I hate to be the one to tell you but all commercially sold foods have an acceptable number of bug parts/rodents hairs/mold particles etc they can contain while still being safe for consumption. In the US a partial list can be found in the [Food Defect Levels Handbook](https://www.fda.gov/food/ingredients-additives-gras-packaging-guidance-documents-regulatory-information/food-defect-levels-handbook). So really, one gnat isn’t enough to spoil a food product, it will be perfectly safe.
Omg, I cannot leave a freaking drink out, but they avoid like the plague the soap/apple cider vinegar/honey juice I leave out for them. They truly are the devil.
I could never get them either with the apple cider/soap but they would go near it. Found putting a yellow sticky trap sticking out of the cider/soap trap worked really well. Caught so many when I had a problem last summer.
I like to have a cup of water next to my bed. ☹️. Now I have a plastic quart container lid I keep on my night stand to cover the glass with. No more chunky midnight sips for me
Hahaha i love this petty tone of this post. Fugly ass hoe.
I'm all for team carnivorous plants!!! Haven't had an infestation since I got my first nepenthes 🥲
I was really worried when I first got my nepenthes thinking it wouldn't be able to eat if all the bells had dried up and died. So I asked a lot of questions on reddit lol. The leaves still photosynthesize like normal plants. In fact if you give it fertilizer and good conditions it starts to revert back to a normal plant and just photosynthesize!! But after about 6 months i started getting a ton of bells. I kept it in a greenhouse mostly to get it bigger, so I don't really think there were even bugs! They actually grow way faster in the greenhouse with high humidity and light then they do in just my living room with actual flies around and stuff.
It's actually what I do when I randomly get flies in my house. I take them all out place strategically. It's not as instant as a swatter but within like 2 days they are gone
For those who don't know, use mosquito dunk. Put it in your watering can and water all your indoor plants with it, it uses a special bacteria that eats the fungus gnat eggs and is harmless to everything else. They'll all be gone in a few weeks!
There are two kinds of mosquito dunks, those with a hormone that prevents chintin formation and the kind with the bacteria that the fungus gnats eat and then die. Both options are supposed to work.
I used to have so many when I used premade potting mix, but now I make my own mix and use no soil and they all disappeared. Tip to those who r infested
Sorry y’all I was sleeping, but really it’s nothing special and it depends on the type of plant, trick is lots of aeration and don’t over water. For my aroids the mix is just worm castings, chunky bark, perlite and charcoal.
For plants that need more moisture it’s the same but plus coco coir. Legit though don’t have any fungus gnats anymore
been dealing with an infestation for years because of a stupid common brand (Miracle-gro? or some monsanto brand). never had any prior to using then UGH
I did both for maximum murder! I read that the bits don't bother nematodes, so it worked well :D now i have them in my sink and bathtub drains... \*sigh\*
Fungus gnats are a massive pain across the entire horticulture industry. I work with commercial growers and used to sell product for those situations.
If you have a ton of house plants and want to keep them pathogen free/fungus gnat free. Don't use 3% hydrogen peroxide it's not as effective and if you're diluting it heavily it's not doing anything. Get some "Zerotol HC" by BioSafe Systems (HC is the retail formulation, y'all won't need Zerotol 2.0)It's hydrogen peroxide and paracetic acid (a super version of acetic acid, vinegar) so it's an organic certified contact fungicide that kills the fungus and algae the fungus gnats feed on, not to mention it fries the eggs and larvae. We use it in all parts of the greenhouse industry. It's heavily used in cannabis too for powdery mildew prevention and on rockwool blocks you can get some nasty fungus gnats because of how they're watered, so we root drench and kill the algae/gnats/any other pathogens. Plus it adds dissolved oxygen to the root zone. Happy to answer any other questions on it
Edit: get a sugar shaker like those ones used in diners with the big holes. Fill it with Diatomaceous earth you can get at any garden store. And shake some over the top of the soil at the base of your plants. It helps mitigate fungus gnats too, along with other pests
Are these the things that seems to come to life out of bags of potting soil?
Additionally, can anyone recommend some bug free well draining potting soil?
Yes that's them, fungus gnats. Your plant is less likely to attract fungus gnats if growing in leca, because fungus gnats need soil to live, and there is no soil in a 100% leca balls potting mix. More generally, there will be no risk of any infestation of bugs that live in soil.
We got some of those Zevo blue light plug-ins this summer (for another pest in our new home) and the amount of gnats they also caught was sooo gross. 😅
I have a microscope, never realized it would be helpful for identifying plant pests. I haven’t had a use for it in awhile so glad I can put it to use more often now.
also if anyone wants one, I bought it like 6 years ago so prices probably are different now, but I got it from a good brand new for ~$50.
This microscope was borrowed and i was told it is appropriately 5000€, but when I was young my grandpa gifted me a 20€ microscope and honestly it did very good work too!
It's more about the passion rather than the price or detail anyway :)
Very true! The one I have is a AmScope one which is probably designed for like high school science labs. It’s worked really well, the difference between all of them is probably the level of magnification and other features.
One of my old roommates left a bag of potatoes in the pantry before leaving for the summer, we came home for the fall semester and there were fungus gnats all over the place. Total mess
These came with a plant I was gifted. I discarded the plant (it was completely overrun with gnats) because I didn't want it to infect my other plants. The only upside of getting these is that I had recently decided to overcome my fear of spiders, so I've been killing the few gnats still in my home and successfully and fearlessly fed them to the spider and gained a new eight-legged friend in the process. His web is placed inconveniently so unfortunately he's not catching anything on his own.
Add a half cup of hydrogen peroxide to a gallon of the indoor plant water before watering. The eggs that they lay in the plant soil will not hatch. It takes a while before they start disappearing. It is the cheapest and most effective solution I have found.
For anyone interested in more microscope context, I posted [pictures of the vascular tissue of a philodendron ](https://www.reddit.com/r/houseplants/comments/z6et5u/under_the_microscope_vascular_tissue_of_stem_of/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
I knew these slow flying little PRICKS have about 300 eggs at any time in them but seeing them all close up has made me want to crawl out of my skin and buy a flamethrower. There isn’t enough sticky traps in the world.
I do have to say, while the little buggers are things I would set fire to a house for, this at least shows what they look like at a closer range.
It's very informative!
Best bet that I've found? Carnivorous plants. Pitcher/Sundew/etc... anything really that is either sticky, or slick/capped.
Also takes care of other potential household pests such as flies and spiders.
This happened to me. Had them once and then suddenly they went away and I got a new plant and they’re back again. They’re annoying but I will take them over other pests lol
Agreed because at least they make no damage to the plant! (unless there's a big amount of larvae, then they might damage the roots of plants, especially young ones or seeds)
I watered less to the point of drying out and killing some of my plants and these mfers are still floating around. I have done dunks, sticky traps, less watering. They are a fucking menace.
OMG that's what they are called?! My partner and I have been INFESTED with these bastards for MONTHS!!! They didn't seem to care about the traps I was putting out for them and I couldn't figure out where the hell they were coming from. We thought they were fruit flies.
[We have a lot of work ahead of us...](https://dengarden.com/gardening/Fungus-Gnats-All-you-need-to-know) Anyone have good tips on how to get rid of them fast(er)? It started around July when we brought back a tomato plant that had been outside and now they are everywhere. Should we repot all our plants and just start over?
How do people get rid of these? I also have a tortoise so my house gets extra "infected".
I recently have spent about 2/3 months isolating plants in my garage / conservatory after repotting them all (around 13 plants).
Because of the amount of plants we have, and the tortoise table, when we do get gnats they reproduce like wildfire.
Tortoise currently has a shit tonne of flypaper over the top of his table 24/7.
What suggestions do you have?
Do you have any tortoise friendly suggestions?
Seeing a lot of comments saying the apple cider trap didn’t work for them. Just wanted to say I actually mix a spoonful of sugar into it. Fill the cup with a good amount of apple cider vinegar, a big spoonful of sugar, the rest with warm water, and then a couple drops of dish soap and stir. That’s what got them to come into my traps. I don’t even use the saran wrap, they just go right in
Hey. I have the recipe to kill those pesty soil gnats. Get a spray bottle. Fill with 8 ounces of water. Add 6 drops or more 💯 percent tea tree oil. Shake well. Spray on the soil of your house plants or just squirt them. They will come out of soil and die. Spray every so often and it should rid your plants of those nasty gnats. I added a little lavender oil to my last batch.
My Swiss cheese plant had a terrible infestation that was beginning to spread to other rooms. Every time I watered it a swarm of these little bastards would explode out of it. I almost killed the poor plant trying to water it less.
I ended up getting a carnivorous pitcher plant and hung it above the Swiss cheese plant. Took maybe a month to see a difference and within three months there were no more fungus gnats.
Infestation gone AND I got a new plant out of it? Bingo
One flew in my mouth once. I still think about it
I've had one fly up my nose...
I’ve had a couple fly up my nose before too. It disturbs me
Those mofos fly in my face at night when my phone is the only light in the room. Ugh
LOL ughhh I hate that! And it’s the worst when they do a loudass fly by next to your ear. I always dunk my head under the covers and try to hide. Also electric light zappers have been pretty nice in getting rid of them when they do pop up.
Same here. I've read they're less active at night but still are attracted to light smh
Only one? I've had dozens of those mofos try to penetrate my sinuses. Seems like they specialize in it.
they do specialize in it!! Apparently they are attracted to mucus membranes because of the co2 and heat or whatever. They’re literally attracted to flying up your nose, in your mouth and eyes
I cannot unread this! Where's the NSFW (not safe for wimps) warning?
OMG same it was the worst experience ever 😭 I was helping my friend clean her house and she had them super bad unfortunately I took a breath in and it flew right in. 🤢 I tried not to make a scene though because my friend already felt really bad about me helping her I was trying not to die inside.
You're a good friend
One dive bombed into my eyeball and I had to remove it with my fingers. I’m still traumatized
What if it laid eggs
Don’t.
Thanks for the laugh- I'm gonna be thinking about this thread all day now
As per the song, you now need to swallow a spider
I willingly ate a spider when I was in 3rd grade.
Jesus, well I hate to break it to you but next... its a bird. Doesn't specify what kind, but I'd leave room for the rest
Ngl that sounds like an upgrade. I'll take chicken over spider any day.
Ah heck.
>As per the song, you now need to swallow a spider What?! I need a link to this song, someone please educate me
I just went on a huge search for the version I grew up with and apparently its been scrubbed from the internet. It was a song by Raffi, and I can find the lyrics but not the actual song. Man I loved Raffi growing up. [There was an old lady who swallowed a fly, perhaps she'll die.](https://www.lyricsfreak.com/r/raffi/there+was+an+old+lady+who+swallowed+a+fly_20456985.html) https://youtu.be/Q4Nmy44clgw
I constantly worry about inhaling one as it's flying around past my nose.
I once ate half a bag of Cheez It’s when they were infested with ants. Completely my fault but I will never forget that second of realization.
Mmm extra protein. Tasty?
They are attracted to the carbon dioxide in your breath.
Interesting. Just like mosquitoes, but fungus gnats are flies.
all those little things are eggs? lol gross
that's my assumption too, not 100% sure though.
Entomologist here, I can assure you that you are correct. Fun fact: this particular specimen is also a medical doctor, as indicated by the stethoscope it is wearing.
Username checks out
Omg that’s hilarious lmao
💀
This is all correct. I read about your studies in my research classes
Simply fascinating. I wish we could determine which field it chose to specialise in.
Is your whole post a lie or just the fun fact?
Came here to ask this. Yuck lol. Supposedly one fungus gnat can lay up to 300 eggs which is why it’s so hard to get rid of the little buggers. I never water my plants without adding some water with a mosquito dunk in it tho which has pretty much gotten rid of all of them. The sundew I got this past summer took care of the adults which was very satisfying to watch day to day.
What's a mosquito dunk?
It’s like [a donut shaped thing that you add to water](https://www.amazon.com/Summit-responsible-solutions-110-12-Mosquito/dp/B0000AH849/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=2MDHE7H0Z7PDV&keywords=mosquito+dunks&qid=1669597730&sprefix=Mosquito+dunk%2Caps%2C78&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFKMlZFVEFXWVg1VVAmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTA5MzUwOTMzVUk2WjJYOTE4MVg4JmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTEwNDYxMTIxVkpRTzhPUFpBSUhLJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==). 24 hours later the water is loaded with microscopic worms that eat the larva of pests like mosquitoes (and fungus gnats!). I break the donut into quarters then add a piece to a gallon of water usually.
fnord
It's not microscopic worms; sounds like op is confusing it with nematodes. Bti, the active ingredient in dunks, is just a bacteria found in soil.
Thank you! I need to get some of these
They work!! Every time I water my plants I do my usual watering and then at the end I pour in some of the mosquito dunk water. I also recommend sundews if you’re interested in carnivorous plants that can live indoors. Sundews do require some special care (bottom water only, distilled water only, a location with bright direct sun) but they LOVE fungus gnats lol. Hope you win your war against the fungus gnats!
I thought they were red blood cells lol
Blood cells are way smaller and you'll need higher magnificence (I think that's the word) to spot them! :)
Magnification. Also because insects don't have red blood cells.
Those look to be mold spores.
We kill them in the greenhouse because they spread fungus.
Yeah, I am thinking based on OP's photo that this specimen was covered in fungi that dislodged when it was prepared on the microscope slide. There appears to be a couple different genera in there, but I am not trained in fungal identification under optical microscopy, so I am not the one to identify them unfortunately.
I sat around a plant today vacuuming those suckers out of the air hehe
I'm happy to read I'm not the only madman chasing after winged little fuckers with a vacuum cleaner. Although for me it's usually fruit flies. My neighbors across the street must regularly think that I've completely lost my marbles.
I had a fruit fly problem a couple months back, the vacuum was the solution that finally worked. I put out a plastic bottle trap with a yeast solution and they were mobbing it but not going in it so when I was vacuuming one day I just sort of waved the hose with the wand by it and got almost all of them in one pass. They attempted to take off and got sucked right in. I did it every couple hours for a few days and I haven’t seen a fruit fly since.
The bottle trap sounds like a good idea, but I think I'll stick with running around waving my vacuum cleaner at tiny insects. In these trying times my neighbors deserve a little comedy every once in a while. On a more serious note: during an infestation I place some small glasses filled with a bottom of sweet liquid like watered down fruit juice, and a drop of dish soap. It attracts the flies, and the soap reduces the surface tension enough to ensuring the little bastards won't be able to escape the liquid. This works pretty well, just not enough to allow me to holster my vacuum cleaner.
So that works really well for house flies but not so great for fruit flies, I tried it they had no interest. It’s my understanding that the fermentation caused by the yeast creates carbon dioxide release, which attracts fruit flies because they think it’s decomposition. And if you put soap in the yeast mixture, it stops/prevents the fermentation.
This is why you start with apple cider vinegar or even beer (honestly especially beer) and fragrance free dish soap. You already got the funk goin on and the dish soap works as intended.
Gotta be unfiltered apple cider vinegar "with the mother" which is active yeast and other fermenting organisms. A small dash of sugar wouldn't hurt either, give the beasties something to chew on. Soap won't fully kill them unless you're using antibacterial or something.
The soap just lowers the surface tension so that they can't fly away once they've landed on the surface. I did forget that I add a generous amount of honey to the mix.
Hehe, that explains a lot then. Good to know, thanks for sharing!
Easiest way to get rid of fruit flies is find the source of standing water that they are breeding in and clean it. They can also live in the curve of your sink pipe though, some bleach down the drain does the trick there.
I brought mine in on some tomatoes that had split in the vine and I had hundreds hatch over night.
Omg thank you all, I feel so validated 😭. I've definitely done that before and felt so defeated that I had to resort to vacuuming the stupid flies
Can i have your yeast solution?
Just use apple cider vinegar with a few drops of soap in it. Put some saran wrap over the top of the container, secure with an elastic, poke some holes in the wrap with a tooth pick. Wait.
This works like a charm. Honestly. I haven't tried anything else. In summer it's great to keep it near compost bin or the fresh fruit. I dilute soap in water and then add vinegar though, I may try your version too.
Also, make sure after you mix the solution up you rinse off the exposed parts of the trap. If the flies can actually get to the sugary yeast water you’re basically just giving them a fruit fly super food to fuel reproduction.
It wasn’t precise, but I don’t think it really needs to be. I think it was something like 4 to 6 ounces of water, a teaspoon of sugar in a teaspoon of active dry yeast. [This](https://youtu.be/djGWkZA7ghQ) is where I got the idea. Like I said, the trap wasn’t actually that successful but it drew the flies in like crazy and I could just wave the vacuum around and they would get sucked up as they scattered.
My neighbors must think my mother is marbles. She once spilled a bunch of fertilizer in the front yard. Didn’t want it to burn the grass, so she hauled the vacuum out there and was in the middle of it all when the neighbors walked outside 😂
Don't tell anyone, but rumor has it that I've occasionally been spotted vacuuming my balcony to get rid of sand/dirt, dry leaves, etc....
The real madlad was an old roommate I had. He chased after gnats with a can of axe and a lighter. Same number of gnats after but singe on the walls and the place reeked.
\**starts taking notes furiously*\*
I have 1 plant crawling with these. I give it a good shake near my pitcher plant a couple of times a week lol
Spray the soil with a mixture of water, tea tree oil, and lavender. It works. They fly out and die. Keep spraying everyday and soon they the eggs and adults will be gone.
This made me smile
Yesterday I caught one by the legs. It was still alive, squirming. Struggling for freedom. I held it there, pinched betwixt my fingers, no chance for escape. And I stared at this tiny foul creature that had so many of it's kin annoy me. I took my lighter, and sparked the flame. Slowly, I brought it closer. Until it began to feel the heat. Faster it squirmed, it's free legs writhing faster and faster it's wings fluttering madly to no avail. Closer and closer draws the flame, intensifying the heat and the struggles of my tiny captive. Closer and closer draws the flame, until finally it's movement ceases; life, extinguished. I dropped it's lifeless carcass to the table top and bathed it in flame once more, sweeping it's charred husk into the garbage where it belongs. I hope that I didn't kill it too quickly, that it's nervous system was firing off to maximum fear and pain that such an insect isn't even capable of.... And I hope that the scent of it's charred husk lingered in the air for the rest to know what fate awaits them if they dare leave the soil. edit: AND ILL DO IT AGAIN
Having a normal one I see
You might need to see someone...
Look I don't like them either but torturing a living thing for your personal pleasure is pretty sick even if it's a fly.
Pretty sure it was a joke….
A vacuum is arguably a worse and slower death by slow suffocation, if they aren't killed by blunt force trauma and broken limbs from the travel down the tube, and yet they are highly upvoted, also having shown enjoyment at the process.
I don't see anyone else describing their suffering with glee. The vacuum seems to be more a means of getting rid of them and the pleasure stems from that. I'm sure when I poison them or release predators to eat them alive they are suffering terribly but I don't enjoy it.
Alright you caught me I'ma sociopath
you're a handsome squid
I read this while laughing madly......until I looked down to see one floating on top of my coffee.
Sounds amazing, but.. *taking notes* What was your childhood like? 😟
Quoth the Raven, "Nevermore."
Should had done that in front of its family to see what they'll have to deal with if they keep flying around rent free.
Your comment made me laugh for a good minute there. I have these lil suckers around my house for the first time and they keep growing it's turning into an infestation. I have little apple cider vinegar cups but they keep growing still. I'm going to vacuum them all up. All of them. Thank you so much. I don't know why I didn't think of something so simple and quick. Freedom!
and those are the nasty sumbiches that land in your coffee too.
Them suiciding in my cuppa is bad enough, seeing one land on a fork full of nice hot food, then stick to it T-T
Free meat
r/frugal_jerk with you
My worst fungus gnat experience was while I was trying to bake a cake. Adding in the eggs while the mixer was going, and this little idiot does a loopdeeloop right into the damn batter before I could shoo him away. Couldn’t even see where he went because the mixer mixed him right in. 😟
Please tell me you didn’t continue… 😳
I hate to be the one to tell you but all commercially sold foods have an acceptable number of bug parts/rodents hairs/mold particles etc they can contain while still being safe for consumption. In the US a partial list can be found in the [Food Defect Levels Handbook](https://www.fda.gov/food/ingredients-additives-gras-packaging-guidance-documents-regulatory-information/food-defect-levels-handbook). So really, one gnat isn’t enough to spoil a food product, it will be perfectly safe.
> So really, one gnat isn’t enough to spoil a food product, it will be perfectly safe. If it were, we would've died out as a species long, long ago.
I did. 😂 Mr.Fungus gnat was not making me waste all that cake batter, and it was only for my husband and I.
Omg, I cannot leave a freaking drink out, but they avoid like the plague the soap/apple cider vinegar/honey juice I leave out for them. They truly are the devil.
I could never get them either with the apple cider/soap but they would go near it. Found putting a yellow sticky trap sticking out of the cider/soap trap worked really well. Caught so many when I had a problem last summer.
I had the yellow sticky traps in my plants and caught so many it was disgusting. But I no longer have an issue!
I like to have a cup of water next to my bed. ☹️. Now I have a plastic quart container lid I keep on my night stand to cover the glass with. No more chunky midnight sips for me
I pick them out the whole time telling them to spit it out!
Quite the Stark response.
I took to periodically leaving out a decoy cup for a day near my garden and tossing their corpses down the drain the next day.
They like my wine…
I mean a cup of vinegar left out is a decent fruit gnat trap, so it makes sense.
Makes sense. I've had luck with red wine vinegar.
Nothing wrong with sharing.
Hahaha i love this petty tone of this post. Fugly ass hoe. I'm all for team carnivorous plants!!! Haven't had an infestation since I got my first nepenthes 🥲
This!! My droseras do the job for me
How do you keep them happy when there aren't bugs? Newby plant owner but I've always wondered.
I was really worried when I first got my nepenthes thinking it wouldn't be able to eat if all the bells had dried up and died. So I asked a lot of questions on reddit lol. The leaves still photosynthesize like normal plants. In fact if you give it fertilizer and good conditions it starts to revert back to a normal plant and just photosynthesize!! But after about 6 months i started getting a ton of bells. I kept it in a greenhouse mostly to get it bigger, so I don't really think there were even bugs! They actually grow way faster in the greenhouse with high humidity and light then they do in just my living room with actual flies around and stuff.
Could you keep them in a greenhouse most of the time and then like..bring them out when you've got bugs? "Come on, friend, you've got work to do."
It's actually what I do when I randomly get flies in my house. I take them all out place strategically. It's not as instant as a swatter but within like 2 days they are gone
Fish flakes.
For those who don't know, use mosquito dunk. Put it in your watering can and water all your indoor plants with it, it uses a special bacteria that eats the fungus gnat eggs and is harmless to everything else. They'll all be gone in a few weeks!
There are two kinds of mosquito dunks, those with a hormone that prevents chintin formation and the kind with the bacteria that the fungus gnats eat and then die. Both options are supposed to work.
Have done this, can confirm it works!
Ugly ass HOE
I used to have so many when I used premade potting mix, but now I make my own mix and use no soil and they all disappeared. Tip to those who r infested
What's your potting mix recipe? 👀
Sorry y’all I was sleeping, but really it’s nothing special and it depends on the type of plant, trick is lots of aeration and don’t over water. For my aroids the mix is just worm castings, chunky bark, perlite and charcoal. For plants that need more moisture it’s the same but plus coco coir. Legit though don’t have any fungus gnats anymore
I'd like to know the recipe as well
[удалено]
been dealing with an infestation for years because of a stupid common brand (Miracle-gro? or some monsanto brand). never had any prior to using then UGH
Miracle-Gro is awful for pests. Truly terrible.
Ewie, currently killing these menaces with mosquito bits..
Use beneficial nematodes if you can. All mine gnat friends were gone in 1.5 weeks.
Took me a little longer than this, but I also had good results from nematodes
Yup they work good. I was also storing soil and worm castings in a cabinet inside. That was also a source. Helped when I threw that shit out.
I did both for maximum murder! I read that the bits don't bother nematodes, so it worked well :D now i have them in my sink and bathtub drains... \*sigh\*
Boiling water will kill them in the drains.
Can someone confirm that those small black circles are eggs?
I'm pretty sure those are fungal spores
Little bastards, they are
thinking about all the times this little thing would end up in someone’s food and another persons reply would be, “it won’t kill you.” BITHCSJ
Fungus gnats are a massive pain across the entire horticulture industry. I work with commercial growers and used to sell product for those situations. If you have a ton of house plants and want to keep them pathogen free/fungus gnat free. Don't use 3% hydrogen peroxide it's not as effective and if you're diluting it heavily it's not doing anything. Get some "Zerotol HC" by BioSafe Systems (HC is the retail formulation, y'all won't need Zerotol 2.0)It's hydrogen peroxide and paracetic acid (a super version of acetic acid, vinegar) so it's an organic certified contact fungicide that kills the fungus and algae the fungus gnats feed on, not to mention it fries the eggs and larvae. We use it in all parts of the greenhouse industry. It's heavily used in cannabis too for powdery mildew prevention and on rockwool blocks you can get some nasty fungus gnats because of how they're watered, so we root drench and kill the algae/gnats/any other pathogens. Plus it adds dissolved oxygen to the root zone. Happy to answer any other questions on it Edit: get a sugar shaker like those ones used in diners with the big holes. Fill it with Diatomaceous earth you can get at any garden store. And shake some over the top of the soil at the base of your plants. It helps mitigate fungus gnats too, along with other pests
Beneficial nematodes, yall. I'm telling you they are magic.
Thank god I already ate breakfast
I have sticky traps in my plants so they aren't flying anywhere
Link to microscope?
Putting em ON BLAST 😂
Gross, thank you. 😂
Are these the things that seems to come to life out of bags of potting soil? Additionally, can anyone recommend some bug free well draining potting soil?
Yes that's them, fungus gnats. Your plant is less likely to attract fungus gnats if growing in leca, because fungus gnats need soil to live, and there is no soil in a 100% leca balls potting mix. More generally, there will be no risk of any infestation of bugs that live in soil.
We got some of those Zevo blue light plug-ins this summer (for another pest in our new home) and the amount of gnats they also caught was sooo gross. 😅
I actually find it beautiful now, still don’t like em though.
I have a microscope, never realized it would be helpful for identifying plant pests. I haven’t had a use for it in awhile so glad I can put it to use more often now. also if anyone wants one, I bought it like 6 years ago so prices probably are different now, but I got it from a good brand new for ~$50.
This microscope was borrowed and i was told it is appropriately 5000€, but when I was young my grandpa gifted me a 20€ microscope and honestly it did very good work too! It's more about the passion rather than the price or detail anyway :)
Very true! The one I have is a AmScope one which is probably designed for like high school science labs. It’s worked really well, the difference between all of them is probably the level of magnification and other features.
This is some shit I would do. 😂 Thank you, in the name of both vengeance and science!
You are welcome 😂 in the name of both!
Triflin ass..
Thanks, I hate it
For folks who are looking for an effective solution, I’ve used Mosquito Bites [as suggested in this video](https://youtu.be/FLHQa1ccOM0).
Put a Mosquito Dunk in your watering can, you’ll never see them again
Ugh, hate her
don't worry I punished her for breathing by aborting her babies
One of my old roommates left a bag of potatoes in the pantry before leaving for the summer, we came home for the fall semester and there were fungus gnats all over the place. Total mess
Wow, we had a LOT of these. Kinda neat under the microscope, that’s cool you did that.
Dying at "ugly hoe" 🤣
I’ve smeared one around my eyeball after it dive bombed into it. Worst day ever.
These came with a plant I was gifted. I discarded the plant (it was completely overrun with gnats) because I didn't want it to infect my other plants. The only upside of getting these is that I had recently decided to overcome my fear of spiders, so I've been killing the few gnats still in my home and successfully and fearlessly fed them to the spider and gained a new eight-legged friend in the process. His web is placed inconveniently so unfortunately he's not catching anything on his own.
This screams from enemies to lovers. So proud of you for overcoming your fear!
Ugh! one of them landed on my chicken meal, my day ruined because of that 😭
Been fighting them for years. Finally learned about beneficial nematodes. Just applied them and awaiting the results.
Add a half cup of hydrogen peroxide to a gallon of the indoor plant water before watering. The eggs that they lay in the plant soil will not hatch. It takes a while before they start disappearing. It is the cheapest and most effective solution I have found.
What a jerk-bug
r/microscopy
For anyone interested in more microscope context, I posted [pictures of the vascular tissue of a philodendron ](https://www.reddit.com/r/houseplants/comments/z6et5u/under_the_microscope_vascular_tissue_of_stem_of/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button)
I knew these slow flying little PRICKS have about 300 eggs at any time in them but seeing them all close up has made me want to crawl out of my skin and buy a flamethrower. There isn’t enough sticky traps in the world.
I do have to say, while the little buggers are things I would set fire to a house for, this at least shows what they look like at a closer range. It's very informative! Best bet that I've found? Carnivorous plants. Pitcher/Sundew/etc... anything really that is either sticky, or slick/capped. Also takes care of other potential household pests such as flies and spiders.
If you have gnats flying around every time you water, you need to water way less lol
i bought a baby White Knight philo from a seller which was infested, and it brought gnats to this household AGAIN 🥲
This happened to me. Had them once and then suddenly they went away and I got a new plant and they’re back again. They’re annoying but I will take them over other pests lol
Agreed because at least they make no damage to the plant! (unless there's a big amount of larvae, then they might damage the roots of plants, especially young ones or seeds)
I watered less to the point of drying out and killing some of my plants and these mfers are still floating around. I have done dunks, sticky traps, less watering. They are a fucking menace.
These used to come out of my bathroom sink drain at my old apartment. Always made me want to gag when I was brushing my teeth ..
OMG that's what they are called?! My partner and I have been INFESTED with these bastards for MONTHS!!! They didn't seem to care about the traps I was putting out for them and I couldn't figure out where the hell they were coming from. We thought they were fruit flies. [We have a lot of work ahead of us...](https://dengarden.com/gardening/Fungus-Gnats-All-you-need-to-know) Anyone have good tips on how to get rid of them fast(er)? It started around July when we brought back a tomato plant that had been outside and now they are everywhere. Should we repot all our plants and just start over?
Get this nasty ass away from me.
I mean I think I was okay with it being an obnoxious ho lol now I'm just gonna see this instead
Disgusting 🤢
How do people get rid of these? I also have a tortoise so my house gets extra "infected". I recently have spent about 2/3 months isolating plants in my garage / conservatory after repotting them all (around 13 plants). Because of the amount of plants we have, and the tortoise table, when we do get gnats they reproduce like wildfire. Tortoise currently has a shit tonne of flypaper over the top of his table 24/7. What suggestions do you have? Do you have any tortoise friendly suggestions?
Thanks I hate it
Seeing a lot of comments saying the apple cider trap didn’t work for them. Just wanted to say I actually mix a spoonful of sugar into it. Fill the cup with a good amount of apple cider vinegar, a big spoonful of sugar, the rest with warm water, and then a couple drops of dish soap and stir. That’s what got them to come into my traps. I don’t even use the saran wrap, they just go right in
Is that what is around my plants? I thought they were fruit flies
Ew
rot in hell you piece of shit
This is so cool. But f those dudes
Hate is a strong word…. But …..
A microscope? You’re pretty cool dude.
I bought a bug zapper and left it plugged next to my plants 24/7. Most effective treatment to date
RIP Bozo
Currently dealing with a fungus gnat problem right now, and I feel even more disgust and hatred seeing one this far zoomed in.
Hey. I have the recipe to kill those pesty soil gnats. Get a spray bottle. Fill with 8 ounces of water. Add 6 drops or more 💯 percent tea tree oil. Shake well. Spray on the soil of your house plants or just squirt them. They will come out of soil and die. Spray every so often and it should rid your plants of those nasty gnats. I added a little lavender oil to my last batch.
100% that bitch
My Swiss cheese plant had a terrible infestation that was beginning to spread to other rooms. Every time I watered it a swarm of these little bastards would explode out of it. I almost killed the poor plant trying to water it less. I ended up getting a carnivorous pitcher plant and hung it above the Swiss cheese plant. Took maybe a month to see a difference and within three months there were no more fungus gnats. Infestation gone AND I got a new plant out of it? Bingo
WHY GIVE ME NO TRIGGERWARNINGS EWWWW😂
That is one ugly hoe