I have little gnats in my kitchen window herbs - how to eliminate them?

Question

I'm growing catnip, rosemary & basil. I'm not sure what they're subsisting off of in the plants and using a dustbuster to try & suck them up wasn't very effective. Can anyone help? I really don't want gnats in my food prep area.

Answer 1

could be fungus gnats, the larvae live in the soil off the decomposing vegetation, and peaty soil will make the problem worse. You can try removing the top 2" of soil and replace with fresh mix or horticultural sand. Check the drainage holes as well. Do not overwater, herbs don't like too much anyway. I have used a dilute peroxide solution two tablespoons to a pint water spray on the soil surface, not the plant. I have heard of fabric softener sheets or plastic wrap on the soil surface. You have to be careful what you spray isn't toxic to you, you eat the leaves of the plant. I would also try to catch some and look up fungus gnats to be sure that's what you have. Look up on the web to see.

Answer 2

They make little traps with sticky stuff on them to catch those critters. You can get them at the hardware store or Wal Mart. You may have brought those gnats home from the grocery store in your flour or other grain. They lay larvae in dark corners of your pantry, under cans and jars or in corners. You need to check carefully everywhere and make sure that all of the larvae are removed too. They also make an electronic bug catcher that attracts them and captures them using ultraviolet light. They are less than $30 at Costco and include an outdoor bug zapper too.

Answer 3

Here is the super easy answer.
The soil is too wet.
Gnats will lay eggs in wet soil, and be a problem for a long time.
You can re-pot.
You can mix up a low concentrate mix of bleach or peroxide to water with.
You can use a horticulture soap spray.
I suggest leaving plants outside and letting them dry out or my personal favorite is to junk existing plants and start over.

Answer 4

Hi,
All the possible suggestions of where they are coming from are really good and for sure likely, but have you considered that they might be coming from your potted plants inside your house?
I had this concern earlier this year.
I bought a product called, "KNOCK-OUT GNATS" from www.gardensalive.com .
It is a soil drench, biological larvicide of the "Bacillus thuringiensis", subspecies "israelensis".
This is the same bacteria that is in "mosquito-dunks" you would out in birdbaths and such to control mosquitoes.
It's totally non-toxic to everything but the gnats' larvae that grow and mature in your plants soil from feeding on decaying roots, and etc.
The presence of gnats can indicate "root-rot" starting in your plants, because of over watering or disease in soil such as undesirable fungus' growth, which attracts these, "fungus-gnats".
This treatment is used by professional greenhouse growers and hobbists.
This product is very reasonable in cost, check it out.
Hope this helps,
Dave

Answer 5

You could us Flying Insect Spray You could spray the room, not the plants directly and close the room for 15-20 mins,depending on how long it takes.
My mom uses hair spray. I know that getting them wet is a way to kill them easier.

Answer 6

My kookum told me that after you are done dishes, instead of dumping out all that water, fill up a spray bottle and spray your plants with it. It keeps away all the little critters and will not harm your plant! :)