A Word on Fungus Gnats

House plants are an essential addition to the home. They give a room a finished look. A healthy vibrant plant can be the perfect centerpiece or accent to the kitchen, living room, bedroom, or bathroom. It seems simple enough. Just add water - right? if only. The prudent plant owner must regularly inspect his plants for signs of fungus, bacteria, insects, and soil maladies. He must fertilize them regularly. He must know which plants can be fussed with and which one's can't. In short, being a plant owner requires a great deal of research and dedication. A fungus gnat outbreak, however, requires no careful examination. There will be gnats floating in the coffee cup you walked away from. there will be gnats floating in your bedside water leaving you to wonder how many of them you swallowed in the darkness. You will see them hovering around your plants in swarms. The fungus gnat is a close relative of the fruit fly. They feed on fungus in the soil, and they are not an uncommon insect in the great outdoors. Management of them seems easy in theory, but I have come to the conclusion that a plant owner can only hope to keep their population at manageable numbers. At first sight of a fungus gnat, I recommend the use of sticky traps. Tanglefoot is a great brand. sticky traps are pieces of bright yellow cardboard covered with an impossibly sticky substance that imobilizes the gnats immediately. you can trap hundreds of them this way. Spraying the soil with Neem oil, a Pyrethren based insecticide, or an organic fungicide/insecticide will kill the adults. However, such treatments must be repeated every week or so because the eggs in the soil are unaffected. A fungicide can be helpful since fungal matter is the fungus gnats food source. After a few weeks of treatment, sticky traps can be helpful in alerting you to future hatches. The quicker you get to the adults, the less time they will have to reproduce. I understand there is a variety of BT (Bacillus Therengensis) that will attack fungus gnats as well. However, I have yet to find a supplier. (BT is bacteria used in organic gardening to control certain insects.) Good luck. you will need it.