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  Fungus gnats
From: "Bonaventure W Magrys" magrysbo at shu.edu> on 2000.04.01 at 04:11:37(4299)
OK I need help------how do you get rid of fungus gnats?
Bonaventure

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From: "Paul Kruse" pkruse2000 at mindspring.com> on 2000.04.01 at 15:13:00(4302)
Fungus gnats not only feed on fungus, but the larvae may also feed on plant
roots or even enter plant stems.
The following chemicals have been used to control these pests. Be aware
that some chemicals might not be safe for certain plants.
Approved for greenhouse and interiorscape use: chlorpyrifos (Duraguard),
diazonon, and resmethrin.
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From: Scott Hyndman hyndman at aroid.org> on 2000.04.03 at 01:02:19(4327)
Take a look at http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/PESTNOTES/pn7448.html and
http://www.mycotech.com/horticulture/nemasys.shtml for plenty of good
information regarding the control of fungus gnats.

Good luck!

Scott

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From: Denis denis at skg.com> on 2000.04.03 at 22:02:06(4336)
Fungus gnats are common in places that stay too moist and damp and have lots of
decaying vegetable matter to feed their larvae. Your first course of action
should be to remove the conditions that are allowing the critters to breed and
thrive, improve santitation under benches etc. If this doesn't help then go to
the heavy duty insecticides, Dursban etc.

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From: "Bonaventure W Magrys" magrysbo at shu.edu> on 2000.04.06 at 01:47:24(4346)
Thanks! I especially liked the one about the beneficial nematodes. Can they
also
"crowd out" the tuber infecting kind?
My problem is I think that I placed a ~1" layer of cow manure at the bottom of
the pot, then several inches of soil (very rich with other orgenic matter),
depending on the size of the pot, the tuber, and more soil. This eliminates
those pesky roots that come out of the drainage hole and wander around the
drain
dish, or worse dry up, or extremely bad - nothing worse than lifting a pot up
off the ground after several days and finding that you have torn some roots
off!
The plants are very vigorous (3' high triphyllums and 4' high consanguineum and
cons-types, and a taiwanensis built like granite) and the roots go down to the
zone where they can feed and be comfortable but do not pass it (yet). So far I
dont think I have gnat damage but always seeing 1 to 3 hovering around a
pot and
on the top of the medium advises caution and prudent action.
I don't think I tried diazinon as a drench. Off to Home Depot!
Bonaventure

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From: Tim & Mary McNinch Newton at coiinc.com> on 2000.04.08 at 01:05:30(4351)
For those who choose NOT to use chemicals for gnats...

I live where winters will kill ALL so I must bring ALL my green living things
inside if I plan on keeping any of them. During the winter of 1998/1999, I had
the most pesky gnat problem and could not get rid of them for all the
tea...bla, bla. (4"-6" due tomorrow night. Go figure?)

Last fall, I brought ALL my plants indoors and promptly sprinkled the soil
surfaces with cinnamon powder. I could count the gnats I had this last winter
on one hand. Now there may have been other circumstances, but I know I used
cinnamon. I am a believer. As for fungicide, I have used it now for 4-5 years
and have warded off many problems with over winter storage of tubers.

Tim McNinch

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From: Skip Hanson <shanson at emc.com> on 2007.04.27 at 16:27:53(15602)
All,
Good morning.
Does anyone out there have an opinion on whether fungus
gnats
are damaging
or just a nuisance ? There seems to be conflicting
information.

They seem to
be fairly easy to control but they never seem to go away totally
and
of course I
can't see the larva so it's hard to tell how bad an infestation
is.

Thanks,
Skip

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From: Ryan Wachtl <ryanwachtl at sbcglobal.net> on 2007.04.28 at 23:17:01(15606)
Skip,

No argument here that these are definatley a nuisance. It is in my experience that fungus gnat larva can potentially damage the small root hairs on plants. They mostly feed on organic matter and this may include at times roots of the plants in the soil too. I have seen some heavy fungus gnat infections lead to an overall decline in plant health and vigor. These infections were also associated with elevated levels of soil water saturation and that can contribute to root - further fueling the infestation.

Ryan Wachtl

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From: Kyle Baker <kylefletcherbaker at yahoo.com> on 2007.04.29 at 10:36:44(15608)
Fungus Gnats start as a nuisance, and quickly start to do damage, drench soil with Azatin or Gnatrol but don't ignore them whatever you do.kfb maineSkip Hanson wrote: All, Good morning. Does anyone out there have an opinion on whether fungus gnats are damaging or just a nuisance ? There seems to be conflicting information.
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From: "D. Christopher Rogers" <crogers at ecoanalysts.com> on 2007.04.30 at 16:49:32(15613)
Hiyer!

I use
Nepenthes and Drosera. They keep the fungus gnats down quite well. I have no

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