Can We Avoid Fungus Gnats?
The dreadful fungus gnats! We’ve all seen them in our houseplants to some extent and want to avoid fungus gnats asap. Fungus gnats can quickly become a major problem for your houseplants if left unattended. There’s more to it than meets the eye. Not only do you notice fungus gnats flying around, but you can also find fungus gnat larvae in the soil. However, there are some cultural practices you may use, as well as simple fungus gnat treatment procedures that you can conduct at home, to finally avoid fungus gnats.
Identifying Fungus Gnats
Fungus gnats can be identified by a swarm of little flies hovering around your houseplants. Indoors, fruit flies are likewise common, but there are a few identifications of them.
Appearance
Fungus gnats have gray or see-through wings and are grayish-black in hue. Their lengthy legs and antennae give them a mosquito-like look, despite the fact that they are much smaller. Fungus gnats have a slimmer body, long legs, and antennae than fruit flies. Larvae have a slender, white, or see-through body with a little blackhead.
Size
Adult fungus gnats are extremely small. They are about the same size as a fruit fly, about 1/16 to 1/8 of an inch (1.5 to 3mm) in length. Fungus gnat larvae can grow to be up to 18 inches long.
How To Avoid Fungus Gnats!
It’s all about being consistent when it comes to getting rid of fungus gnats. Adults are quite easy to catch, but because the adult population cycles, you must ensure that your traps are refilled on a regular basis. Use a combination of the traps indicated here and the additional preventative procedures listed in the following section for the best results to avoid fungus gnats.
Avoid Fungus Gnats Using Sticky Card Traps
These traps are made up of a yellow notecard with a sticky adhesive on it. Cut into little squares and placed immediately on top of the soil or affixed to skewers slightly above the soil, they are most effective. Adult gnats will fly or crawl onto the card, where they will be trapped. Because fungus gnats are drawn to yellow, use yellow sticky cards instead of blue ones. Both are available at most hardware and garden stores, as well as on the internet.
Cider Vinegar Traps
Cider-vinegar traps are simple and effective, consisting of a shallow container, a tiny bit of apple cider vinegar, water, and liquid dish soap. To avoid fungus gnats using this, you can make it by yourself.
Make Cider Vinegar Traps
Fill a shallow container with equal parts water and apple cider vinegar—a tuna can work well. (At least a 14-inch depth of liquid is required.) In a small bowl, add a few drops of liquid dish soap and swirl gently. Place the trap near the plant’s base or, better yet, within the pot on top of the dirt. Replace the vinegar and water every few days to keep it fresh.
Flypaper
Flypaper ribbons, which are commonly used to trap outdoor flies in horse barns, can also be used to catch fungus gnats. These traps, on the other hand, usually overkill for gnats and can readily attach to items you don’t want them to stick to, such as furniture, hair, plants, and so on.
Fungus Gnats Damage
If you don’t start to avoid fungus gnats as soon as possible, your snake plants will be damaged by fungus gnats. Fungus gnats are more of a bother than anything else in tiny quantities. Adult gnats, on the other hand, do not aggressively harm plants or people. However, if their population grows too large, the larvae may begin to feed on plant roots, inflicting significant harm. This is particularly harmful to young plants, such as seedlings, which have a limited number of sensitive roots.
Sum Up
Avoid fungus gnats from your snake plant now by our steps above. In severe circumstances, the entire snake plant may wilt, followed by death if the roots are severely harmed.