The dark flies called gnats are small mosquitoes. We often confuse them with fruit flies. However, they mostly thrive in humid environments and breed in the damp soil of houseplants. Thus, their larvae cause serious damage to the roots and stems. An infestation will endanger wilting, rotting roots, plant growth, and yellowing leaves. If you want to overcome these problems, check out these tips and tricks to get rid of gnats.
Here you can find natural remedies to get rid of them:
1. A drying method
when you get the soil dried, the gnats won’t be able to breed in it. Thus, the cycle of infestation ends with drying out the soil. After you carefully eliminate the problem, you can go back to normal watering and check your plant regularly for new symptoms.
2. Use sticky cards
The yellow sticky cards will work perfectly for these annoying gnats. It works like this: the color yellow will attract them and they will be trapped by the sticky substance on the card. You can buy them or you can make your own. All you have to do is cover bright yellow index cards with vaseline or honey. Tape the card to a straw or chopstick and stick into the soil. Another easy sticky recipe is to mix equal parts petroleum jelly and liquid dish soap then use the goop to cover the yellow card.
3. DIY recipe: a soap spray
Make your own recipe spray mixing 2 tablespoons of lemon dish detergent with 1 gallon of water. Then, use the mixture for watering and drench the soil that is hosting them. After doing this for about an hour, spray the leaves lightly with clear water to rinse everything off.
4. Make a trap
Pour a tablespoon or two of apple cider vinegar into a small cup, top with water. Leave the cup near the plant with the problem. They will be attracted to the vinegar and will be killed by drowning.
5. Spray with vodka
Mix 1/2 cup vodka with 1 1/2 cups water pour into spray bottle. Spray the plant and see the problem go away.
6. Another recipe with rubbing alcohol
Mix 1 cup rubbing alcohol with 1 quart of water, pour into spray bottle. Spray and treat every three days for two weeks. Make sure to test a leaf first to check the mix isn’t too harsh for it.
7. Use tobacco
Break open a few cigarettes and make a light layer of tobacco over the top of the soil, the nicotine will repel them. Do not use on herbs or plants that are eaten and watch that pets don’t have access to the tobacco.