How to get rid of fungus gnats

Often, the first time you notice these mosquito-like insects is when they fly around indoors, and land on light-coloured walls. Although the adult flying fungus gnats are annoying, they aren’t particularly damaging, and many can be caught on sticky yellow traps. The concern is the thin fungus gnat larvae that eat root hairs and weaken your indoor plants.

Treatment for fungus gnats

Take the infested plants outside into a shaded spot and let the mix (and the maggots) dry out completely. Next, take the plants out of their pots, shake off all the mix and re-pot into fresh mix that’s a blend of three parts regular potting mix and one part perlite or vermiculite. This reduces the proportion of organic matter in the mix – the organic material attracts the fungus gnats. Keep the re-potted plants outside until you think the gnats have all gone. To avoid future infestations, let the mix dry out between waterings.

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