Small flies in the potting soil

Sciarid gnats in the potting soil

Sciarid gnats get their name from their dark body and dark wings. Of these insects there are more than 600 different species in Europe alone.

• Sciarid gnats can grow up to seven millimeters in size, but often stay smaller. The larvae that hatch from the eggs that the sciarid gnats lay in the potting soil are greyish white. These larvae can damage the roots of your plant by eating away at them. Otherwise, the larvae of the fungus gnats mainly feed on dead plant parts.
• You usually bring fungus gnats, their larvae or eggs into your household with a new plant or a bag of potting soil you have bought, from where they spread further. But they could also have come from outside.

This is how you fight the little flies

• To the little ones To fly To get rid of your potting soil, you can use yellow stickers, which you can get at any nursery. These are small cardboard tablets that attract the flies with a scented substance. However, there is also an adhesive on the yellow boards so that the fungus gnats stick to the boards and perish. You can then dispose of them together with the yellow boards.
• If there are only a few flies, you can also simply use a fly swatter and kill the adult insects so that they cannot lay any more eggs in your potting soil.


Flies in potting soil - what to do?

If you have flies in the potting soil, it is very likely ...

• If the infected plant is one that can tolerate drought, you can use the Let the roots of the pot dry out completely, because the fungus gnats need a moist one to lay their eggs Floor. Otherwise, it can be helpful to just pour a little less.
• Likewise, you can prevent more eggs from being laid in the potting soil by covering the top of the potting soil with a layer of sand.
• In theory, you can simply repot your plant in fresh potting soil to get rid of the little flies. But you have to be very careful here so that you don't miss a few eggs and then the problem starts all over again.
• The butterwort offers natural protection against fungus gnats and other insects. This is a carnivorous plant and insects stick to its sticky leaves. Simply place the butterwort between your other houseplants.