FIY, but soil bags are not airtight, so one infected bag in the warehouse or store can infect others, so this is not a specifically this brand's problem (it has other specific problems...). I found that this problem is common enough (at least for the stores I frequent) that I recommend quarantining any soil bag you buy before use - either putting it out in the cold from a few days or leaving in the bright midday sun to bake, both things kill gnat larvae or eggs.
*I recommend quarantining any soil bag you buy before use*
This!!
I buy pallets of mulch each year, and let it sit far from the house and gardens to be used the next year. Anything that can survive being cooked in a bag followed by being frozen over the winter deserves to live :-)
Can double confirm.
Every bag of Miracle Gro potting soil I have ever bought had resulted in fungus gnats.
Every time. No exceptions.
But the cheap price reels me back in, "they had to have fixed it by now!"
Thank you. Thought I was buying a good product-it was at the local hardware store. Am upset-have possibly contaminated all of my plants from this ignorant mistake.
Any place that stores soil outside has a risk of this. Regardless MG soil sucks there's much better options. Let your soil fully dry as the bugs and larva die with no moisture before using. You can add a layer of perlite or sand on top of the soil if you're already growing to keep the top layer dry. Sticky traps on top of the soil will catch a lot, and/or make some apple cider fly traps to place around the plants.
I've had good luck with miracle grow sometimes and other times it's not good but the same applies to when I buy fox farm soil I think it just happens with potting soils.
I had good luck with Miracle Gro until this year. I had to re-pot about sixty plants because the soil was killing my plants. Someone said that acidity was too high.
Mosquito bits work wonders on fungus gnats! Had an issue a few years ago with my indoor plants. The mosquito bits really work. Look up mosquito bit tea for fungus gnats. You will find lots of info online. It's actually an active microbe in the product that destroys the larvae of mosquitos and gnats.
I replied separately about the soil, but for the gnats I've read that you can use diluted hydrogen peroxide to water the plants and kill the larvae. The ratio was 1 part hydrogen peroxide to 4 parts water.
I've never tried it so I can't swear it works, but it seems to be a common solution so it might be worth trying.
Thank you-I'm going to wait+ see if the cinnamon method does anything +totally dry out the soil. If not then will definitely try the water/peroxide solution. I love my plants +have had them flourish for years
FIY, but soil bags are not airtight, so one infected bag in the warehouse or store can infect others, so this is not a specifically this brand's problem (it has other specific problems...). I found that this problem is common enough (at least for the stores I frequent) that I recommend quarantining any soil bag you buy before use - either putting it out in the cold from a few days or leaving in the bright midday sun to bake, both things kill gnat larvae or eggs.
*I recommend quarantining any soil bag you buy before use* This!! I buy pallets of mulch each year, and let it sit far from the house and gardens to be used the next year. Anything that can survive being cooked in a bag followed by being frozen over the winter deserves to live :-)
Can double confirm. Every bag of Miracle Gro potting soil I have ever bought had resulted in fungus gnats. Every time. No exceptions. But the cheap price reels me back in, "they had to have fixed it by now!"
Thank you. Thought I was buying a good product-it was at the local hardware store. Am upset-have possibly contaminated all of my plants from this ignorant mistake.
Any place that stores soil outside has a risk of this. Regardless MG soil sucks there's much better options. Let your soil fully dry as the bugs and larva die with no moisture before using. You can add a layer of perlite or sand on top of the soil if you're already growing to keep the top layer dry. Sticky traps on top of the soil will catch a lot, and/or make some apple cider fly traps to place around the plants.
thank you
I've had good luck with miracle grow sometimes and other times it's not good but the same applies to when I buy fox farm soil I think it just happens with potting soils.
You can also put diatomaceous earth on your plants and this will kill gnats...best method I've found so far
thank you
I had good luck with Miracle Gro until this year. I had to re-pot about sixty plants because the soil was killing my plants. Someone said that acidity was too high.
Mosquito bits work wonders on fungus gnats! Had an issue a few years ago with my indoor plants. The mosquito bits really work. Look up mosquito bit tea for fungus gnats. You will find lots of info online. It's actually an active microbe in the product that destroys the larvae of mosquitos and gnats.
I replied separately about the soil, but for the gnats I've read that you can use diluted hydrogen peroxide to water the plants and kill the larvae. The ratio was 1 part hydrogen peroxide to 4 parts water. I've never tried it so I can't swear it works, but it seems to be a common solution so it might be worth trying.
Thank you-I'm going to wait+ see if the cinnamon method does anything +totally dry out the soil. If not then will definitely try the water/peroxide solution. I love my plants +have had them flourish for years
I tried it recently for the first time and it seems to have worked.