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06.09.2024 - 21:54 / gardenersworld.com
Do you have small black flies living in your house plant compost? Or hovering around your house plants? These are fungus gnats, also known as house plant flies and sciarid flies. They’re mostly harmless – adult gnats cause little or no harm to plants, but they can become a nuisance in the home. Their tiny worm-like larvae live in the top 5-8cm of compost, where they feed on algae, fungi and plant roots. Healthy house plants usually tolerate this minor root damage, but the larvae can harm seedlings or weak plants.
How to identify fungus gnatsFungus gnats are small black flies that fly around house plants and live in house plant compost. You may mistake them for fruit flies – but if they’re in and around your house plants, they’re likely to be sciarid flies.
How to get rid of fungus gnatsGetting rid of fungus gnats is easier than you might think. Simply by watering less often and using a gravel mulch you can break the fungus gnat lifecycle and stop them breeding in your house plant compost. But there are other ways, too. We list four ways to get rid of fungus gnats, below.
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Passionate about your indoor jungle? Find a gorgeous new plant container with our carefully curated collection of the 10 best indoor plant pots, or create an eye-catching display with one these stylish indoor plant stands. Alternatively, you might find our selection of the best indoor greenhouses just what you need to nurture tender specimens?
You Will NeedFungus gnat larvae need damp compost to live, as this is where algae and fungi thrive, on which the larvae feed. Simply by allowing
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In my vegetable garden, a winter greenhouse has become the heart of my cold season garden, providing me with homegrown vegetables and herbs from December through March. This unheated structure, which is also featured in my book, Growing Under Cover: Techniques for a More Productive, Weather-Resistant, Pest-Free Vegetable Garden, captures solar energy and shelters a wide variety of cold tolerant crops like kale, carrots, leeks, scallions, carrots, and spinach.In this article you’ll learn about the types of winter greenhouses, get my tips selecting which one is best for you, and discover my top crops to harvest in winter. Why use a winter greenhouse A greenhouse has so many uses in a vegetable garden. It allows me to extend the fall harvest, start s
Spring is the time when your garden springs back to life. One of the most delightful ways to get your garden ready for the season is by planting spring bulbs. Bulbs like tulips, daffodils, and crocuses not only bring visual delight but are also easy to care for. This guide will walk you through the process of planting bulbs, the various types available, and offer useful tips for enhancing your garden.
Want to make hummingbirds see red? Plant a firebush in your garden. Also called scarlet bush, it is not only among the easiest of plants to grow, but it also stays in bloom throughout the growing season with clusters of tubular red buds and flowers. Because the Southern growing season overlaps the spring and fall migration times of the ruby-throated hummingbird, and red is by far their favorite color, these blossoms will summon them to your garden.
Fungus gnats are a common pest among houseplants. These small flies tend to go unnoticed at first, slowly building their populations by laying eggs on the soil of our container plants. Their larvae feed on fungi and organic matter in our potting soil and nibble on plant roots as well. As much as we'd like, they don't go away on their own. Over time, their numbers grow, and you begin to notice the adults hovering above the soil surface when you water your houseplants.
It's back-to-school season, which means things could get a little messy in your home and of course, on your clothes. Arts and crafts are all fun and games until you can't get the glitter glue out of your beloved favorite dresses or blouses.
There's a long to-do list that begins forming when you're preparing to sell your house, and one aesthetic element that always appears is repainting.
Whether you call them woodchucks, whistle pigs, ground pigs, or groundhogs, these large ground squirrels can be a real nuisance in your yard and garden. “Groundhogs eat whatever is available and most nutritious,” says Sheldon Owen, PhD, wildlife extension specialist at West Virginia University. “They consume large quantities of herbaceous vegetation, especially fruits and vegetables. But they’ll also eat clover, bark, and landscape plants.”
From minimalism to sci-fi fandom, this plant’s symmetrical, coin-like foliage, slender stems, and glossy, lush green hues satisfy all sleek decor needs.
Laure Joliet / Architectural Digest
Asters, rudbeckias and heleniums can be glimpsed behind the giant oat grass, Stipa gigantea
How to Establish a Monarch Waystation in Your Garden Help monarch butterflies by providing essential nectar and host plants in your own Monarch Waystation. The amazing monarch butterfly journey