Sometime last year, I endeavored to take on gardening -- after all, I wasn't going to be using my kitchen for cooking so I figured I'd throw some planters in there and try. Then the great mistake happened. I bought organic soil (looking dead at you Miracle-Gro Organic Choice Potting Mix) and then my plants and kitchen was taken over by a swarm of fungal gnats. I ended up loosing most of my plants with the exception of one baby basil sprout (let's recount what I lost: moon flowers, basil, cucumber, squash, argula, and chives). I tried using flypaper, tried to "clean" the soil (this is when you wash the soil out), and then tried the potato slices. None of this worked and it came down to the final attempt.
Hydrogen Peroxide. Generally speaking this isn't what you want to use and should probably be a last ditch attempt. Probably because it is very effective but can also kill the plant if you don't do it right. I do one part hydrogen peroxide and three parts water (although some online sources will tell you to use more water). Either way, it annoys the hell out of the bugs and slowly kills them.
After I successfully killed them all off, I was left with one basil baby sprout (which is doing well now) and I was able to bring in a terrarium. Overall, the kitchen is doing well which means that it's time for another set of my plants to go awry. At work I have a pot of basil, moon flowers, and a terrarium as well. Go figure that sitting next to the kitchen has finally reared it's ugly head. The fruit flies from the kitchen have migrated over to my plants and now I'm having trouble with flies yet again.
I've employed the use of hydrogen peroxide but I'm trying to keep it's use down to a minimum. The terrarium is new to me and I don't know how well it will react to the use of it. In the center you'll see a little fruit fly trap (filled with apple cider vinegar). I don't know how well the duo (hydrogen peroxide and fruit fly trap) are going to work but fingers crossed that I don't loose the plants in the process.
Hydrogen Peroxide. Generally speaking this isn't what you want to use and should probably be a last ditch attempt. Probably because it is very effective but can also kill the plant if you don't do it right. I do one part hydrogen peroxide and three parts water (although some online sources will tell you to use more water). Either way, it annoys the hell out of the bugs and slowly kills them.
After I successfully killed them all off, I was left with one basil baby sprout (which is doing well now) and I was able to bring in a terrarium. Overall, the kitchen is doing well which means that it's time for another set of my plants to go awry. At work I have a pot of basil, moon flowers, and a terrarium as well. Go figure that sitting next to the kitchen has finally reared it's ugly head. The fruit flies from the kitchen have migrated over to my plants and now I'm having trouble with flies yet again.
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| Work station trio. From left to right, moon flowers, basil sprouts, and terrarium. |
I've employed the use of hydrogen peroxide but I'm trying to keep it's use down to a minimum. The terrarium is new to me and I don't know how well it will react to the use of it. In the center you'll see a little fruit fly trap (filled with apple cider vinegar). I don't know how well the duo (hydrogen peroxide and fruit fly trap) are going to work but fingers crossed that I don't loose the plants in the process.
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