tiny flies in my potted papaya's potting soil - what to use?

[mitch landen]

Hi, troops; I have a 7'-tall papaya tree (really neat plant), 2 years now, and it actually has some tiny fruits this year. But .... I see lots of super-small fly-like things in its potting soil -- and they're also hanging around the adjacent rooms of my house from where I keep the plant. The best of the fruits: bug damage visible on it, so I tossed it.

So .... is there something I can spray on the potting soil (in the pot) to tamp down/destroy the flies? I was thinking some frothy "Dawn" dish-washing detergent, but I'm not sure if it would be toxic to the plant/roots. Maybe sprinkle some DE?

One thing: when the leaves dry up and fall off, I usually keep them on the pot's soil -- I like the idea of the tree being able to access the former leaves' nutrients. But this might make for hiding places/breeding grounds for the vermin.

Any suggestions/warnings/ anecdotes/ basic advice? Thx much ....

Mitch

 

[digitS']

If they are fungus gnats: It was a tough one for me, Mitch.

I tried Pyrethrin spray. It killed the ones flying around, the ones going back to the plant and soil for awhile, I suppose. The gnats continued to show up.

I tried Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) granules. They were advertised as being a specific method for killing the larva in the soil. Honestly, I saw no difference in the numbers of gnats showing up.

Yellow sticky traps are what we settled on for DW':s house plants. The plants are outdoors every Summer and the number of the gnats varies, year to year but there are always some. The traps are unsightly but they catch lots of gnats.

Steve

 

[Branching Out]

You have my sympathy. We have been plagued with them as well. Like digitS' we use yellow sticky traps, and also open jars of apple cider vinegar, and an indoor bug zapper. I have started keeping the tops of the pots very dry, and I bottom water whenever possible. And all plant debris is removed promptly. It all helps.

 

[heirloomgal]

Last year I had TERRIBLE problem with those bugs owing to a contaminated bag of potting soil. I actually had a couple pepper starts die as a result, as I didn't realize the damage they were doing underground. I'd never seen these things before. What rescued my plants 100% was neem oil, neem oil mixed with water. At first I would knock the plants around to disturb them into flying and then spray them all. They would instantly perish. But they kept, eventually, showing up again. Then I started watering all the plants with the neem oil solution. Bingo. All dead.