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PostPosted: Wed Jan 14, 2004 2:42 pm 
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Location: Saginaw (NW Fort Worth), Texas
Hi there. I have several houseplants and I am nursing madevillas and two banana plants through the winter in my living room. The past three weeks I have been killing gnats every time I turn around. I was told today to use 5% apple cider vinegar in my houseplants to kill the gnat eggs that had been laid, to throw out my spaghnum peat moss I was using to keep the plants moist, and to mix in lava sand with the potting soil.

Here is my question - do I dilute the apple cider vinegar and how much lava sand should I add to each pot? And these plants are all now ill - I guess from being so wet at the base so do ya'll think it would be bad of me to add some garret juice to the mix?

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Christina


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PostPosted: Fri Jan 16, 2004 11:17 am 
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TIME OUT :shock:

There's too much going on all at once. You could be overwatering. If they're wet at the base you don't need to do anything to help retain more moisture. You're retaining plenty already.

Keep everything you have and try this. Gnats are killed by the Bti bacteria. Go to Wal-Mart or your favorite garden store and get some mosquito dunks. Drop a half a dunk into a gallon of dechlorinated water and water your plants with that the next day. BUT don't water them until the soil feels warm to your finger stuck down one full knuckle. That's when they are ready for more water. If the soil feels cool, there is still moisture in there.

Adding Garrett juice is always a good thing. I would continue to fertilize every month with corn meal and/or alfalfa pellets at a rate of one tablespoon per nine-inch pot per month.

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PostPosted: Fri Jan 16, 2004 11:41 am 
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Location: Saginaw (NW Fort Worth), Texas
Thank you very much for your help. I have some BT Kurstaki available - would this work instead of the BTi? If not I will go buy the other stuff I need - thanks for helping me figure this out. I did get rid of the moss stuff already :( and replace the top inch of soil with lava sand to try to keep the top of the soil not so wet (i have reduced the watering now). I heard that the gnats lay their eggs in the top inch of soil - have you heard anything like this?

Also, you mention that I should water with corn milk once a month. I have been doing this weekly - is that too much?

Thanks soo much!
Christina


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PostPosted: Mon Jan 19, 2004 12:12 am 
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I said corn MEAL (the dry stuff), not corn milk. Fertilize monthly.

Water when the soil feels warm about a knuckle deep. If you have been watering weekly, that is probably too much.

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PostPosted: Wed Jan 21, 2004 11:39 am 
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Location: Garland, Texas
nina norman,

In answer to your apple cider vinegar question, I normally add @ tablespoon (I don't measure that carefully, a splash will do) of the apple cider vinegar per gallon of water.

During the wintering months, I don't fertilize my potted plants with anything other than the fish water from our aquarium. Watering is only done after the plants have dried out. Overwatering will contribute to your gnat problem.

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