How to remove midges from indoor flowers?

There are many ways to get rid of unsolicited midges, which wound up in indoor flowers. For this, special chemicals and folk remedies are used, as well as drastic measures such as the complete replacement of the earth. But often none of the methods help. The fact is that there are different types of midges, and most often an individual approach is needed to fight. In addition, potted insects breed very quickly and easily survive temporary inconveniences. To get rid of them for sure, you need to properly prepare: classify the enemy, select the optimal tool and destroy! In the future, it is important to observe prevention.

Why do gnats start in flowers?

Improper care of plants is the main reason for the appearance of various animals in the flowers. The following errors are most critical:

• Waterlogging of the earth. Excess moisture can occur when watering is too frequent or plentiful, in the absence of holes in the bottom of the pot, when using a greenhouse to grow flowers from seeds. Waterlogging is also often observed in the cold season, when the room is not hot and the water evaporates for a long time.
• The use of organic fertilizers. Many people practice natural dressing for flowers: yeast, coffee residues, tea, granulated sugar, humus, etc. Plants get nutrients from them. But there is also the flip side of the coin - over time, decay processes begin that attract certain types of insects (organic debris serves as food for them).
• Use of contaminated soil. Frogs are ubiquitous, so the probability of bringing their masonry to the house along with street ground is very high. And flower shops are rarely sterile - purchased soil can also be infected. Therefore, any land is recommended to be decontaminated before use.
• The entry of midges into the house with a new flower. Before you put a hookah to the flowers that live in the house, it must be quarantined and watched for 2 weeks. This rule does not exist in vain. Who knows in what conditions he was kept and what is hidden in his soil and leaves? If there are diseases or pests, they will manifest themselves in 14 days. Then other plants will not get infected, and it will be easier to solve the problem.

It happens that midges start up in flowers for no apparent reason. Sometimes they just fly into the open windows, and if the environment in the pot is suitable, they stay alive and multiply. In any case, you should not blame yourself. It is better to destroy pests as soon as possible and forget about them as a nightmare.

Cats that start in indoor flowers do not bite or sting a person. They are also not prone to curiosity and do not swarm around your face - you are indifferent to them. However, indirectly, they are harmful to health, because they contribute to the appearance of a fungus, which increases the risk of respiratory diseases and allergies.

Types of midges in indoor colors

If midges wound up in flowers, this does not immediately become clear. At first, single flies may not cause concern. Moreover, most of the time they sit underground, and rise to the surface mainly after irrigation. But very soon, instead of one or the other midge, a swarm flies over the flowers. Extremely unpleasant sight! What kind of flies can these be? There are several options:

• Drosophila. In appearance they resemble habitual flies, but differ in smaller size and light gray or yellowish color.Drosophila has red eyes, females are larger than males and have a pointed dark tip of the abdomen. They prefer to eat half-rotten vegetables and fruits, so they are also called fruit flies. They are often found in the kitchen and in the bin, but can also choose flower pots if they are warm, humid, there are rotting leaves or organic fertilizing.



• Sciarides. The second name for this species of midges is mushroom mosquitoes. They really look like mosquitoes. With a narrow body and a rounded head, black or grayish sciarides settle in moist soil with signs of rotting, and then fly over it in a swarm, not hiding. You can still recognize them by the larvae in the ground. They are translucent, up to 10 mm long, light, and the head is like a black bead.



• Whiteflies (aleroidids). These midges are white, similar to small butterflies or aphids. They settle from the inside of the leaves and feed on juice. There they lay eggs, which then turn into larvae. Sometimes, from their presence, the leaves of the plants appear white, and if you shake the flower pot, a living whitish cloud of disturbed whiteflies will appear above it. Especially likes the insect fuchsia, orchid, begonia.



• Podury (nails). Puppies in indoor colors that do not fly but jump are fools. They are in every flower pot, but because of a hidden lifestyle and small population go unnoticed. White hopping nails, resembling small caterpillars, reveal themselves when there are a lot of them. They feed on organics and prefer dampness.



• Thrips. Very mobile insects with an elongated grayish, brown or black body. Adults can fly from one plant to another. Lay eggs inside the leaf so that the appeared larvae can feed on the juice of the plant. Thrips infection can be suspected by dashed spots on the plant, white larvae and flying midges of a dark color.

The most dangerous for plants are not midges at all, but their larvae. Developing, they actively consume nutrients - cell sap, organic matter in the ground, plant roots. The friability of the earth decreases and oxygen saturation worsens. As a result, the flower grows weakened, and if there are a lot of pests, it fades, discards the leaves, becomes faded and eventually dies. Pups can kill the plant in 2 weeks, and then it will be too late to do anything.

Features of the fight against different midges

Most chemicals, as well as folk remedies, act against all types of midges. However, if they had 100% efficiency, no one would have searched the Internet for information on how to get rid of the invasion of certain insects.

Each pest has its own characteristics and weaknesses. So, how to deal with different types of midges?

• Drosophila attracts the smell of jam, juices, rotting fruits. Therefore, it will be easy to lure them into traps - bottles with a narrow neck, in which at the bottom lies a favorite treat. And in order to discourage flies from flower pots, they need to plant tomato seedlings or spread out the leaves of tansy, elderberry, fern.
• Sciarides disappear themselves, if you reduce the soil moisture - leave the flowers for some time without watering and then pour the liquid into the pan. If this does not help, most likely, the substrate should be replaced or steamed old. It will be useful to add sand and chopped coconut peel to it.
• Whitewing it is necessary to wash off the leaves of flowers. To do this, a solution of laundry soap is made (1 tbsp.spoon of shavings per 500 ml of water), and then each leaf is carefully processed on both sides. In addition, chemical preparations are used or the procedure is repeated several times with a frequency of 4-5 days.
• Podur lure very well on raw potatoes. Half of the tuber is inserted into the ground with a slice down, and then after 15-30 minutes it is removed with a spatula, capturing a layer of soil along with insects. If necessary, the reception is repeated.
• Thrips live in the land of plants, and their eggs await hatching in the middle of the leaf. Therefore, processing must be carried out comprehensively (soil, according to the leaf), at least 3 times with an interval of 7 days (this is how much time the fresh masonry matures). Heavily stricken leaves are plucked, and flower buds too.

Universal chemical remedies for midges in colors

Insect kills are called insecticides. Chemicals are good in that they can destroy several varieties of midges in one fell swoop. In addition, they are quite effective and continue to operate for a long time after treatment (up to 1 year), thereby preventing re-infection. But there are significant disadvantages - it is dangerous to poison midges in the house where children and pets live. If they suddenly decide to taste the plant, the poison will enter the body and cause severe poisoning.

In general, with caution, insecticides can solve the problem of unsolicited midges quickly and effectively. The following chemicals have proven themselves well in pest control:

• "Actellik";
• Thunder-2;
• Confidor
• "Bazudin;"
• Fitoverm;
• "Actara."

Attention! Inhaling insecticides is dangerous! Also, they should not be allowed to get on the skin. It will be correct to process indoor flowers on the balcony in a respirator and rubber gloves. In addition, you should read the instructions for the drug and follow it exactly.

How to withdraw midges folk remedies

If harmful insects appeared in potted flowers recently and have not yet managed to breed, folk remedies will perfectly cope with them. They are not as dangerous as chemicals, and are recommended for use in a home with animals and children.

Top 6 recipes for midges:

1. Potassium permanganate. A simple and affordable disinfecting folk remedy that makes the flower soil and the plant itself poisoned for midges. Potassium permanganate is diluted in warm water to a light pink color, and then watered and sprayed with a flower.
2. Garlic. There are several options for its use. You can plant the sprouted garlic in a flower pot, or spread the cloves cut in half on the ground, or spray the plant with infusion (chopped garlic head is infused in 1 liter of water per day). The smell will scare off midges, and they will be forced to look for a new habitat.
3. Matches. The old way against pests living in the soil is to stick 4-5 matches head down in a flower pot and pour warm water. Matches change daily for a week. Sulfur dissolves in the ground and makes it unsuitable for midges.
4. Ash. It neutralizes the acidity of the earth and does not like insects. To get rid of them, wood ash is scattered in a thin layer on the soil.
5. Velcro. Near the infected flower you can hang sticky tapes or pieces of paper coated with honey. Curious midges will surely sit on and stick to them. It remains only to throw them into the bin.
6. A vacuum cleaner. The original way to remove, if not all, then most of the insects is to suck them up with a vacuum cleaner. To do this, the nozzle is removed and the minimum power is set so as not to harm the plant. Ideally for these purposes, a mini-vacuum cleaner for cleaning the computer. Before processing, the flower needs to be watered so that midges crawl out of the ground and settle outside.

With global infection with midges, global measures are required to save the flower: replacing the earth, thoroughly cleaning the pot, bathing in a weak solution of manganese, and removing the affected roots and leaves. For better recovery, it is recommended to treat the plant with Epin. You can also play it safe and if you have children, disconnect them from the plant before processing.

Prevention

So that midges do not disturb indoor flowers and apartment owners, preventive measures should be taken. They are as follows:

• Proper watering, taking into account the type of plant, seasonality (in summer, moisture evaporates faster, in winter - 3 times longer).
• Timely removal of fading leaves and flowers.
• Loosening the soil for better drying of the earth.
• Use pots with holes and drainage so that excess water can pour into the pan.
• Inspection of indoor flowers for pests.
• Temporary isolation of new plants and close monitoring of them for 2-4 weeks.
• Steaming soil with boiling water or disinfection with a solution of manganese before use.
• Sprinkling earth in a pot with coarse sand, ash, marble chips.

If midges appeared on one plant, all standing next to it must be processed too. These are standard preventative measures.

You can often hear that it is almost impossible to get a midge out of flowers. This is not true. The main thing in the fight against extraneous living creatures is to establish and eliminate the cause of its appearance (stop flooding the soil, get rid of organic fertilizers, etc.). After the plant is provided with proper care, and the living conditions become unfavorable for pests, midges disappear.