What can I do about gnats in my house plant dirt?

Answer by  janedoe (701)

There are several commercial products you can buy to put in the dirt that will prevent these bugs from hovering around (ex. miracle grow RID). Depending on the type of plant you have, ask a gardening expert at your local Home Depot or Osh garden center about your specific plant.

Answer by  victoria67 (80)

Spraying liquid dish soap mixed with water at a one to one ratio will kill them as it will most insects. Don't put the plants in direct sun until they are dry. Use Ivory instead of Dawn as Ivory is a soap not a detergent and is milder, just to be on the safe side.

Answer by  AmandaZ (92)

Put the dirt in an area with enough sun so it gets hot enough, buy some tabaco in the closest nursery, walmart or home depot, spread tabaco over the dirt and mix thoroughly and water. Gnats do not like the nicotine and the tabaco will act as compost.

Answer by  jangell700 (101)

A very interesting way to get rid of gnats, is before you put the potting soil in the pots, bake it. Yes, bake it at a rather medium temp of say 350 for about 30 minutes. It will kill the eggs and anything living in the soil.

Answer by  sanityrose (2664)

Gnats are attracted to the dampness of your plants, so you must pull back some of that temptation. Never over water and protect the soil. You can cover soil with objects such as gravel. Clean containers and remove dead plant debris. Finally, occasionally use watered down insecticide on your plants.

Answer by  Liz59 (10966)

Well what you want to do is get rid of them by applying some ammonia all over the dirt. If you don't want to use that, then I suggest you use some raid.