Bugs in My House Plants....

I really like the apple cider vinegar and ashes ideas. The gnats you have live off the excess water that pools in the base of pots or on top of the soil. You were right to cut back on the water just to eliminate the standing water. There are sprays to use then to get rid of them but for me green is always better for all of us so I'd give the vinegar and ashes a try!

Sounds gross, but I had my husband have the guys at his work put all their cigarette butts in a plastic baggy and he brought them home. We buried them in the house plant dirt and it took care of them. I think that the nicotine is toxic for the insects. I still have the butts in the dirt, but I think that after you don't see any new gnats for a period of time you could remove them. . .

You may want to try dish soap. If you put like 2 TBS of regular dish soap in a spray bottle w/ maybe 1 1/2 cups of warm water then spray the plants heavly w/ the soapy water. It has gotten rid of my pesty gnat things before. Make sure to also spray the dirt. They may be laying eggs in the dirt too. Good luck.

I would get those bugs in my plant too. What I did was covered the dirt with rocks (you can buy small river rock at Lowe's or Home Depot). Make sure the dirt is completely covered. It will take about a week for the bugs to go away completely. Not only does this get the bugs to go away, the rocks will hold in the moisture so you don't have to water as often and makes the plants look pretty as you don't see the dirt.

Good luck.

Try a gentle liquid soap (e.g., Dr. Bronner's) mixed w/water in a spray bottle.

They could be Aphids or Spider Mites. My Pawpaw swore by a product called Seven Dust. It is the only bug killer for plants that my Memaw and Mom will use. You will probably have to take your plants outside to sprinkle the dust over them, but you should be able to bring them back in afterward. Just check the label for safety around children and pets. Good luck! I wouldn't want to throw the plants out either.

You can buy sticky strips from a nursery like Western garden, cut into smaller strips, & put in flower pot. You can also get Insecticidal soap spray from a nursery. If you search the internet I'm sure there are lots of suggestions, but I'd get advice from a master gardener first. K.

We use those electric plug in pest remover things. It helps tons with spiders and a lot of the flying insects. A fly will get in our house and goes crazy and it easy to catch! :)
You can find them at Home Depot, they are about $13 a piece, plug them in to any outlet and they cover like 600 sq ft per plug in. You can find out of they help with gnats. Also a mixture of liquid dish soap and water and spray it on them will help.

sprinkle all over the leaves and around it ASHES from campfire/fireplace/stove!
all will die, except for the plant.
ASHES - safe, green, works perfect.

This will sound odd but it works..... Get some tabacco and sprinkle it in the soil and water the plant. Sometimes a second application is necessary for a major infestation but make sure you give it a week. I have used this treatment many times over the years and it always works.

I got them too, can't wait to see what other folks say to you

I'm not sure how effective this is, but we are having lots of fun. I have a 3 year old and lots of plants. We bought some Venus Fly Traps and have been watching them catch the gnats. Might be a fun activity to try while you are following the other mom's advice who actually know how to solve the problem.

Try to isolate them from healthy plants too. I use indoor bug spray from Zamzow's that I think is insecticidal soap. Spray it on really good. Then go back and do it again every few day. I don't think it kills the ones is eggs. So, you have to get each generation. I've been able to save plants even when they've been infested for months.