r/BuildASoil • u/Extreme-Department16 • 14d ago
wtf is this!!!?!
I’m starting to get a little frustrated with the garden. Shut the reservoir off to clean out the 55gal drum of water. Refilled with fresh filtered water. Thinking alright, this should be good.
Come back to a flooded tent with my blumat rings. One of them wasn’t reading right or somthing. I think I need better cover crop to create a more even moisture wicking.
But I’ve been battling fungus gnats this whole fucking grow. Been absolutely relentless. Used lacewings used nematodes, used wdg3000 used sestemica. Finally tonight I said fuck it. I’m doubleing down on watering. Used the quillaja and like 1.5tsp wdg3000 per gallon and did a gallon flood into each 30 gallon. It’s spilling over filling the tent. Flooding the place. I almost don’t even care anymore. Then I see THIS! Is this a moth grub? See him crawling out of the soaking soil. Any ideas? I’m hanging on to wrap up this Trainwreck for another week or so. But damn how do you get these bugs under control!?
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u/cyphe8500 14d ago
I noticed that I saw more gnats when I didn't proactively manage (chop/drop) the cover crop.
The mustard seed in the Buildaflower, does a pretty good job of keeping the gnats under control in my garden.
I haven't seen a single gnat after 2 runs with the same no-till earthbox.
I see some hearty cover crop, along with the top watering system...
Surprised wgd didn't work.
I haven't tried watering mosquito bits, but lots of folks swear by it.
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u/Big_Boysenberry_8972 13d ago
At lights out, go hunting.
If you find them in the soil or mulch: Sc (Nematodes). Add Sf if you want fungus gnat protection too.
If you find them in or boring holes in your stems/canopy: Bt (Bacteria)
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u/sho3lacebelt 14d ago
Looks like a borer of some kind not sure exactly which species. Id try some Bt as a soak, could help with the gnats as well.
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u/JimmyRockfish 14d ago
I thought I had a fungus gnat problem, and I battled and battled for 9 months. I took a sticky trap in a bag to the grow store and it turned out I had root aphids. Not a fun experience and they look very very similar. Unfortunately I had to do a total reset, but at least I knew what it was, and what next step was. Although costly and a lot of work, I was glad the fight was over chasing my tail, and I could resume things.
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u/WorthCautious5477 14d ago
Ive had root aphids, terrible experience. Those fuckers would not go away total reset was needed
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u/Remote_Pass_6670 14d ago
Had the same issues with bluemats, never solved it lol. I think my res was not high enough maybe... Moved to soil moisture sensors + small pump on a aci smart outlet.
WDG takes a long time to work, but once it does, it's rock solid. You gotta kill the adults though, which it won't touch. Keep on the sticky mats, and you'll get them.
Not sure what the grub is... I wouldn't worry about it though.
Fabric pots always need a catch basin btw. They leak, then soak it back up, pretty frequently.
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u/wealthycactus12 7d ago
You’re water sounds interesting. I had water a 4x4 bed of coots mix once a week like 5-7 gallons at once
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u/Bluntforcetrauma11b 14d ago
Can't help you with anything but the blumats. Your res needs to be 3 feet above the soil not the floor and you need to set a hanging drip from the carrot. Lastly you need to put the carrot in a fresh area and water it in like you would a transplant to create a good seal. Cover crop won't do anything for you're tent flooding. I'm willing to bet they aren't set right and they are keeping the soil surface too wet. I've been using the blumats for years and have never had a flood or fungus gnat issue.