So I did some research before deciding to post and ask here. Springtails… good or bad? Some people say they’re beneficial and others say they eat all the small hairlike roots and cause false deficiencies. Someone set me straight please. Lol. Thank you.
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A little more info, picture please. Not familiar with this creature.
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@99PerCent They’re nearly microscopic and would be easily mistaken for fleas if they weren’t white.
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Springtails are well known as pests of some agricultural crops. Sminthurus viridis, the lucerne flea, has been shown to cause severe damage to agricultural crops, and is considered as a pest in Australia. Onychiuridae are also known to feed on tubers and to damage them to some extent. However, by their capacity to carry spores of mycorrhizal fungi and mycorrhiza helper bacteria on their tegument, soil springtails play a positive role in the establishment of plant-fungal symbioses and thus are beneficial to agriculture. They also contribute to controlling plant fungal diseases through their active consumption of mycelia and spores of damping-off and pathogenic fungi. It has been suggested that they could be reared to be used for the control of pathogenic fungi in greenhouses and other indoor cultures.
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That’s my kind of bug.
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I’v always thought of them as being beneficial and are often found in worm bins and compost piles ( Bentley the worm guy) encourages them I believe there one of the shredders of dead organic matter!
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So is the root eating thing not true or just not detrimental? Other than that it sounds like they’ll get along fine here.
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People use them in their vivariums and terrariums for certain pets as they are classed as ‘clean up crew’
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I don’t think ya have anything to worry about here!
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I often see them in the run-off water in my trays - like bluish-gray dust that moves. They come in peace! no worries
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Maybe for seedlings or already sick plants it could be a problem. A healthy one is unattractive to them, they like rotting stuff.
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Sounds good to me. Thanks for all the help.
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They are not a big problem for etablished plants
I have had them multiple times, in my hydro systems and I am not a fan!
Might be different in soil, but in hydro with clones and seedling, they can cause issues.
I find they show up, if I use organic nutes and don’t change res every week.
After harvest, I just let everything dry out. Turn the lights on, fan off and get the room really hot.
I find very few pests likes it, when the room go in Sahara mode for a few days.
Vacum my room, then clean with bleach and it’s ready to go again.
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I think 113 Fahrenheit will kill all bugs - that’s the temp used to kill bedbugs.
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