White bugs in runoff

[Heather420]

Today I decided to water from the top an caught the run off. On a few plants I noticed little white bugs swimming or jumping around in the water. Are these a good pest or bad? I didn’t think to take a picture but I will run more water threw one tomorrow an try to get a picture.

I had one plant I removed that was really infested with fungus gnats I wonder if those are babies? I’m claiming the crown of queen fungus gnat this is the second grow I got infected. I was very sparse with water because I’m using bigger pots and didn’t want to flood the babies. I really need to invest in some sort of pest killer

Should I flush the soil to remove what I can or am I just inviting more in from the extra moisture? Peroxide? I know it kills off everything but it did get rid of my gnats the first grow, I don’t know if that would be to much for the babies however

[DesertHeartGardens]

my guess Could be springtails or fungus gnat larvae or mosquito larvae do they jump or wiggle like little worms? Picture for sure would help

[RookieBuds]

If they’re reeeeallly teenytiny and seem to float, almost guaranteed it’s springtails. They’re basically harmless. My understanding is that they eat decaying bits of roots and other organic matter, they should never actually be on the plants.

[George]

Agree, this is one springtail:

could also be soil mites:

or root aphids:

none of them are harmful, just check they don’t become a legion …

[Heather420]

These are the best two pictures I was able to get. They appear to jump a little to move

[George]

That’s a springtail, no doubt…

[Heather420]

Good bug? I’m seeing mixed results after doing some research

[ifish]

They are fine : )

[George]

Agree ^^^^, they eat mould spores, dead leaves, decaying material and then they shit inside so more nutes , they won’t touch your plant. Only if you get annoyed or they expand too much you would have to take care of them …

[ifish]

I’ve had them in my crates on and of for years
When they multiply the only problem for me ( apart from creeping me out ) was their dead bodies would funk my Rez out quicker but I am flood and drain

They never harmed my plants

[SativaKid]

There are 2 ways to treat your soil for fungus gnats. Black bag it and place in the summer sun for a couple weeks. Or bag it and leave it in a cold spot for the winter.

[Longtooth]

Do they look like these? Are these “spring tales?”

My current group has them in every single pot. No gnats or flying critters.

[George]

Do you grow organic?

[Star_Dog]

I’m near certain that’s springtails, a drop of wetting agent or dish soap will see them sink, it’s not much use on dtw but in reservoirs it wipes them out… Temporarily lol

Eta… They’re not something to be concerned about afaik.

[Longtooth]

No - I’m using FF nutrients w/ coco loco mix

[V4vendetta]

I find them in overwatered soil alot. As long as your transplanting on time i wouldnt worry about root rot but it’s possible if the soil continues to remain this wet. I think the soil can get too compact and these guys start to thrive in the wet conditions in result…just my 2 cents. Grow on…

[Longtooth]

I’m usually pretty good about good watering practices as far as over saturation. Usually only about 2x per week and supplement the out of the bag perlite with about 30% more. These little fuckers have been raging though when I do water.

[V4vendetta]

Thats interesting. Do you ever add pelleted lime to the soil blends? I havent seen them this year in my garden, but it has been very dry here too. The soil bakes for months and months. So i dunno if its just so hot they get the hell out of it or if the lime is helping.
I’ve been on here asking the same questions as the OP. And pretty much get the answer that they are harmless. Hope they go away for you guys.

[Longtooth]

I add fine powdered dolomite lime, but no pellets.

Prior to transplant, I did some “ghetto-sterilization” with boiling water for the coco loco in the 7-gallon pots I’m currently using to finish.

Maybe the came in from coco loco in the 5x5x7 inch pots I used for the seedlings? Those, I don’t think, I remembered to include in the boiling water routine. 🤷 (smdh)

Thanks for the well wishes though. Just been fighting nutrient issues across the board and these little wrigglers are a commonality for the whole bunch. Hoping they aren’t the trouble.

[Longtooth]

Really hoping they’re not root aphids. Will be inspecting root zone at lights on today.