Hi All...it's me again!

I'm pretty sure I have Fungus Gnat infesting my tiny Fukien Tea seedlings. Whenever I begin misting the seedlings these tiny, black-ish flies come up out of the soil...the buggers! They can fly with their long wings and can run quickly on their long legs. They are only about 2mm long...their body being about 1mm long and the wings extend another 1mm beyond the body.

I did some searching and found information including a photo and suggestions on how to control the Fungus Gnat here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fungus_gnat
The thing is, I've had these seedling for about six weeks or more and I've only watered the soil twice during that time...because the seedlings are so small. I do mist them everyday because they need to be kept evenly moist...if their roots dry out at all they die. I also keep a moisture tray with red clay pot gravel and some water under the pot but the pot does not sit in the water. The Gnats appeared after the second soil watering about a week ago. Am I overwatering it?

I'm attaching a photo of the baby Fukiens. Any thoughts or suggestions are most welcome.

Hmm i would love to help but i know nothing about fungus, i have not come across fungus yet.. Thank goodness. If i had to guess i would link it to either too much or too little light/sun. Or overwatering. You should be able to purchase a fungiside

Hey Leslie,
These are nasty buggers. Have lost whole trays of seedlings to them. And yes. It means the soil is too wet.

Note that there is a gradient between 'Amazonian Moist' and 'Death Valley Dust'. You are probably now on 'Florida Keys', but should tone it down to 'Denver'. There should be only enough water in the soil to keep it from pulverizing. Whene there is 'free' water it is too much.

The soil you haven them in now is damaged goods, and should be replaced.

Another site on bonsai teels this:
Water

The soil should be cycled from moist to a bit on the dry side. Water the soil well and then allow it to go nearly dry. Consistently wet soil causes root rot. If the tree is allowed to dry too much the leaves will droop and look a bit shriveled. Watering soon thereafter results in no harm, but if the dryness becomes too severe the leaves will stay limp, turn black, and drop off the tree.

Should the leaves drop keep the soil slightly moist but never continuously wet. Replacement leaves will grow back in several weeks.

Hi J,

Thank you once again, my friend. That is a great article on Fukien Tea and I've saved the website to my favourites!

I will get rid of the soil. Being as small as they are, should I transplant them into a "seed growing mix" or a more draining "Bonsai mix" as the article suggests.

Do I continue to use the moisture tray under the pot while cutting back on watering?

One last question...once I have gotten rid of the old soil and transplanted the seedlings into new soil, should I use a soap/water solution to spray the seedlings and new soil for a period of time (as a preventative measure)? If so, how often do I spray and for how long?

Thanks for your patience and for sharing your expertise.

Hey J!...

I forgot to mention how much I appreciate your sense of humour! ...Death Valley Dust...hahahaha. "Ah am heddin' fer Den-ver...bye y'all."

Hi Jon,

Thanks for dropping by and leaving a comment. The Fungus Gnat is not a fungus but rather a bug......and a very annoying one at that. If you like, check out the wikipedia link I posted in my first posting (as well as my description)of the little critters. It's good stuff to know.

In all the years I've had ordinary houseplants I've never had problems with "bugs" and the plants were usually wilting before I got around to watering them! Since I've begun Bonsai, what...3 months ago?...I've had three different infestations! It's cuz I've started taking much better care of my plants...go figure, huh?! LOL!

Leslie: It teaches you: M<ost plants like it to odry rather than too wet.

No, no soap water, no moister tray. Unless you keep your house very warm, just let them get used to your in-house climate.

Hi J,

I live in a one bedroom apartment on the third floor with full Southern exposure and my apt. building sits on the highest hill in the city. I have two 5' x 8' windows with deep window sills to set my plants on. One window is in the livingroom (where the air conditioner is) and the other is in my bedroom. As you may well imagine, with these two large windows facing South, it gets extremely warm in here thus the need for air conditioning.

I keep my Ficus Benj. and all my seedlings and cuttings in my bedroom because it is the warmest room with the best light. They sit on a deep windowsill where they get the morning sun thru to mid-afternoon sun up until about 3: pm when the sun dips behind an exterior wall. Then they get another 3+ hours of bright indirect light. On really warm days I will close the mini blinds to help keep the heat out during the most intense sun of the day from noon until 3: pm and still the plants get bright, filtered sunlight thru the cracks in the blinds and the room is still quite bright. My windows are made of a protective glass that helps to filter the UVB rays. So, all in all, my plants get a lot of light and warmth due to the Southern exposure.

Taking this all into consideration, do you still recommend that I remove the humidity tray?