Question
Hi,

We were on vacation for a week and when we returned we noticed our potted tree was infected with these tiny brown balls/bugs.  They are the size of the point of a pencil and are spreading all over our walls and floor.  They were probably ten feet up our shelves, window and wall.  There are at least 1,000 of them.  After moving the plant outside, we noticed several yellow opaque balls in the soil.  When I cut into the ball a white thick liquid came out and it looked like there might have been a black bug inside.  It looks like there might be several hundred of these balls in the soil that have already opened and shriveled.  They are difficult to get off the wall and we want to make sure that we rid our house completely.

Do you know what these are and how we can get rid of them?
Thank you,
Leigh Anne

Answer
Leigh Anne,

The bugs are probably fungus gnats and they are there because your plants were too wet while you were gone and the roots began to rot which just like rotten bananas sitting on your kitchen counter the rotting roots attracted fungus gnats. The yellow balls in the soil are the eggs of the gnats. Use rubbing alcohol to wipe them off the walland water the plants with rubbing alcohol and it will kill any living insects in the soil and destroy any eggs  that are still viable. Cut back on the amount of water and let the plants dry out well between waterings so the roots recuperate and no longer attract the fungus gnats. Too much water  kills more plants than too little. Never allow any water to sit in the drain trays of any of your plants and never have any plants in pots that do not have drain holes. Good luck.

Darlene