Gnats - Ask Extension
I seem to have a festination of gnats in my raised bed garden. They attack and bite me every time I work in there. I am currently removing the dead ...
Knowledgebase
Gnats #866878
Asked May 03, 2024, 11:20 AM EDT
I seem to have a festination of gnats in my raised bed garden. They attack and bite me every time I work in there. I am currently removing the dead debris in my Strawberry plants. How do I get rid of them? I have quite a large area of raised bed. 5 rows approximately 40 ft. long.
Tuscola County Michigan
Expert Response
It appears that you have an infestation of biting midges, also known as biting gnats, sand flies, punkies or "no-see-urns." There is not an effective recommended control as adults killed by insecticides are replaced by hatching larvae. Recommendations include wearing light colored clothing and wearing insect repellent containing DEET or picaridin and scheduling outdoor activities to avoid peaks of biting midges.
More info in the attached articles:
https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/gnats/
https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/biting-midges-and-their-control
https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/publichealth/insects/bitingmidge.html
https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/publications/HN-53.pdf
https://extension.unh.edu/resource/insect-repellents-fact-sheet
https://extension.arizona.edu/somethings-biting-me-i-cant-see-it
More info in the attached articles:
https://hgic.clemson.edu/factsheet/gnats/
https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/biting-midges-and-their-control
https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/publichealth/insects/bitingmidge.html
https://extension.entm.purdue.edu/publications/HN-53.pdf
https://extension.unh.edu/resource/insect-repellents-fact-sheet
https://extension.arizona.edu/somethings-biting-me-i-cant-see-it
