2 Questions: Gnats and Catapillars

We have dealt with many fruit fly infestations so I know how annoying they are, but I promise you the soapy concoction works. Get a big clear bowl, fill it with warm water. Add a few tablespoons of honey and stir it around. Add some fruity-smelling dish soap to the water and swish it around until there are bubbles covering the surface. The fruit flies will be attracted to the sweet smell of the honey and will get stuck in the bubbles and die. It works like a charm.

While that's working you have to get rid of all food sources. NO food in the sink, make sure all counter tops are santized, trash is covered. It means staying on top of dishes going into the dishwasher during the day (annoying, I know).

Good luck! We have a fly infestation right now, but it's par for the course with having guinea pigs so we just have to deal with it until winter comes. Poo.

Fruit/veggies frequently come from the grocery store with fruit fly eggs on them. You can help deter this by washing the fruit as soon as you get them home.

I know you said you tried the cider vinegar... did you put a couple of drops of liquid soap in the cider vinegar? That breaks the surface tension and they drown.... otherwise, they just take a few sips and fly away. When I've done it I've gotten BUNCHES of fruit flies in the bottom of the bowl... I just put maybe 1/4 C in a shallow bowl with a couple of drops of liquid dish soap.

As far as the caterpillars, use a BT based spray... that has a bacteria that the caterpillars then ingest and they die. You need to re-apply it after it rains, or if you spray the plants with water.

I know you said that you tried apple cider vinegar, but there are different methods, so just in case you tried a different one, this is what we tried. It worked so great . . . I think we had to have caught 50 of them!

We took an old jar, heavy duty tape, apple cider vinegar, a piece of cantelope (any fruit) and a plastic sandwich baggie. Take the sandwich baggie and clip a small hole in the corner. Put an inch of apple cider vinegar in the jar with the fruit. Place the baggie over the mouth of the jar in a funnel shape and tape the outside of the jar completely around. Place in the center of the infested area and leave for a few days. They should all be caught! They can get in to the fruit, but can't figure how to climb out.

try praying mantis for the catapillars....the knats i have no idea we get the every once in a while