The midges are tiny biting insects that invade the garden and make it miserable. They feed on plant sap when they come out at night, so during the day they tend to hide away from sunlight.
They also lay their eggs in wet soil, so they thrive in places with high humidity such as marshes and damp meadows.
Fortunately, there are a few things you can do to get rid of them:
1. Keep your garden dry Midges tend to hide away from sunlight, so if you have a sunny garden your chances of getting them are fairly low. To keep them at bay you should avoid growing plants in areas where the soil is saturated with water all the time, particularly around the roots and lower stem parts of plants. Instead, cultivate your garden in areas that get plenty of natural light throughout the day and very little moisture or precipitation.
2. Cover up The problem lies not with what you grow but rather where you grow it. Midge habitats are usually moist or marshy places which is why they thrive in gardens that have similar features as well as those that don’t drain well because most of their water ends up staying within the root zone instead of draining through it.
A good way to remedy this is by growing plants that prefer dry conditions such as lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) or yarrow (Achillea millefolium).
These two plants have a leggy growth habit which helps prevent them from spreading out too much but also
Keep weeds to a minimum
The more weeds you have covering your garden, the more likely it is for midges to hide among them. Many midge larvae also thrive in weedy habitats because they are found in damp places and often moist soil.
If you have a lot of weeds in your garden, it would be best to remove them. Not only will it help keep the garden tidy but it will also make room for other plants to grow and flourish.
Keep the soil dry and free from moisture
If your garden is staying wet, the midges will continue to thrive. They are attracted to wet soil so you should keep the soil free of moisture by digging up your garden and applying a layer of gravel or sand to the topsoil.
What you want to do is cover the entire surface with a relatively thin layer of gravel or sand which would be effective in keeping the soil dry and prevent it from becoming moist again.
There are plenty of ways to get rid of midges in a garden. You can use natural predators such as ladybugs or lacewings, but creating an environment without water and overcrowding with plants that don’t thrive in damp places also helps greatly.
Protection from the sun
Another way to keep the midges at bay is by covering up plants with anything you can find.
Sheets, blankets, buckets, pots and stones can all be used to help protect your plants from these pests.
Covering your garden with a layer of mulch or even some plastic sheeting will also work in keeping them away.
Trap them in a jar or bag and shake vigorously
To get rid of midges you can either try to trap them in a jar or bag and shake vigorously or spray them with insecticidal soap. In the case of the latter, apply it to plants when they are mature and have a good amount of leaves.
Like most insects, midges feed on sap, so if you spray it on new growth, you will harm your plants. It is best to do this at night because that’s when they come out to feed.
You could also try spraying vinegar around your garden four times every day for three days straight. This will help kill off larvae before they come out and feed on plant sap.
Just remember that this won’t kill adult male midges so it’s not an effective solution for getting rid of them entirely but it can help keep their populations down by killing off the larvae at a young age.
You should also wash your produce thoroughly with soap and water afterward to make sure there aren’t any dead midge carcasses left behind.
Conclusion
A midge infestation can be a painful and expensive problem to deal with. Here are some helpful solutions for how to get rid of midges in your garden.
