Please help! White worm on potting soil (not fungus gnat larvae)

11 years ago

Hi, I found these white worms on my kaffir lime and avocado potting soil. The lime has more worms than the avocado one. I have tried neem oil+chili oil mixed in water the but to no avail. It is mostly white, very thin, and the length ranges between 1/4 to almost 1/2 inch long. If I water the soil/turn the soil around using wooden chopstick (photo), the worms come out and wriggling around. Looking at the density, there is probably hundreds of them in 1 pot alone!

Please help! What should I do with this? We live in an apartment and the plants never goes outdoor, so I don't even know where these things coming from. Could it be gnats coming from outside and laying eggs?

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Comments (6)

jean001a
11 years ago
The potting mix looks very wet. That could be why they are there.
lleello1
Original Author
11 years ago
jean001a: I just finish watering (with neem oil and chili oil), could it be the soil 'glisten' more? I currently water every 3-4 days. Is it too much?
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calliope
11 years ago
It could be they are simply pot worms, some are that small. If they are, then they are not threatening your plants at all, and in fact are beneficials in breaking down organic matter. Look up enchytraeids and see what you think.
lleello1
Original Author
11 years ago
calliope: maybe? How can I identify potworm? I look around and 1 website says its length is ~1/4 inch, and the other says it can reach up to 1 inch.
One thing that totally confuse me (and make me think if this is a larvae of flying bugs) is none of the pots has been out for >4 months, and placed in a very closed apartment on the second floor. I have never seen them until 2 weeks ago. So where would they come?
I don't have any gnats currently (have that before and successfully eliminated with Gnatrol), but I have to admit that I got bites at night, not sure if it is related or just mosquitoes.
jean001a
11 years ago
It's much more likely to be pot worms than to be a larva of a flying insect.

Pot worms typically indicate that the potting mix is kept too moist.
Ray Dugger
5 years ago
Bro I found one of those things in my romen noodles, are they safe?