Fungus Gnats

Fungus gnats are a pest who spend most of their life as larvae living in the soil.  However, they are usually spotted as tiny flies hovering over the soil.  They won't hurt your plant, but are still a nuisance.

Since fungus gnats thrive in soggy soil, allowing the mix to dry out between waterings will hep curb them, if you are overwatering.  However, some plants need to stay consistency moist.  In this case, it's possible that there isn't enough drainage in the soil, especially if the plant was never repotted.  This is because growers use mixes with light or no drainage to limit their watering frequency. Repotting in fresh soil will help with the fungus gnats.

Alternatively, or if they persist, there are two effective treatments for fungus gnats.  The first is mosquito nibs, which are available at most hardware stores.  These inclue a bacteria that attacks mosquitos (or fungus gnats) in their larval stage.  Just sprinkle them over the surface of the pot and lightly scratch into the soil.  The second is to do a deep wash of the soil, completely saturating with a 3% hydrogen peroxide solution.

Read more about watering and drainage in our detailed houseplant care article.