Little Neo bugs! What are they?

[Miss_Cat]

Hi Neo growers,
I've noticed that with each watering the tiniest, tiny little black bugs crawl out of my sphagnum Neo mounts. They end up crawling and jumping on my sink wall until I flush them down the drain.

I haven't noticed any apparent ill effects to my Neo plants other than they seem to be hiding in the moss and multiplying, and the fact that they eventually settle into nearby newly mounted plants after a few months.

Does anyone know what they are, if they are actually harmful, and how to keep them in check /or eliminate them in a non-chemical way?
(Sorry if this has been discussed already.)

Thanks!

[gareth t]

They sound like springtails to me! I have millions of them in my plants here in the UK! If they are springtails they wont harm your plants, they eat decaying vegetation, most likely the moss that you are using, as it gradually decays! It would be impossible to get rid of them without using pesticide but theres not much point with them being harmless!

[Bud]

If it is not harming your plant then there is no cause for alarm....but if you are really grossed out by bugs then spray them with dish soap. Ten drops of soap in a plastic spray and fill it with tepid water from the sink. I myself don't allow bugs inside my apartment. It really grosses me out.

[WhiteRabbit]

** thread moved to "Pests and Diseases" forum **