Hi, I have just purchased a new property and found that all the garden beds are lined with black plastic. The mulched looked as though it had not been moved for some years and was damp and wet. I have since removed the old mulch but whenever I disturb the soil there seems to be a bunch of insects below the soil mosquito looking insect that swarm around the soil. Are these insect good for my soil ? How can I get rid of them if not? Thanks Jose,
You will want to remove the plastic from the soil, the plastic will not allow water to pass through creating problems with your soil. There is a good chance that you may have mosquitoes and other insects as well as a fungus in the soil. Once the plastic has been removed you will want to turn some compost and the existing mulch into the soil, follow up with an application of Anti Fuego Soil Conditioner mixed at a rate of 4 ounces per gallon of water to get rid of the pests. After a couple of days apply beneficial nematodes to get rid of any larvae that are in the soil. If you want to put down a weed barrier below the mulch you can purchase landscape fabric from any home and garden center, the landscape fabric will allow air and water to pass through while keeping the weeds from coming through, if you put your mulch at a thickness of 4" or greater you should not need the landscape fabric. You can find the Anti Fuego on our website, if you would like to order the nematodes you can call or email me. | 
