How to deal with Fruit Flies
Lately, I have been inundated with fruit flies and I decided to do some research on how to deal with these nuisance pests.
12/03/2019
This summer my kitchen has been inundated with fruit flies. They hover over the fruit bowl and swarm out of the dustbin and are driving me insane. I decided to look for an easy way to deal with fruit flies and get them out of my kitchen!
Not only are fruit flies a nuisance, the other day I noticed an over-ripe banana had been used to lay their eggs.... disgusting! Luckily I was saving them to make banana bread and could toss them out. If you do have fruit flies in the home it's a good idea to get rid of them as quickly as possible, or you may find that they start to lay their eggs in your fruit.
Store Fresh Fruit
Tip number one is to remove their food sources. This means packing your fresh fruit in sealed containers rather than having it out on display, or pop fruit in the salad crisper in your refrigerator. However, keep in mind that not all fruits should go into the fridge.
Grow Fresh Herbs
Did you know that fruit flies are repelled by certain scents? They abhor basil, peppermint, lavender and clove. Consider growing a few potted herbs on a kitchen windowsill to keep fruit flies at bay.
Take cuttings from herbs in the garden and pop these into muslin bags to hang close to your dustbins, or make up a fragrant bowl of potpourri using dried herbs that can be put out to keep fruit flies away. A quick alternative is to use dried herbs that you can buy at your local supermarket to add to a bowl of potpourri.
Kitchen Hygiene
With fruit stored in air-tight containers, you are already removing one food source for fruit flies but it is also important to ensure there are no food or odours to attract fruit flies. Good kitchen hygiene involves regularly cleaning kitchen countertops and replacing sponges and kitchen cloths as often as possible. Spray down kitchen counters once a day with a suitable cleaner to ensure fruit flies are not attracted into your home.
When bringing fresh fruit into your home, open the pack to check for rotten spots. So easily these can already be infested with fruit fly eggs which, when they hatch, will start the process of having to eradicate these pests from your home. Remove fruit from packaging and rinse under the tap before packing away and toss out any fruit with rotten areas.
Trap for Fruit Flies
Fluit flies are drawn to apple cider vinegar and you can use this to make a trap for fruit flies. Pour some apple cider vinegar into a small bowl and cover with cling wrap. Punch a few small holes in the top of the cling wrap so that the flies will be trapped.
