Gransnet forums

House and home

Flies! ? ? ?

(70 Posts)
threexnanny Wed 08-Sept-21 17:23:04

We seem to have had more than our fair share too. Fruit flies bother me the most as they are difficult to spot when they are not flying.

Callistemon Wed 08-Sept-21 17:20:57

MerylStreep

I have a large mint plant in the conservatory : flys don’t like it ?

I've tried the mint and mint essence to get rid of the spiders and the flies but it didn't work. I think we have a lot of fat spiders lurking because they have such a feast.
Likewise lots of cut lavender and lavender essence in there but DH said it made him wheeze.

NanaandGrampy Wed 08-Sept-21 17:17:50

I don't know if any of you live rurally but we had this last year in the village. We all reported it to the local council who on investigation found a local chicken farm breaching the rules for waste and that's where the onslaught had come from.

It might be worth checking . It was cleared up very quickly with no repeat this year.

Kalu Wed 08-Sept-21 16:48:00

I have one of those tennis racket zappers DiscoGran. I was rubbish at tennis though. ? Very satisfying when I do occasionally zap one.
I also keep an old towel handy as I am quite proficient at a swift flick when they least expect it.
Another trick I learned was to fill a clear plastic bag with water, secure it tightly and hang above an open door. This frightens the life out of any fly upon seeing itself magnified.

avitorl Wed 08-Sept-21 16:41:09

I have never had so many flies in my kitchen as there have been this week. I've been constantly spraying insecticide to get rid of them.I do leave the doors open for my cat to come and go as she pleases so that doesn't help.
Today seems back to normal as the weather is cooler.I also have had the garden waste bin near the kitchen for the last week and have moved back to where it normally is so perhaps that added to the problem?
There are also lot's more spiders too,inside and out,I walk into my garden and get entangled in webs,just like a horror film .

DiscoGran Wed 08-Sept-21 16:29:49

Get one of those tennis racket fly zappers, they are good. (you can practice your backhand at the same time) ??

MayBeMaw Wed 08-Sept-21 16:14:27

I was cooking broccoli soup in the pressure cooker earlier - I wonder if that attracted them?
The constant buzzing from the ones I haven’t managed to swat is making me think of bluebottles at a crime scene!

tanith Wed 08-Sept-21 16:12:43

I have a fly screen on my open back door and they don’t seem to come in the windows. So no flies happily.

crazyH Wed 08-Sept-21 15:57:17

Must get a pot of mint and keep it in the kitchen

MerylStreep Wed 08-Sept-21 15:55:27

I have a large mint plant in the conservatory : flys don’t like it ?

Jaxjacky Wed 08-Sept-21 15:46:40

??? you mentioned the m word Jane I won’t go near our black bin, that’s MrJ’s job. We’ve had a lot of flies here this week too, I try and shush them out of the window, then the spray comes out, yuk and double yuk.

Shinamae Wed 08-Sept-21 15:44:54

Very few flies here maybe I have a lot of spiders….?????

JaneJudge Wed 08-Sept-21 15:43:37

If it helps, the council didn't empty my food waste bin so yesterday I chucked all the food bags in the normal waste bin and poured dettol over them.

Today, it is like a maggot festival in there. It is actually making me feel sick but at least they'll turn into flies and hopefully die in there? confused god knows, it's disgusting and I feel like I've let myself down

greenlady102 Wed 08-Sept-21 15:43:05

I encourage spiders....ecology and dead flies job done

Germanshepherdsmum Wed 08-Sept-21 15:37:21

I made the mistake of thinking they’d about finished for the year when it was cooler. Back with a vengeance.

Callistemon Wed 08-Sept-21 15:19:23

They venture into our conservatory at their peril. Even if I don't dispose of them, they seem to kark it overnight and end up in the vacuum cleaner every morning!
No need for fly spray

FannyCornforth Wed 08-Sept-21 15:18:20

Welcome back!

Elless Wed 08-Sept-21 15:14:31

Not just you MayBeMaw they have been driving me mad, I have a can of fly spray in every room and have noticed that it kills bluebottles but the smaller flies seem to be immune, roll on winter for me.

MayBeMaw Wed 08-Sept-21 15:11:44

Ah well, just me then.
Perhaps something has died in a corner - better check.

MayBeMaw Wed 08-Sept-21 14:30:14

I thought we had seen the last of them for this year, but this week’s Indian Summer seems to have resulted in a final fly fling!
I was working upstairs in the study for a couple of hours and when I came down the kitchen (door left open to the garden for the dog) was heaving so much I thought I must have left food out or that something had died in a corner.
Then I went through to the sitting room where the bay window looked like a fly fest too.
I have given up swatting them and (reluctantly) have now got out the fly spray.
I have never seen them as bad all summer . angry