Hi, I just found this thread and thought you might like my fly control ideas!
I live in an area that has farms, farms and more farms. Flies are everywhere in the area, especially in the spring, and during wet weather. So I devised a homemade fly trap that really works and I have been using it for 15 years succesfully.
First: Flies love manure and dead stuff! They can find it almost instantly.
Second: You have to stay on top of the problem. They breed quickly, and they travel for miles.
Third: You cannot control what your neighbors do with their pet waste, garbage, etc.
That being said, you need to start early in the spring, by making at least 2 or three of these traps.
I make mine about a week or two before the last frost.
To make the trap, get an empty 2 liter soda bottle,
fill it 1/3 with water, 1 teaspoon of liquid dishwasing soap, and 1/4 cup of
any of the following: manure ( (their favorite) I put doggie poo in mine),
tuna fish, canned cat food, spoiled meat etc.
(you get the idea).
Make a hanger for it from a wire coat hanger and hang them in any inconspicuous place around your farm.
Don't hang it close to your house, (they get pretty stanky)
I usually hang one about 20 feet from the barn about 4 feet up in an old apple tree. I hang one on the other side of my property, and the other one I put near the ground near a pear tree.
I also pick up my doggies waste every day or 2 and solarize it in a covered 5 gallon bucket to which I add grass clippings and DE.
This keeps the flies interested in the traps. They fly in the trap and drown.
I use flea drops on my horses and dogs, to repel flies and mosquitos.
I am sorry for the length of this post, but I have had real success with my traps and thought some of you might be interested as well.
In the winter, I lay the traps on their sides to dry out, put a lid on them and send them to the dump. I also make traps for yellow jackets the same way, just different bait. (Apple juice, dishwashing soap, and a piece of leftover fried chicken scraps.)
Bunny
I live in an area that has farms, farms and more farms. Flies are everywhere in the area, especially in the spring, and during wet weather. So I devised a homemade fly trap that really works and I have been using it for 15 years succesfully.
First: Flies love manure and dead stuff! They can find it almost instantly.
Second: You have to stay on top of the problem. They breed quickly, and they travel for miles.
Third: You cannot control what your neighbors do with their pet waste, garbage, etc.
That being said, you need to start early in the spring, by making at least 2 or three of these traps.
I make mine about a week or two before the last frost.
To make the trap, get an empty 2 liter soda bottle,
fill it 1/3 with water, 1 teaspoon of liquid dishwasing soap, and 1/4 cup of
any of the following: manure ( (their favorite) I put doggie poo in mine),
(you get the idea).
Make a hanger for it from a wire coat hanger and hang them in any inconspicuous place around your farm.
Don't hang it close to your house, (they get pretty stanky)
I also pick up my doggies waste every day or 2 and solarize it in a covered 5 gallon bucket to which I add grass clippings and DE.
This keeps the flies interested in the traps. They fly in the trap and drown.
I use flea drops on my horses and dogs, to repel flies and mosquitos.
I am sorry for the length of this post, but I have had real success with my traps and thought some of you might be interested as well.
In the winter, I lay the traps on their sides to dry out, put a lid on them and send them to the dump. I also make traps for yellow jackets the same way, just different bait. (Apple juice, dishwashing soap, and a piece of leftover fried chicken scraps.)
Bunny
