Prevent infestation with Vinegar Flies

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Fruit flies or vinegar flies are tiny, quick-reproducing flies that either sneak into your house right on your fruits and vegetables, or flit in through minuscule window cracks and screens. Since they can grow from egg to adult in just over a week, fruit flies quickly set up well-established families in your kitchen and feed off any fermenting fruit they can find.
They are commonly considered a pest due to their tendency to infest habitations and establishments where fruit is found; the flies may collect in homes, restaurants, stores, and other locations. Removal of an infestation can be difficult, as larvae may continue to hatch in nearby fruit even as the adult population is eliminated. They are very prevalent, especially in the warmer seasons. They do die off when the colder season begins, but should you live in a warm climate, it will be difficult to eliminate them.

vinegar flies drosophila melanogaster prevent infestation with

Preventive measures against vinegar flies in your home

Unlike other larger pests, it is more difficult to fight the flies by exclusion. However, there are preventive measures which do help in keeping these flies at bay. By keeping a constant level of sanitation in your home, you will be able to avoid vinegar flies from developing in such a large number.

  • Keep your counters clean and remove any drips of juice or vegetable peeling that could attract flies;
  • Make sure your trash cans are well covered;
  • Take the trash out regularly, especially if you have just thrown away rotten fruits or vegetables
  • Don’t leave fruits out too long; better eat them quick and replace them with fresher ones;
  • Cover your fruit bowls as this will keep the flies away for a longer period;
  • Keeping all ripened fruits and vegetables (such as onions, tomatoes, potatoes, etc.) stored away in impenetrable containers or, even better, in the refrigerator;
  • Rinse beer cans and wine bottles before placing them in the recycling container, as flies will be attracted to the remaining alcohol as well;
  • Clean up dirty dishes right after eating a meal;
  • Get rid of damp areas, especially in the bathroom and kitchen;
  • Control things around the house that would smell bad, such as drains, garbage cans, pet bedding and litter boxes;
  • Throw away any potential breeding sources such as Old sponges, damp mops, old rags, and any other items you used to wipe your counters and floors that might contain fruit fly eggs;
  • Change pot soil with a top-quality one if you have indoor plants;
  • Wash fruits and vegetables as soon as you get home from the store, even if they are fruits whose peel you would normally remove before eating.

The first step in preventing a vinegar fly infestation is the destruction of their feeding and breeding grounds. These flies often lay their eggs in rotten fruit and other soft, sweet, organic materials they can find around your home. By removing such habitats, they will no longer be able to reproduce at their full capacity. Keep in check your garbage and recycling bins and also your drains in and around your house, as these flies may also use unclean drains as breeding grounds. Outdoor ones are likely sources of yard-based fruit flies, as are overripe fruits beneath the trees from which they have fallen. Always keep your yard and garden clean, in order to avoid the development of these pests.

Some types of vinegar flies also carry disease, and taking into consideration that they can lay over 100 eggs per day, prevention is the key for escaping such a hassle. If you have pets, such as a cat, fruit flies will also roam around its litter box, or also near bathroom and kitchen drains or around toilets and other sources of water. After this, they will fly onto the food left uncovered, and once they find a place favourable for breeding, flies will starts laying eggs and infecting the food they touched. Female flies love to to burrow into your fruit, vegetables or any other food left on the counter and then lay their eggs, and at the rate they are able to multiply, you will soon find yourself dealing with a serious infestation.
A natural mean of deterring flies is by using certain essential oils which have a strong smell. Fruit flies are deterred by the smell of certain essential oils that are pleasing to humans. The oils won’t kill the flies, but they will keep flies from accumulating. Fill a low pressure sprayer with a cup of water and five to ten drops of lemongrass, eucalyptus or peppermint essential oil. Spritz areas of the kitchen that tend to attract fruit flies, like near the sink and trash can.

Several types of actions can be combined in order to prevent and control the development of a vinegar fly infestation. Pruning, exclusion methods, trapping, baiting and spraying with insecticides are all methods that need to be applied when fighting these pests. However, the best preventive measure, as with most other pests, is sanitation. While keeping your house clean and neat, you will avoid the nuisance that vinegar flies can bring, and that of other pests, as well. Even if dealing with an infestation, for which you can find details in our article about ‘How to get rid of vinegar flies‘, you must always apply the preventive measures listed here. While getting rid of these pests can be quite difficult, you need to make sure another generation will not take the place of the one you have just managed to defeat.

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