Are you also dealing with fruit flies in your home? What is the best way to get rid of fruit flies? How do they form and how long do fruit flies actually live?
As much as we love summer, it's also high season for numerous uninvited guests. Fruit flies in particular can quickly become a nuisance and you often don't know how to effectively combat the small animals. Fortunately, if you don't want to use chemicals, there are many effective home remedies for fruit flies.
How do fruit flies form?
Fruit flies, also known as fruit flies, dew flies or vinegar flies, are primarily attracted by the intense scent of ripe fruit. The little animals feel particularly comfortable at temperatures above 15 degrees and therefore have a high season in midsummer and autumn. Okay, how do fruit flies even form? Contrary to popular belief, poor home hygiene is not a cause of fruit flies.
Since the flies lay their eggs on fruit, vegetables and in ripe fruits, we often bring them home from the supermarket or our own garden. They can also get into our home when we ventilate through the window. And once they're in, it becomes pretty difficult to get rid of fruit flies. The small insects can lay up to 400 eggs, which are so small that they cannot be seen with the naked eye.
Also interesting:Bat in the house, what to do? Here's how you can help the lost animal!
How long do fruit flies live?
How long fruit flies live is another question that concerns many of us. The life expectancy of the little animals is between 10 days and 8 weeks. While male flies only last 10 days, females last up to 2 months. The development from egg to adult takes around 10 days and a female can lay around 500 eggs during her lifetime. Without access to food, the small insects survive for less than 24 hours, but in this case a lot of discipline is required in the household. Do not leave ripe fruit or open fruit juice lying around in the kitchen. Dirty dishes or organic waste can also attract fruit flies.
Are fruit flies dangerous?
That insects likeTicks or mosquitoes dangerousWe all know that they are bad for our health and transmit numerous diseases. But this is not the case with fruit flies. So you don't have to throw the fruit in the trash straight away because fruit flies are by no means dangerous. Even if the small insects have settled on the fruit, you can eat it safely. However, you should definitely wash the fruit thoroughly beforehand.
Make your own fruit fly trap
You can now find numerous preparations and traps in stores to get rid of fruit flies. Unfortunately, most of them are quite expensive and full of chemicals. So it's good that we can make our own fruit fly trap using a few common home remedies. It's that easy:
What you need:
- Water
- apple juice
- Zucker
- Vinegar
- Dishwashing liquid
Make your own fruit fly trap:
- Mix 2 tablespoons of water with 3 tablespoons of apple juice, 1 tablespoon of vinegar and a little sugar in a bowl.
- Add a few drops of dish soap and pour the mixture into a small, shallow bowl.
- Why does this fruit fly trap work? While the fruit flies are attracted by the smell of the juice and vinegar, the surface tension is destroyed by the detergent, which means that the little creatures cannot hold on to the liquid. As a result, they drown.
- If the home remedy for fruit flies doesn't work after 3-4 hours, add 2-3 tablespoons of vinegar.
Live trap against fruit flies
Many people feel uncomfortable killing the small insects and of course there is nothing wrong with that. In order to catch them alive, we will explain to you how you can easily make a live trap against fruit flies yourself. All you need is a banana peel, a shallow bowl and some cling film. Place the banana peel in the bowl and cover with cling film. Then secure the foil with a rubber band and then pierce several holes in the foil with a fork or a needle. This is how the flies get into the bowl but can't make it out. To release them again, go outside, far from your home, and open the shell.
Get rid of fruit flies: These home remedies really help
What to do against fruit flies in the apartment? There are many effective and inexpensive home remedies to get rid of the little animals. And we're sure you already have most of them in your kitchen cupboard.
Yeast mixture against fruit flies
Fruit flies are not attracted by the sweet smell of fruit - they actually love anything that smells slightly sour. And this is exactly where yeast comes into play as a home remedy for fruit flies. It doesn't matter whether you use fresh or dry yeast - both methods work perfectly. Simply make a mixture of 1 tablespoon of sugar, 100 ml of water, 1 pack of yeast or 1 cube of fresh yeast and a few drops of washing up liquid. Pour the mixture into a bowl or glass and you're done - it's that easy to get rid of fruit flies.
canned fruit
Canned fruit is also a great home remedy to combat fruit flies in the home. To do this, leave a few pieces of fruit and the fruit water in the can and cover it with aluminum foil. Then poke several holes with a fork or knife - the sweet mixture lures the small insects into the trap without killing them.
Fight fruit flies with lemon and cloves
Half a lemon with cloves is another effective home remedy for fruit flies in the kitchen. The intense smell drives away the insects and ensures that they stay far away from your fruit bowl. All you have to do is pierce a lemon half with cloves and place them in the fruit bowl. By the way, this is a great combination to keep wasps orGet rid of mosquitoes from the room.
These plants do not like fruit flies
You can also use some culinary herbs and plants to get rid of fruit flies in your home in a more animal-friendly way. The little animals don't like some fragrances and essential oils and then stay away from your kitchen. Here is a short list of plants that fruit flies don't like.
- Tomato plants
- Basil
- Lavender
- Lemongrass or lemon balm
- chives
- Garlic
- Bay leaf (also dried)
- Peppermint or mint
How to prevent escape flies?
Prevention is better than cure and so that you don't have to get rid of fruit flies at all, we have put together a few helpful tips for you.
- Always buy only as much fresh fruit and vegetables as you can consume as quickly as possible. To remove fruit fly eggs from the surface, it is important to wash the fruit thoroughly and dry it completely. It would be best if you store your fruits in the refrigerator or in a kitchen cupboard. If this is not possible, cover the fruit bowl with a cover, fly screen or tea towel.
- Keep your kitchen clean and don't leave any leftover food as this will also attract fruit flies.
- Make sure you always close fruit juice, beer and champagne bottles tightly.
- And of course – don’t leave the organic waste standing for too long and empty it at least once a day.
