Here’s how to get rid of fruit flies and keep them out of your Northern California home
Sweet summertime — sunshine, sand, stone fruit ... and flies.
Fruit flies, to be specific, as you may start seeing these pesky bugs around your house as the weather warms, or your fruit trees as they ripen.
How do fruit fly infestation happen and how can you get rid of them? We talked to a pest control expert to find out:
How fruit flies get in your home
Fruit trees and fruit dropped from them can wreak havoc in your yard, said Manteca-based Next Generation Pest Control owner Stephen Tahija in a June interview.
He said they attract flies and ants, which spiders eat, so those start showing up, too. Lizards eat spiders, so lizards start coming in the yard. The roots of the trees are gopher’s main diet, so they start showing up and eating the roots of all other vegetation also — which can cause dead spots. If you start overwatering your grass in an attempt to make it grow back, you create an ideal environment for springtails.
“It’s a huge chain reaction from something as simple as a nectarine on the ground,” Tahija said.
Fruit flies, true to their name, are the the first ones to show up when fruit falls or when ripe or rotting fruit is left on your kitchen counter, even if the rest of your house or yard is perfectly clean, Tahija said.
While the term “fruit flies” insinuates that these pests may be attracted only to seeded goodies you have in your home, the tiny insects have a more complex palate than you may think.
“It could be someone spilled a soda and a little bit rolled under your couch, and you haven’t seen it,” Tahija said.
Fruit flies may develop and breed in drains, garbage disposals, trash cans and mop buckets, according to Orkin. Female fruit flies can lay around 500 eggs, which will hatch in as little as 24 to 30 hours.
Getting rid of fruit flies
While difficult to control because of how quickly they reproduce, there are ways you can prevent and manage fruit flies in and around your home.
To prevent fruit flies, check produce when you bring it in your home for nicks or decaying spots where fruit flies can hide, Food Network advises.
Food Network also says to wash and dry produce as soon as you bring it home to remove any eggs that could be on the surface.
Fruit flies lay their eggs on anything sugary or fermented, according to Food Network, so regularly cleaning up spills, taking the garbage out and cleaning your sink drain can help prevent an infestation.
To control an infestation already in place, Food Network suggests the following:
- Throw away ripe or rotten fruits that are sitting out
- Store new produce in the refrigerator
- Take out the garbage
- Clean containers, surfaces, drains and trash cans
- Turn up your air conditioning; fruit flies thrive in warm environments
- Trap the fruit flies
RELATED: Here’s how to get rid of fruit flies in your home and keep them out in Georgia
This story was originally published July 12, 2023 at 7:00 AM.
.jpg)