Flies!!!!

[Hip_Shot_Hanna]

We are beseiged with flies. They look like houseflies. It's driving us crazy! We have no livestock so no fresh manure. We carry our garbage off and do not leave it outside. We have NOTHING on our 12.65 acre place that can be a breeding ground. It's been dry here in Central Texas for the most part.

We have two bug zappers (they work fairly well on mosquitoes but the flies don't seem to be impressed with them) and we hang two of the bait fly traps outside with the pheremone/rotting meat bait in them. These are swarmed, and we have dumped them out multiple times, buried the dead flies, and rebaited...

BUT WE STILL HAVE A PLAGUE of flies. Last night DH sat out on the front porch in one spot with a flyswatter and killed 120 in half an hour. This is driving me crazy.

The nearest dairy is at least a mile away or more, and we are surrounded by pecan orchards etc, NOT your usual fly breeding situation. Across the road is a 250 acre hunting preserve. The fellow behind us is only there on weekends.

We cannot find anyplace the flies are breeding close to us - yet it seems more like we live next to the city dump!

Any suggestions? We'd love to use biological fly control, but without knowing where they breed that isn't much of an option.

Thanks
HSH

Edit note: My two grandaughters turn one this week, and their mothers (my daughters) were going to have their family one year birthday party at our home. Unfortunately, we have had to move it to the city park because it's impossible to have it here. I literally cannot sit outside on my back or front porch without moving my hands and legs constantly to keep the flies off, and they STILL land on me.

[littlebitfarm]

Move the fly bait stations AWAY from the house. So they draw the flies away, instead of to the house.

Kathie

[Hip_Shot_Hanna]

We don't have them up too close to the house, that would certainly defeat the purpose But thank you for the tip

[BJ]

Next year....erect a Purple Martin house....they will eat the flying insects.

[Hip_Shot_Hanna]

BJ - That's a great idea - for next year I'd sort of like help for this year though.. lol! We just bought this place in March, so we've been doing all sorts of stuff to it. The birdhouse actually is in the plans though we just haven't had time to do so this year.

[Bink]

Your last name doesn't happen to be Beelzebub, does it?

[Queen Bee]

We use the fly traps that you add water to and I am amazed at the # of flies that are in these things.. In two days we had over an inch of dead flys floating in them. I purchased these from PetSmart and have two. One is about 20ft from the side of the house and the other is about 20ft from the dog kennels... EVery few days I go by and press the outside of the bag and shake it lightly and use it for about 3 weeks and throw it away..

[james dilley]

How far is your house from the weekenders Garbage pit??? might there be dead stock in A feild nearby?? is there A leak in the Septic lines.???

[Northumberland]

I know this sounds really weird but give it a try. Fill clear ziplock plastic bags with water - about half full and hang up around outside close to your house. The theory is that the flies think they are wasps nests and stay away, And no, I am not a nut case. LOL

[soulsurvivor]

Originally Posted by Northumberland

I know this sounds really weird but give it a try. Fill clear ziplock plastic bags with water - about half full and hang up around outside close to your house. The theory is that the flies think they are wasps nests and stay away, And no, I am not a nut case. LOL

dang! I've just found a new use for my favorite handy item - the ziploc! Thank you!!

[Hip_Shot_Hanna]

Originally Posted by Queen Bee

We use fly traps that you add water to and I am amazed at the # of flies that are in these things.. In two days we had over an inch of dead flys floating in them. I purchased these from PetSmart and have two. One is about 20ft from the side of the house and the other is about 20ft from the dog kennels... EVery few days I go by and press the outside of the bag and shake it lightly and use it for about 3 weeks and throw it away..

We are using those too - and in three days it had almost four inches of flies in there - but you can still see the flies flying around in huge numbers!

Originally Posted by Northumberland

I know this sounds really weird but give it a try. Fill clear ziplock plastic bags with water - about half full and hang up around outside close to your house. The theory is that the flies think they are wasps nests and stay away, And no, I am not a nut case. LOL

I'm going to have to try that on our front porch. My fingers are crossed hoping this works! I just want to sit on my own front porch, with a glass of iced tea and a nice book to read, or sit and chat with my husband. At the moment, I can only handle five minutes before the flies drive me back inside the house

[Hip_Shot_Hanna]

Originally Posted by Bink

Your last name doesn't happen to be Beelzebub, does it?

Uh, no. I'm on the opposing side of that!

[free-2-b-me]

Here in NY we are having problems with tent catapillars - if you don't know what they are - they are these black spiney looking catapillars that make nests in trees that look like white sacks . When the catapillars emerge from the nests the go about eating the foliage from the trees . They are eating the new foliage from the trees . Some places you can actually hear them crunching and the trees are starting to look bare . Not good !
Anyway - abbout a month ago we all of a sudden got swarmed with all these huge flies . Naturally I thought there was something dead nearby .
Come to find out the DEC has helicopters flying over dropping these flies over the areas where these catapillars are . Apparently they attack the nests of the catapillars and eat the larve .
I guess we will just have to live with it !!!!

[Dink]

Northumberland I tryed the ziplocks at the barn and It didnt work.

[Hip_Shot_Hanna]

Originally Posted by ----

Northumberland I tryed the ziplocks at the barn and It didnt work.

Oh man, I did SO not want to hear that!

[Spinner]

Originally Posted by Northumberland

I know this sounds really weird but give it a try. Fill clear ziplock plastic bags with water - about half full and hang up around outside close to your house. The theory is that the flies think they are wasps nests and stay away, And no, I am not a nut case. LOL

My daughter told me this last year. Only she said you should put a red stripe down the middle of the bag. She hung them around my front porch and it worked.

We also use the baited bags out in the barn. I was late putting them up this year and the flies were thick. I've had them out a little over a week. I checked one this morning and it's really cut down on the fly population.

[titansrunfarm]

I use the fly bait bags also, they are only about $4 at the feedstore and make a huge difference in the barn.

[Shepherd]

Originally Posted by free-2-b-me

Here in NY we are having problems with tent catapillars - if you don't know what they are - they are these black spiney looking catapillars that make nests in trees that look like white sacks . When the catapillars emerge from the nests the go about eating the foliage from the trees . They are eating the new foliage from the trees . Some places you can actually hear them crunching and the trees are starting to look bare . Not good !
Anyway - abbout a month ago we all of a sudden got swarmed with all these huge flies . Naturally I thought there was something dead nearby .
Come to find out the DEC has helicopters flying over dropping these flies over the areas where these catapillars are . Apparently they attack the nests of the catapillars and eat the larve .
I guess we will just have to live with it !!!!

OH SWELL! First the ladybugs - now flies.

Sure sounds miserable, HipShotHanna. Do you have an electrical outlet on your patio? I'd take a box fan outside and have it on when I wanted to be out at the patio table... maybe it would help. Meanwhile, I'd be getting some guineas from anyone I could, and getting that Purple Martin House up!

[Ark]

http://kunafin.com/

We had a fly plague worse than yours. FAR worse.
We DO have livestock, and they are all around the house, not out in some pasture.
So, we ordered these fly predators that eat the fly larvae, or something like that. LOL,. They do NOT sting people or animals. In fact, you dont even SEE them once you let them go.
We have had 2 sets of visitors in the last 2 days who have commented how surprised they were that there are no flies to be seen!
Kunafin is LOTS cheaper than the other places that sell the predators.
Good luck!

[Northumberland]

Hip Shot Hanna:- Was it dark in your barn, supposed to be hung in a window or outside and have to say they worked for us. We were inundated by flies last year and after a few days of these being hung in every window we had no problem. I put them in all the windows again this Spring and so far this year have had one fly. Have read this year to put a new penny in the bag but think that might be for algae and we never had any problem with that in the bags.