Fly control

[ponyboy123]

Does anyone have any tricks for on farm fly control? I am running out of ideas and soon will have to admit defeat and turn to sprays and/or insecticides. Some of my neighbours are getting a little upset with me.

[highlandview]

My daughters' horseback riding instructor swears by these insects that destroy fly larvae and then die off themselves. Here is a link http://www.buglogical.com/flyparasit..._predators.asp

[YuccaFlatsRanch]

We have been using fly parasites this year and even with all the rain the flies have been held in check - eradicated - no, but held to a minimum.

[Marilyn in CO]

We have lots of cattle and we use Kunifun insectory out of Texas. Stingless wasps eat the fly larvae and they do a great job. A few days after spreading the wasps there is a noticeable lack of flies. We spread them every other week through the summer. We've been using them for quite a few years now and will never go back to spraying.

[horsefarmer]

I've never tried those wasps but have always only heard great things about them. There are also fly traps that are effective and a product made by Golden Marlin that is a bait you put out on unaccessible flat areas in your barn that the flies find, eat and die. It works well, although it obviously is a chemical but less indiscriminate that spraying.

The best fly deterrant is keeping cleanliness a high priority but I can't claim to keep everything picked up myself from the pastures. If you stall horses, twice a day cleaning is worth the effort, at least in summer. On horses, I also use fly masks. I put them on everyone after their morning ride before it gets hot and remove at evening feeding except for the poor work horses which are usually harnessed and working all day in the heat. But they are smart though. The only horses I have ever seen stand side by side facing opposite directions and swish flies off of each other faces. Now that is team work and every good farm needs a team.

[Tricky Grama]

Heard someone say they hung clear plastic bags of water around the horse sheds & the flies stayed away. Might try this until you can get the fly parasites.

Patty

[Rita]

My son has had a big improvement in flies on his place when he starting feeding the animals DE (diatomaceous earth). Harmless to animals but be careful not to breath in the dust. I have heard that most whole grains have DE mixed in to kill bug larvae, even in Bisquick.