Death to Fruit Flies

Beginning sometime in late December, we experienced an invasion of fruit flies. You never know where these things come from. As the name implies, you always expect they hitched a ride on a piece of fruit. But then they multiply. It wasn't clear where they were hatching their young, but by New Years, they were plentiful.

My first response was to try to kill them with a fly swatter. The problem is that this isn't a very efficient method and, small as they are and with a brain to match, they are actually pretty good at attack avoidance.

My next strategy involved using a small hand-held vaccuum. Our little Oreck came with a long tube and a narrow slot end piece. My method then became sneaking up on the fly -- rush to them and they would fly in a random direction -- and suck the little bugger up. Over the course of the last week, I plied my hunt three or four times a day, starting at first in the kitchen where they seemed to be most prevalent and then gradually expanding to all rooms. The long tube was especially helpful picking them off the ceiling.

Our final stroke of luck came from two sources. Lisa discovered a bunch of bad potatoes near the pantry where they had been laying eggs. Then, the Orkin man came by to treat the outside of the house and he suggested putting a cup of baking soda followed by a cup of vinegar in the kitchen sinks. He said that is where they are also probably laying eggs. (I've liked mixing baking soda and vinegar since I was a kid.)

I searched the house over to find a fly to include as a photo in the blog. This one was in the laundry room on a white plastic garbage can we use to store dog food. I need to find him again. I think there may be one or two more and the hunt will continue until they are completely exterminated. It's a strange sense of accomplishment to kill fruit flies, but there it is. Death to fruit flies! All of them!