Fruit flies can be caught with this simple homemade trap

By Stephanie Hughes

OSU Ext. master gardener volunteer

Fruit flies are a problem all year-round as they are attracted to ripening fruit, fermented fruits, tomatoes, melons, grasses, squash, bananas, potatoes and onions.

As we use fresh items in our cooking, we tend to have more issues with these annoying insects around trash receptacles and even drains.

There are about 1,500 species of Drosophila or fruit fly. The fly is only 1/8-inch long with red eyes. The front of the body is tan; the rear is black.

Simply taking out the trash each day may not be enough to reduce their numbers. Eliminating adult fruit flies is a necessity because they are the source for continual infestation. Fruit flies can breed in drains, garbage disposals, empty bottles and even cans, mops and rags.

In order to lay eggs, fruit flies must have fermenting foods or moist organic matter on which the hatching larvae can feed. Fruit-fly reproduction is huge at 500 eggs, with the life cycle from egg to adult being just one week.

Fruit flies can fit through screens for admittance to homes. They are primarily nuisance pests, but they can contaminate food with bacteria and diseases.

What works best to rid the home of fruit flies is the elimination of sources of breeding attraction.

Eat ripened produce, or discard, or refrigerate. Cut away any damaged fruit and discard. A single rotten potato, or onion, or a fruit spill not dealt with can breed thousands of them before you know it.

Recycle bins that are not cleaned or emptied in the house are perfect hosts.

Eradicate and eliminate any breeding sites, as insecticides are ineffective and not recommended in these areas.

If you do get an infestation or even just a stray one around your banana stash – there is a simple way to reduce numbers in just a day or two. A trap made by placing a paper funnel (rolled up notebook paper will do) into a jar, baited with a few ounces of cider vinegar. Plain vinegar does not work. Place this trap in the area where you suspect adult activity. If you have even one fruit fly, the bait will be enough to capture it. Be sure to add a drop of dishwashing liquid to the apple cider vinegar. This breaks the surface tension so the fruit flies can take a swim, never to bother you again.

For details on the fruit fly and making your own trap, visit go.osu.edu/fruitflies.