Mom vs Fruit Flies

I'd try moving the plant outside if it's possible. The life span of a fruit fly is 9-11 days I believe. I usually get them when the fruit is forgotten. I get rid of the fruit but then they go downstairs and live in the bathroom down there. So if they do love drains, then I'm cleaning mine the next time I see one in there.

Mash and stuff 1/2 banana into a plastic water bottle. Fashion a paper funnel with a small hole and tape it to the neck of the plastic bottle. You could make a few of these and place them in the areas where you see a lot of them. The fruit flies will fly in but they cannot fly out. Once you have caught a bunch, close the top off (the funnel) and discard.
Most effective fly trap....we use it in fruit fly labs.. :)

If you catch very few or none at all....then you do not have a fruit fly infestation.

They sell insect killer for household plants at home depot. Fruit flies also LOOOOOVE drains! Pour some bleach down them a few times. It always gets rid of mine.

Taking the plant outside is the first thing. Then make sure there is no trash anywhere in your bathroom. Take out as much as you can and clean it. Leave everything out and see if they are still around. If they are, could be you have something in a wall. Don't forget to check the toilet tank.

I feel your pain. :) I have had this issue twice in the past three years but managed to bring it under control much more quickly the second time because I had learned what I was doing wrong the first time.

I have several house plants in two different areas of our home. The flies lay their eggs in the soil of the plants. However, the soil must be damp for the cycle to continue. I was watering my plants too frequently, not allowing the soil to dry completely between watering. As someone else mentioned, there is also a spray available for houseplants that you spray on the top of the soil but they will still come back if you are not letting the soil dry completely. I used the spray the first time around when the problem had gotten so bad that the flies were migrating all over the house. I didn't even get it out the second time when I noticed that they were back. Now I just make sure that I do not water a plant that doesn't need it at the time.

Also, most plants will dry out faster if they are outdoors, especially here in Colorado. If it is possible to move the plant outside, you will probably see quicker results. Just make sure the flies have died inside your home and the plant soil has dried prior to moving the plant back in.

I hope this helps and you are fly free soon.

try a little bowl of vinegar where you are having the trouble. It has worked for me, but I always forget to do it when I see them...lol I want to know WHERE they come from and I don't think it is fruit...maybe it is a plant. Good Luck!

Hi K., The best trick I found is apple cider vinager, full strength with a drop or two of Dawn dish soap in a bowl. I think I left my out for a week or two adding vinager as needed. It works great! The flies are attracted to the fruit part of the vinager and the Dawn helps trap them once they land in the vinager. Good luck!

Take the plant outside. See if that works. If so, then change the dirt in the pot with new dirt, and start over. There may be some insecticide you can use, but why not give your pkant a break and give it some new soil anyway? They love it.

I feel for you and am going crazy with a gazillion of them in my indoor herb garden. I place little dishes of apple cider vinegar swished with a small squirt of dish soap but there are still a half-gazillion left. I can't replant since they are all over 10 or so herbs. I'm itchy just thinking about it!

Good question...I'm hoping for a solution to mine too. Maybe leaving them outside for a bit to dry out? Afraid the herbs will die if I do.

Garlic is a natural fruit fly repellent. I would put the plant outside and put a few smashed garlic cloves on top of the soil and wait for a few days. :)

I suck them up with the vacuum and then spray everything with a cleaner and wipe it down.

I had the same thing. I got plants from Home depot & along with them came a million flies. Plus I was finding little wormy like things around the plants. I bought a Plant soap you can get at Home depot or any Plant store. Spray the plants & clean them and this should help. Since cleaning them I havn't had any issues.

I had flies in my plants. I tried pretty much everything to get rid of them, but eventually just has to get rid off ALL my plants. Haven't had a fly since.

I feel for you!! I had the same problem last fall. I tried everything (traps with bread, fruit, vinegar - they did catch LOTS of flies, but I still had many flying around and couldn't get rid of all of them. Every few hours I would smash 20-50 of them with a swatter, it was driving me nuts!! Finally the only thing that worked was a bug fogger/bomb, that I set off in my house and left for a few hours. Then you have to come home and open all your doors and windows and let the place air out for a couple of hours. Also, wipe down all horizontal surfaces - especially in the kitchen. I was so happy to get rid of them and I hope that they never come back!! Good luck!

It sounds like you have the answers you need (repotting, letting soil dry out etc) but I thought I would add that you probably don't have fruit flies. You most likely have aphids. We had a similar problem with a plant my daughter kept in her bedroom and they were larger and slower than fruit flies typically are.

Take the plant out and make sure you dont have any trash in the house until the clear out. Double check your cabinets and counters for anything opened. and if you got kiddos check their rooms and trash cans, vaccuum everything, even your cupboards. with the heat it seams they are more apparent.

I had the exact same problem with the flies and my plant. What I had to do was take my plant outside, get rid of the old soil, wash the roots a bit with water, completly clean the plant pot as well as I could. I got fresh soil and replanted. It finally got rid of the bugs. My husband was about to go crazy!!!
Good luck!