Your lawn is full of flies due to improper maintenance, nearby food around the lawn, too much debris, or tall grass. To prevent this from happening, you’ll have to cut your grass regularly, remove unnecessary trash, and use fly strips to detract them from the area. That way, your lawn can be clean and protected from future fly infestations.
Reasons Why Your Lawn is Full Of Flies
Animal Feces and Garbage
Your lawn might be infested with flies due to excessive garbage and animal feces. Some garbage can come in the form of seed grass fertilizers, fertilizers, etc, and other things that can attract flies at a mass scale.
Check the location where the flies are most frequent. You must clean the animal feces and garbage if it’s becoming too old or dull. When you can use feces as a fertilizer, avoid using rusted garbage or black garbage. This will attract small insects such as flies, bees, and roaches.
You must remove your lawn of animal feces and garbage to solve this issue. This will protect the long-term health of your lawn and keep your grass safe from flies.
Sweet Odors
Fruits or other items that give off a sweet odor will attract many flies to your lawn. For example, sweets such as sugar, chocolate bars, legumes, and yogurt can attract flies to your lawn.
To prevent this, all you have to do is pay attention and stay cautious when using sugar-induced components on your lawn. Too much of it will cause flies to swarm your lawn, making it impossible to get them away from your flowers, crops, etc.
Because of this, you are preventing your yard from experiencing these issues is crucial to the longevity of your grass. Flies tend to eat sweets because it helps them grow. And too many sweets will cause for the flies to reproduce faster, leading to more problems in your lawn.
Holes In Lawn
Having excessive holes will give your flies a hiding spot and a place to reproduce. Small holes are a magnet for insects, and they will make it their home if you’re not aware of their behavior.
Fill up the small holes in your lawn to reduce the chance of an insect infestation. When doing so, fill them in deeply, so no flies are lying behind. Doing so will help remove unwanted flies and keep your lawn healthy. Thus, saving your lawn from future fly problems in the long run.
How do I get rid of flies in my grass?
Create Fly Traps
If you’re noticing an increased influx of flies in your lawn, then creating fly traps is a quick solution. With fly traps, your flies will fly towards it and die due to the chemicals behind them. Here’s how you can make a simple D.I.Y. fly trap.
Start by mixing cornmeal and molasses and placing it inside a small dish. Put the dish in an area away from the patio. Doing so will allow the flies to gather around the trap while you can enjoy your lunch in peace.
Alternatively, you can place a ¼ cup of dissolved sugar and mix it with a cup of water. Roll the mixture into a stiff piece of paper, place it inside a cone until it reaches the top of the jar, and then snip off the tip.
Next, add tape to the cone and make sure the cone’s tip is above the sugar water and the wide end fills the jar’s mouth. This will create a paper cone that attracts the house flies and removes them within seconds.
Use a Fly Swatter
A fly swatter is a great way to remove insects if you’re quick with your hands. It’s an effective, immediate, and satisfying way to get flies out of your lawn. If you’re not a fan of the manual fly swatters, try using an electrical one. These electrical devices will electrocute the flies with a large zap.
Don’t Leave Meat Out
Not only are flies attracted to sweet orders, but they also like to target leftover meats. When barbecuing or meal prepping, close the barbeque lid and cover the meat tightly while cooking. Additionally, ensure any carcass or rotting meat is stored properly to prevent any additional flies from coming on your lawn.
Get a Fan
Lawn flies can’t fly properly when there’s a fan breeze nearby. Get an oscillating fan near your picnic table or backyard grill to repel them. When the lawn flies feel gust, they will fly in the opposite direction. You can use multiple fans to ensure that the flies can’t fly on your lawn without experiencing some turbulence for optimal results.
How to keep flies away from my lawn.
A Small Group of Flies
First, gauge the severity of the flies that are within your lawn. For example, if only a few flies, you can mitigate the problem by cleaning or eliminating the area that attracts them. Or, you can watch where your flies are resting and place a residual pesticide towards the area.
This method will repel the flies and prevent them from growing in size. If you see only a small number of flies, they are just visiting and not breeding on your property.
Flies Infestations
If your lawn seems to have excessive flies, chances are they are breeding in the area. To solve this, you’ll need an insecticide to kill off the colony of maggots. Look around the area to see where the largest group of flies are, and you’ll find the area where they breed and lay eggs.
- This method lets you find an area where the maggots are easily seen. With a bottle of insecticide, kill the remaining maggots and clean the area. For long-term larval growth prevention, reapply the insecticide to the affected areas, place a lid on the trash can, and the fly population will decrease over time!
What Smell Will Keep Flies Away?
Multiple smells will keep the flies away from your lawn. Here are some of them.
- Basil
Both the basil essential oil and the basil plant are natural fly repellents. Planting basil in your garden can keep flies away from vulnerable plants such as fruit trees and vegetable plants.
Plus, basil is a great way to repel flies from outside areas and smells great. You can even place the basil plants indoors in areas such as kitchen counters and coffee tables.
- Rosemary
Did you know that rosemary is effective at repelling flies from your lawn? Rosemary works due to its strong scent, which flies detect upon smelling it. This makes it a good repellent because it prevents the flies from getting close to your plants.
Because of its anti-sweet scent can be used in plant- or oil-based form to heighten the rosemary’s smell. If you plan on getting the plant form, you can use it on your favorite dishes once it’s fully grown.
- Lavender
Lavender is effective because it provides a great smell for humans while repelling flies. This scent is versatile, and users can employ it in multiple ways.
The most common way to use lavender is to have lavender plants around your yard. This method is helpful when you plant it around patios, swimming pools, decks, and other areas. You can mix it with proper vegetation to ensure that your plants get sufficient protection.
How Can I Check for Flies Outside?
First, you’ll need to inspect your lawn to determine where your flies are breeding and living and how the flies are getting there. After finding this information, then it’s a measure of chemical/mechanical controls, exclusion, and sanitation to prevent them from coming back.
Second, see what is attracting them and where the flies are landing. Identify them and see if they are: cluster flies, house flies, blowflies, or more. Doing this will help you determine what source of management is needed. If you notice a large group of flies, chances are a breeding site on your lawn or another area nearby.
If the flies are not on your property, then you should look for them and have the right people exterminate the flies. If the neighboring person cannot cooperate, speak to your state health or municipal department for extra assistance. While you can control the population by killing adult flies, you won’t have complete control until you fully eliminate the source.
F.A.Q.
Do Flies Breed in Grass
Flies like to breed in the grass, manure, and in rubbish. To prevent them from breeding, clean up behind your pets, clear lawn clippings, and seal your trashcans. If you have a compost bin, turn it regularly to prevent the rotting material from reaching the top. Doing so will help kill any pupae or larvae that are within the heap.
It is your duty to prevent the flies from breeding on your lawn. If left unattended, they’ll start to make a colony which will be even more difficult to remove. So take out the fly breeding grounds before it gets any worse!