10 effective ways to get rid of hoverflies

10 effective ways to get rid of hoverflies

Pest Control

In this article, we share 10 effective ways to get rid of hoverflies. Being able to control pests has always been a major attribute of a very good gardener. There are a lot of pests out there that are after our lovely plants and beautiful flowers. Some of them include; leafhoppers, fungi, aphids, and some deadly microorganisms. These pests carry about diseases that can kill a plant, so how do we take out the bad guys? How would you get rid of Hoverflies?

Hoverflies are the most elusive pests ever. They share a very close resemblance with their cousin the wasp. For an amateur gardener, getting to spot this plant bullies can be quite a big deal, so in the course of this article, we would be dealing with how to get rid of them.

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How to get rid of Hoverflies

Table of Contents

The very simple answer is you don’t have to get rid of them. Hoverflies are an important constituent of our ecosystem. As a gardener, you need this plant bullies at some point. This plant help in pollinating plants, they also help in pest control. Hoverflies have very close resemblance with wasps, bees, and yellow jackets. If they have not invaded your abode, you have no cause to get rid of them.

On the other hand, if they constitute a nuisance, it is possible to get rid of them rather than outrightly killing them. You can use repellants whether natural or synthetic, to get rid of them. In the commercial market, there are different natural and synthetic repellents available; some are plant-friendly, why some aren’t.

 What Is a Hoverfly?

Hoverflies as already stated, have close the resemblance with their other dangerous insects with yellow stripes and black bodies.

Hoverflies are also known as syrphid flies or flower flies. They consume a wide range of foods, be it pollen or nectar. They can be so annoying for gardeners, even do they don’t really mean any harm.

What are the Benefits of Hoverflies

A lot of gardeners don’t really know that hoverflies are very beneficial to your garden.  They help a lot, in the pollination of flowers and plants. Pollinators are essential in the development of a plant. Eliminating hoverflies can be so disadvantageous. In this article, we are not reviewing how to eliminate hoverflies, but we are looking at how to get rid of them.

As a plus, they also play an important role in pest control. You might be wondering, how can a pest control another pest? Well don’t control another pest per se, but they control their population by feeding on their larvae. They make their diet off the larvae of some very dangerous bugs. Some of which include; leafhoppers, aphids etc.

By controlling the population of other pests, they help in maintaining a healthy garden for you. Besides, they would always return to flowers that are affected to feed on the larvae of other dangerous pests.

My recommendation in this article is for you as a gardener to follow our guide on managing hoverfly population, rather than eliminating them totally.

Does Hoverflies Sting like other dangerous bugs?

A lot of gardeners make assumptions that hoverflies have a stinger. The truth is, they don’t. Their only interest is in pollen or pest larvae. These assumptions are so easy to make because they always look like yellow jackets, bees or wasp.

10 effective ways to get rid of hoverflies

1. Planting certain herbs that work as natural repellants

if despite the benefits you accrue from hoverflies, you still intend on getting rid of them? There are natural herbs that can serve as a repellant. These herbs produce chemicals that make the hoverflies go away from the garden. Some common herbs that you can use in this approach include bay leaf, basil microgreens, lavender, mint, etc. As a plus, these herbs smell amazing and give your garden extra greenery feel.

2. Using Citrus Fruit Peels

The peels of citrus fruits can act as a good natural repellant for the hoverflies. So if you are in the habit of trashing your orange peels, you might wanna keep them for some economical purpose. If you place them where the hoverflies congregate, they will go away.

3. Using Sugar Water Flytraps to get rid of Hoverflies

If you dissolve sugar in a bowl filled water, and then, cover it with plastic wrap, you are 80% away from dealing with messy hoverflies. On your plastic wrap, put some holes through. The flies would get attracted to the sugar and go through the holes to be caught in the mixture.

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4. Using Eucalyptus Oil as a Natural Repellant

If you are interested in a more natural approach for controlling hoverflies, you can use the Eucalyptus oil.  Simply place the oil on strips of fabric and paper, and then place the strips of paper near doors or windows. Research has shown that eucalyptus oil is better than other chemical counterparts that are used as pesticides.

5. The mixture of Vinegar, water and soap

Vinegar is a powerful bait for hoverflies. If you place the vinegar in a bottle, go ahead to get a drop of dish soap into the bottle. Cut the bottle into half, and then cover then the container with a plastic wrap. Make holes in the container, the flies would go into the vinegar and watch them get stuck in the soap.

6. Using Traditional Pesticides like powders and sprays

 You can decide to use traditional pesticides like sprays and powders. They are very effective in dealing with hoverflies. The only exception here is that if they are excessively used, they would be hazardous to the health.  So use them sparingly in places where the flies would come to.

7. Fan

If you have an outlet, and you have hoverflies around, you can use a fan to deal with them.  You need to keep them fan around for a long time until the hoverflies move to another location. If they come back, then you turn the fan back on.

8. Flytrap plants

Have you ever heard about carnivorous plants?  Plants like the Venus flytrap, you, or the sundew flower, can be used to kill the turbulent hoverflies for you.

9. fly zapper

Zap zap! Electricity can be used to get rid of your hoverflies.  You can use a fly zapper to accomplish this. When the hoverflies make contact with the Fly zapper, they would be zapped to death.

10. Using citronella smoke

You can use smoke that comes from burning citronella oil or citronella candles to control hoverflies.  The smoke can stop hoverflies from entering your garden.

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Final thoughts

Hoverflies have a strong resemblance with wasps because they have a yellow and black body. They don’t bite or sting. Their major food source is pollen, nectar, and the larvae of other dangerous plant pests.

Irrespective of their intimidating look, they are very beneficial to your garden. With the guides that I have expounded on above, you can stop hoverflies from buzzing around you while you are trying to work in your garden.

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Author: Simon RobertEasyInfoBlog is a multi-author blog. We have experts and professionals in various fields who share their ideas and expert knowledge to help you with your daily information needs. Thanks for reading!

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