I feel cheated, it rained and rained, and rained some more..was cold. Now it's 95 degrees! What happened to spring? :(

Anyway, the flies are back in force! UGH. In the barn mostly is where they drive me nuts, when I milk.

I use (or have used), DE, lime, dairy dust, fly strips, and some different contraptions from milk jugs and sugar water. Nothing works very well.

Any other suggestions?

-- Patty (SycamoreHollow@aol.com), June 01, 2002

Answers

Oooops, in the title....that would be, fliessssssss. :)

-- Patty (SycamoreHollow@aol.com), June 01, 2002.

I have been on that same wave link. Just all of a sudden had to dig out summer clothes. Also, notice as I've gotten older, am just sweating like a pig... so the saying goes. At least the last couple of evenings it has cooled down quick....but know that won't last too long either. Perhaps we will have a nice fall that will last a bit:).

-- Lacey (cddllt@webtv.net), June 01, 2002.

There is a treatment that places nematodes in fly breeding cow patties, don't know the name of it, was mentioned on an older thread on CS forum. Is said to be effective and a natural way to control flies. One thing that I use is a pyrethrium spray, you can grow your own plants and make your own spray. Some people say that feeding a small amount of tobacco to cows will accoplish fly reduction, not sure about how effective this might be or how it is suppose to work.

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), June 01, 2002.

Found my old notes on fly control:

Fly Predators® are very small members of the wasp family, but they do not sting or cause people any problems. They are nature's method of controlling pest fly populations. They attack the immature forms of pest flies where they breed, particularly in manure. And they are specific to flies, never attacking anything else. Before one adopts a Fly Predator program, several things must be understood:

1. The program should be started early and conducted according to the instructions. 2. Don't expect 100 percent results. Nothing now known can give 100 percent fly control. The predators minimize the fly problem. They don't eliminate it. 3. Do not combine a predator program with indiscriminate pesticide spraying with insecticides. The chemicals will kill the Fly Predator, thus ruining the program. However, the use of repellents on the horses, the use of traps and baits, and the use of selective area spraying is encouraged.

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), June 01, 2002.

Why thank you BC, you are always a wellspring, it's delightful! Really! You make me think sometimes, I hate that! ;)

Interesting, I had never heard of that at all, I guess I'll do a search on it! Nothing new of course, like lady bugs for aphids, but like I said, a new one one me!

I do use pyrethrium spray, but have never made any. How do you do that? Is it very involved? Got a link?

-- Patty (SycamoreHollow@aol.com), June 01, 2002.

Somewher I read about hanging baggies of water around the entrances, something about the multiple eyes and water reflecting looking like movement and scaring them. It was on one forum or another. Hopes it helps. Dave

-- dave in ohio (dr43147@yahoo.com), June 03, 2002.