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Cluster flies on my soil - help to get rid!!

Yorkshire_LassYorkshire_Lass Posts: 4
in Problem solving
Hi all.

I have recently noticed large groups on flies on or around my new soil bed and a little googling has made me think they are likely to be cluster flies as they lay their eggs in the soil and their larvae feed on worms.

Seeing as they can migrate into houses in winter (and to protect the worms) I want to take measures to get rid of them but am looking for a solution that is friendly to the biodiversity in the garden. I have found plenty of insecticide options but wondered if anyone knows of anything else I can try first that is more plant/wildlife friendly.

Thanks in advance  :)

Posts

  • ObelixxObelixx Vendée, Western FrancePosts: 28,574
    I would just keep the surface hoed so any eggs are brought to the surface and consumed by predators.   We have cluster flies here but they are seasonal and short-lived.  I do nothing about them other than hoover up the corpses when they fall inside the windows.
    "We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing." - George Bernard Shaw
  • Yorkshire_LassYorkshire_Lass Posts: 4
    Thanks Obelixx. Happy to let nature tackle the problem. I have lots of sparrows that come into the garden due to the feeders and I know they wander over the soil around the new hedge so they will hopefully give me a helping hand :)
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