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Old Posted: 26-08-2008 , 03:54 AM #17
HappyHunter
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Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: In the Sticks, North Castlecomer, County Kilkenny
Posts: 399
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I had a community of wasps living under the eves over the back window here. I watched them come and go for a few weeks out of curiosity. When I began to get an idea of how big a commune of wasps can be I decided to take action.

I bought a cheap jar of honey in Lidl, I got some neem oil and blended the two together in a flat plastic dish. I constructed a shelf using a piece of wood and some coat hangers bent in a way that the shelf hung from under the guttering right where the wasps were going in and out. Within about three days all the wasps were gone, those that did not drown when they could not resist the honey were so sickened by the taste of the neem that they went elsewhere. Of course they are more than likely infertile now because if they ingested the neem it messes up their cycle.

During normal composting bugs are welcome visitors because they are part of the decaying process in making compost, as far as I know. Washing the bin out with a solution of neem oil would help to deter the flies and be safer where there are children and pets than fly killer or other chemical insecticides.

Neem can also be applied to the skin as a repellent.

Other than that a few drops of Citronella oil in the bin should help. You can also buy Citronella oil candles to use in the garden which repel wasps and flies.

Also a clove of garlic in the bin may also do the trick on keeping the fruit flies away.
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