How to Get Rid of Fruit Flies Without Killing Plants

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Things You'll Need

  • Spray bottle

  • Dish soap

  • Water

  • Cider vinegar

  • Bowls

Get rid of fruit flies with dish soap.

Fruit flies are a common problem, typically attacking fruit-bearing plants in the garden. Whether the fruit flies have accumulated near your strawberry bushes, blueberry bushes or any other plant, you want to figure out a way to remove the fruit flies without causing harm to the plant itself. You do not want to use pesticides on your plants, as if the plants have fruit you could easily ingest some of the pesticide residue. Instead, use a mild solution that gets rid of the fruit flies safely.

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Step 1

Fill a spray bottle with 2 cups water and 1 tsp. dish soap. Twist the lid onto the bottle and shake to dissolve the soap.

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Step 2

Mist the spray over your plant leaves, as this will deter the fruit flies from attacking the plants.

Step 3

Fill a few bowls with 1/2 cup cider vinegar and 2 tsp. dish soap each.

Step 4

Place these bowls around the vicinity of the plants. The cider vinegar will attract the flies into the bowls, and the dish soap will smother and kill them.

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