Q. My husband and I spend four months away from the Valley during the summer. When we returned in late September we could not believe the number of flies in our yard…..and because we are used to leaving our doors open….in our house. We have always bragged to those less fortunate than we are and live elsewhere in the country, mainly in the East, how we have virtually no flying insects in Las Vegas. I’ve had to eat my words this fall….along with some flies. I have not been able to even sit outside and read without being bombarded in the face with these nasty insects. We live in Sun City Anthem….the far southern end of the valley. Is there something blooming/growing in my yard that flies really like? Has anyone else noticed this proliferation?
A. Yours is the first report I have seen about an increase in flies this year. I do not know the products that are used for flight control, which is not an area of expertise for me. I would suggest however that somewhere, someone may be using a source of compost or manure products that are attracting flies.
The best advice I can give in the safest is to find out what is attracting them and where and address the problem there. If you do not do it this way and simply spray to control flies or use some sort of sticky trap you will not solve the problem but just work on the symptoms of a problem. I hope this helps.