What they attack:

Fruit fly attacks tomatoes, capsicum, avocado, figs, citrus, stonefruit, apples, pears, eggplant, bananas, passionfruit, olives, walnuts, guavas, and many more.

What to do before it arrives

Trying to control fruit fly is a difficult problem faced by organic gardeners. It means employing a number of methods. First make sure your garden hygeine is meticulous, always removing any fallen fruit or infected plants immediately.

Lures (e.g Dakpot) are used to identify the presence of the flies in your area. They are made up by mixing a hormone attractant (purchased from the nursery) and placing it in a container with holes punched into it. An old soft drink bottle works well if hung up in the garden nearby. Punch holes around the top so the flies can enter. Fill the bottom with about a cup of diluted vegemite or ginger beer (the flies are attracted to the yeast. You can place some drops of chemical like malathon to make it more effective if you wish. Tie it up around the trees or plants. The flies enter the drink bottle seeking the liquid and die inside.

Exclusion bags are the most effective control but not suitable for everyone. Cloth bags can become heavy and don't dry out well in wet weather and increase the chance of fungal diseases. If practical, you can use pestguard bags (available from www.greenharvest.com.au) around fruit or vegetable clusters. These can be difficult to use if you have many trees or they are too high.

What to do if you already have problems.

It is important to destroy any infected fruit otherwise the breeding cycle is so rapid that it will wipe out your whole crop and the neighbour's as well. Do this by feeding them to your chooks if you have them or seal them securely in a black plastic bag and leave on a sheet of black painted tin for a week or so before destroying. Clean up everything that looks like it may have small piercings on the skin and check inside for maggots. Remove existing fruit and use exclusion bags for the new fruit as it sets.

Splash baits can also be used. These usually contain a hormone attractant and chemical that kills on contact (less toxic - like maldison). You splash the liquid onto the limbs and lower branches avoiding contact with fruit, or even place it on a nearby fence. Once the flies come into contact they die.