As warm weather persists, fruit flies may become a common nuisance in your home. A simple, natural repellent can help keep them away from your fruit bowl.
Simple Two-Item Hack
Cleaning expert Anna Louisa, who shares tips on Instagram as @anna_louisa_at_home, recommends pressing cloves into half a lemon and placing it in your fruit bowl. Both lemon and cloves emit scents that flies find repellent, encouraging them to avoid the area.
Interior expert Keely Smith explained to Ideal Home why this method works: "Lemons release limonene, which is a strong citrus compound that interferes with the way flies find food."
Why It Works
Smith added: "When you stick cloves into the lemon, you're adding eugenol, which has a sharp, almost spicy scent that flies dislike even more. The combination of lemon and cloves throws off their senses and makes the area smell too intense and confusing for them to stick around."
Additional Tips
If the hack proves ineffective, Anna suggests placing mint near an open window to discourage flies from entering. She also recommends scattering cinnamon around the base and inside the lids of bins to deter flies from hovering around unpleasant odours.
Another suggestion is to create a simmer pot with lemon, rosemary, cloves, lemongrass, and essential oils. Anna writes: "Fill a saucepan halfway with water, add one sliced lemon, one to two sprigs of rosemary, 10-20 cloves and 10-20 drops of lemongrass essential oil. Bring to the boil, then simmer. Top up the water as and when needed - refresh every couple of days when the scent starts to fade."
