Trapping Pesky Fruit Flies

If you are like me, you have several different kinds of ripening fruits on your counter, and if you are like me you have become weary of shoeing those pesky little fruit flies away while you try to peel, pit and can natures bounty!
I have a kitchen helper for you.  This is what it looks like…

1. Take a jar and put a piece of fruit in the bottom.  If it’s half mushy and rotten, so much the better!
2. Next, using a plain piece of paper wrap it into a cone shape that reaches to near the bottom of the jar and becomes very narrow. The idea here is that the little dude is going to race down to the bottom and because the accommodations are ripe with possibilities, he will take up lodging and by the time he thinks he wants out he has a tough time finding the way back up and out of the jar.( As we speak I have quite a little collection of fruit flies in my jar on the counter next to my pears, peaches and bananas.)
3.  Trim the cone at the top of the jar and tape it down,  Tape all around the edges so that none of the more adventurous flies can find an easy way out.
4.  If you don’t want an ugly jar of flies just sitting on your counter, do I what I did….cut a nice little piece of craft paper (or magazine artwork) and wrap it around the jar and tuck it next to your bowl of fruit.  Leave a small window at the back so that you can see how your trap is working.  🙂
5.  After a few days when you have a nice collection of fruit flies–take them outside and let them go or drop a few drops of rubbing alcohol down inside the jar and put them out of their misery.  Then wash the jar and start over.

It’s nice to be able to have a bowl of fruit out and not have an eruption of flies flying about every time I reach to peel a peach!  Continued good luck with your canning season, I am enjoying the gathering part of the season.