You could keep flies out of your home this summer with a “genius” hack shared by The Chase star Darragh Ennis.
Darragh is best known for being one of the Chasers – known as The Menace on the ITV game show The Chase.However, he’s also an entomologist, meaning he studies a branch of zoology specifically focused on insects.
And in a video shared to his TikTok account recently, Darragh shared a hack that guarantees to keep flies out of your house, particularly if you have houseplants that insects are drawn to.
The 44-year-old TV star explained that in the summer months, small black flies may buzz around your home. They can be “really hard” to get rid of and can live on your houseplants, making them a nuisance and causing many of us to want to give up on our plants altogether.
These pests are known as fungus gnats, and while they are annoying, there’s actually a simple way to get rid of them. What’s more, the trick is completely natural, meaning you won’t have to spray your plants with any chemicals.
In his video, Darragh explained: “If you’ve got little insects flying around your house, it can be really annoying. Now, I’m an entomologist so I love insects, but I still don’t want those tiny little black flies all over my house, and they’re really hard to get rid of – especially when they live in your houseplants.
“They’re called fungus gnats because they live in compost and stuff, and they’re a big pest in mushroom growhouses and things. Getting rid of them with chemicals is really hard.”
But if you want to keep your houseplants and get rid of the flies at the same time, Darragh recommends taking a unique approach – using nematodes.
He continued: “You’ve probably never heard of them, but they’re little microscopic worms that live in the soil. They’re probably the most common animal on the planet, but we can’t see them. There’s billions upon billions upon billions of them.”
He added: “One type of them crawls inside insects and kills them. Now, it’s a bit gruesome, but it’s a natural way of killing them.
“You can just order these online. You just put these into a watering can and then pour them on your house plants. The best bit about this is that they crawl through the soil and hunts through the larvae and everything so they’re gone.
“So if you want to get rid of those little flies and you don’t want loads of chemicals, buy some nematodes. I studied them for my PhD, and now they’re useful in my house.”
Darragh also showed off the packet of nematodes he had bought online, which were labelled as Sciarid Fly Nematodes and can be purchased from Amazon for around £12.
How to deter flies
You can keep flies out of your home using a number of natural remedies, including using herbs and plants that the insects can’t stand the smell of. These include basil, lavender, mint, bay leaves, and marigold.
You can also make an essential oil spray by mixing one cup of water, 10-15 drops of an essential oil like peppermint, lemongrass, citronella, or lavender, and one tablespoon of vodka (optional, but helps oils mix) into a spray bottle and spraying it around windows, doors, and other entry points in your home.
Another common way to deter flies, particularly small ones like fruit flies, is to make a homemade trap. You can do this by mixing apple cider vinegar and dish soap in a bowl, covering it with cling film, and then poking a few small holes in the top.
