Flies

FLIES

MANAGING THEM IN YOUR YARD

With flies becoming increasingly resistant to chemical sprays, many yard owners are looking for alternative methods to keep flies under control in the stable yard. This is vital as flies cause both irritation for our horses, and spread disease. Here we give you a few yard management tips for keeping those pesky flies at bay.

A FLY'S LIFECYCLE

Flies thrive in stable yards, as horse manure is the perfect environment for them to feed and breed. A fly’s life cycle consists of four stages: egg, larva, pupa and adult. It takes approximately two to four weeks for a fly to go from an egg to an adult, and thereafter they live between three and four weeks.

Adult flies like to lay their eggs on fresh manure and any other organic material. Eggs hatch within three days and the new larvae feed on the manure.

MANAGE YOUR MANURE

Horse manure is fly heaven, so it’s vital to remove manure from the stable as soon as possible in the day. Once the manure has been removed, it’s important that it is stored as far away as possible from the stables and paddocks until it can be disposed of properly. It is also advised that manure bags are not left open and rather tied up tightly to avoid flies getting in.

Manure in your arenas and paddocks should also be removed on a daily basis. If you want to use manure as a fertiliser, spread it out thinly so that it dries out quicker. The reason for this is that flies prefer to lay their eggs in the top few centimetres of moist manure. Flies struggle to develop from the egg stage in dry environments, so spreading it out thinly helps break the initial fly life cycle. It’s easier to prevent breeding than to control adult flies.

KEEP YOUR YARD TIDY

It’s not only the manure in your horse’s stable that might attract flies. Feed rooms and garbage disposal rooms can certainly attract flies as well. Make sure that all bins around the yard are closed and lined with plastic bags that can easily be removed and closed.

Feed rooms should be kept tidy and should be swept on a daily basis. Never leave feed bins open; they should be tightly sealed so that odours can’t get out and lure the flies to the feed room.

Many yards store manure and garbage bags in a disposal room or big bin until the pickup truck arrives to remove them. Ideally, you want to store these bags as far away from your yard as possible, and ensure that the bin or room is tightly sealed.

YARD SOLUTIONS

There are plenty of things you can add at the yard that will help to reduce the number of flies.

Firstly, planting herbs that naturally repel flies can truly make a big difference. There are several herbs that you can plant for this purpose including basil, bay leaf, lavender, chives, rosemary, mint, wormwood, citronella grass and lemon balm. Planting these herbs in beds around the stable yard (out of the reach of your horses) can deter flies from coming too close.

Another alternative is to use effective microorganisms or other similar additives in the stables themselves. Effective microorganisms interrupt the lifecycle of the flies and prevent them from hatching into adult flies. And, as an added bonus, effective microorganisms are completely natural! Chemical alternatives do exist, but one needs to be very careful when using these around animals.

Next, you could choose to invest in fly-killing wasps. These are cheap, and extremely effective. To learn more about how they

work, check out our article on the eco-friendly yard (page 46). Then if you’re looking for something a little less labour intensive or difficult to manage, you could opt for the standard fly tape or fly traps. Fly tape must be replaced regularly, and you need to be careful with it around bats and birds. Fly traps are also great, but should be placed away from the stables to draw flies away from the horses.

Finalyl, if finances allow, you can also consider installing spray systems that automatically deliver sprays of either natural or chemical insecticides to the stable or stable area at regular intervals. These systems can be custom-designed and those who have them feel they are very effective.

TAKE HOME MESSAGE

All in all there’s plenty you can do around the yard to get flies under control and help your horses have a more comfortable and hygienic summer.