Lavender: Why It Works to Repel Flies And How to Use It

What can be more annoying than flies buzzing around you and your home? Flies are a very common household pest that you likely want to get rid of for good. The good news is, there are a few very easy things you can do, to be rid of them forever!

Lavender is an excellent way to repel flies. Its smell wards away flies because they can not stand the scent of lavender. Using lavender-based soaps, oils, and scents will help repel flies and deter them from returning. You can place these in areas where flies frequent to repel them.

So, if you find yourself inundated with flies and need some advice on how to get rid of them, please keep reading! I will offer some good tips on what to do, focusing on the benefits of using lavender.

What Exactly Is Lavender And What Is It Used For?

Let’s first define what lavender is. 

Lavender is a natural plant that grows from the ground and produces a fragrant smell. 

Many people find the smell of lavender pleasant and often use it in perfumes and body lotions. 

Lavender is also fantastic for our bodies and health. It can be used for those who feel stressed out or anxious. You will often find people using lavender essential oils in their oil diffuser so they can regain a sense of calm and serenity in their bedroom or another specific room in their house.

Sometimes lavender is used as a flavor for food or beverages. It enhances the taste and helps produce delicious sensations. So, as you can see, lavender has many uses and benefits people in many different ways.

Does Lavender Repel Flies? How Do I Use It?

There are a few different ways you can use lavender to deter flies: 

One method is to get dried lavender and place it in small containers around areas you see the most flies. For many people, this could be near their trash can or by a windowsill with a screen where the flies sneakily find their way into your home.

You may even want to place the bowls of dried lavender around your garage, or anywhere you feel it will be most useful.

Another proven method is to buy a small lavender plant, or multiple lavender plants, and let them grow in the areas the flies tend to appear the most. Not only will you deter flies, but you get to enjoy the wonderful smell and sight of a beautiful lavender plant!

You can also purchase an essential oil diffuser and purchase lavender essential oils. 

Plant Therapy Lavender Essential Oil is a fantastic product to use in your essential oil diffuser. Just pour it into the device, fix the settings, and let the aroma of lavender waft through your house.

Sounds like a loss for those annoying flies, but a huge win for you and your living space!

Can Lavender Repel Other Pests?

But wait, there’s more!

Not only does lavender rid you of flies, but it will also keep away moths, mosquitoes, and fleas. 

How fantastic is that?

During the summer months, when moths and mosquitoes tend to hover around our lamps and fly in and out through our windows and doors, you can use any of the above methods for utilizing lavender to effectively ward away these little critters.

Now your pets no longer have to worry about fleas, because the lavender will keep those pests at bay.

What Other Repellents Will Get Rid Of Flies?

While lavender is known to repel flies, as well as other insects and small pests, it is not the only thing that will do the job for you.

If you’re interested in using other scents, you can take a look at our guide to repelling flies with basil here.

Fly Repellents You Can Purchase Online

There is a very popular fly repellent you can easily acquire online and have it sent to your front door. It is called the Quickbayt Fly Bait and it will no doubt make your life easier!

The Quickbayt Fly Bait is a container of little pellets that you can spread around your yard. It will instantly attract flies and once the flies have been gathered, you can dispose of them.

Another product that people swear by and that is very similar to the Quickbayt is Golden Malrin.

Golden Malrin is also made of small pellets that can be used in very much the same way as the Quickbayt Fly Bait. Just pour it around the areas where you hear the flies buzzing! The flies will enjoy the smell and texture of the Golden Malrin, but it will cause them to collapse and wither. This is primarily for outdoor use.

Both of these above products are very commonly used for issues like fly infestation. They are also fairly priced and definitely worth a try!

Bright Lights Attract Flies

During the summer months, you most likely want to relax outside underneath the stars with your family. But what is that you hear? Is it buzzing? Oh, no! The flies are back!

A simple solution? Turn on your bright lights!

Flies are attracted to bright, shiny lights. They will instantly fly toward the lights and you can use this to your advantage.

Take a look at a product called the Katchy Indoor Insect Trap. It uses ultraviolet light that captures the flies inside it. This is a quick and easy solution to disposing of the flies that just ruined your peaceful evening.

The Katchy Indoor Insect Trap has great reviews online. Take a few minutes to read through some of them and hopefully it will convince you to give this method a try.

Like Lavender, Mint Also Repels Flies

In much the same way lavender is popularly known to repel flies, mint also does the same trick just as effectively!

So how can you use the wonderful smells of mint to scare away those bothersome flies? Get crushed, dried mint leaves and put them in small bowls. Place these containers around the areas where you frequently see flies.

This is a great method especially because you can use any leftover mint from a recipe and simply enjoy its wonderful scent!

Take a look at our full guide on how to repel flies with peppermint here.

Light a Citronella Candle to Repel Flies

Take a look at this awesome product called the Repel Insect Repellent Citronella Candle. This specific citronella candle is used to repel flies! Who would have thought a citronella candle was not only for ambiance but also for dealing with pests?

So how can you use this Repel Insect Repellent Citronella Candle to keep flies away? Take the candle outside and find a place for it, perhaps near the garbage or near any fruit or vegetable trees and plants you may have outside. Light the candle and revel in the fact that the essence lasts up to 40 whole hours!

For those 40 hours, let this candle work its magic. Have you noticed that no flies have come near you or your home during that time? That’s because this citronella candle really does work!

If you’re interested, you can read our full guide to repelling flies with citronella here.

Do a Simple Deep Clean

For most of us, the words “deep clean” make you want to groan. We have all been there!

However, doing a deep clean of your home and garbage areas is a fool-proof way of deterring flies from ever showing up in the first place. Here are a few tips for the future!

Double-bag your trash before taking it out to the garbage bin outside your house. More importantly, bag food trash separately so the flies can not find their way into it at all. After all, flies love stinky, rotting food! Gross, right? This is what attracts them in the first place: discarded food, left-over meat, spilled milk and juice, and foul-smelling products and waste.

You can also read our piece on how to fully repel flies from your garbage.

Use cleaner or sanitizing wipes to clean out your garbage cans inside your house after you have thrown out your trash. Sticky, left-over residue from food and drink attracts flies. 

After the garbage truck has removed the garbage bags from your bin, take a hose and some liquid soap and clean the inside of the garbage bin. Doing this frequently, let’s say once a month, is a great deterrent. It is also easier than it sounds, trust me!

You can also use heavy-duty garbage bags. You can find these at your local stores. They are labeled as heavy-duty and are very effective in not breaking and spilling out all of your waste and garbage.

After all, who wants to clean up old trash in front of the floor because your garbage bag unfortunately ripped? Save yourself from doing extra work later on by getting the hard work done first.

Keep up with your cleaning, and you will be so grateful you did once you realize the flies never even appear in the first place!

Also, when you buy cleaning products make sure they are antibacterial and hold up for deep cleaning. As a bonus, use products scented with lavender and mint, as we have established that those are scents that will deter flies.

It will save you a lot of headaches and time. So go grab with your broom and rags, and get to work!

Conclusions: A Quick Review 

Well, that about wraps it up on our end! Let’s just run through everything one more time so you know exactly what to do and how to do it:

• Lavender: It is a multipurpose herb that can ward away flies and other similar insects.
  • Get lavender plants, dried lavender leaves, or lavender essential oils. All of these, when used properly, will help deter flies from coming any closer.

• Lavender is fantastic for another reason.
  • It also helps get rid of moths, mosquitoes, and fleas.
    • To do this, use lavender in the same way as you would use it to ward away flies.

• Buy items online if you would rather someone else do the preparation work for you.
  • Purchase products like Quickbayt Fly Bait and the Golden Malrin.
    • Both of these are small pellets whose taste and scent attract flies. When the flies try to eat the pellets, they will fall instantly to the floor, at which point you can sweep them away.

• Shine bright like a diamond! Or so the saying goes.
  • Get a hold of the Katchy Indoor Insect Trap and set it up outside in your yard.
    • This will immediately attract flies, as well as other similar pests, due to the bright and shiny light. They get stuck inside the sticky surface and then you can easily dispose of them.

• Mint: Not only is it a wonderful herb that you can use for cooking or cleaning, but you can also use it to repel flies.
  • Use mint in the same way you’d use lavender.
    • Get mint plants, dried mint leaves, or mint-scented sprays, or natural essential oils.

• Repel Insect Repellent Citronella Candle: citronella candle found online.
  • This is a ready-made citronella candle that you can use outdoors.
    • Light it once for 40 hours and within that time, flies will stay far away.

So now you are prepped and ready to go with your variety of methods to keep those flies away for good!

Make sure to take a peak out our piece on the most common scents that flies hate and how to use them.

Please drop us a line and let us know how things worked out for you. We love to hear from our readers. If any of our tips or advice helps anyone, we are stoked so we hope you have fantastic luck!

Resources

Moon, R. D. (2019). Muscid flies (Muscidae). In Medical and veterinary entomology (pp. 345-368). Academic Press.

Rozendaal, J. A. (1997). Vector control: methods for use by individuals and communities. World Health Organization.

Fareham Borough Council. Flies, maggots, and bin smells. https://www.fareham.gov.uk/waste_collection_and_recycling/refuse/maggots.aspx

Lachance, S., & Grange, G. (2014). Repellent effectiveness of seven plant essential oils, sunflower oil and natural insecticides against horn flies on pastured dairy cows and heifers. Medical and veterinary entomology, 28(2), 193-200.

Texas A&M Agrilife Extension. Controlling Houseflies. https://texashelp.tamu.edu/browse/by-type/agriculture-disasters/insects/houseflies/