Lil' Tip from Liz...

Our next door neighbor has a pear tree. It sits, and the fruit falls, on his property between our houses. It's beautiful in the spring as it flowers, and then in the early summer when the pears are out. Once the end of summer hits it's pretty comical to hear the "THUMP, THUMP" as they fall out of the tree onto the ground... and that's where the amusing part ends. Our neighbor never touches the pears so they lay on the ground and rot, attracting fruit flies. I leave my windows open as late into the fall season as I can and those little suckers fly straight through the screen.

However, I do not fret the fruit flies. I know the trick.

Here's what you do, in a small bowl pour in some red wine vinegar or apple cider vinegar. It doesn't have to be big, I use a little glass fruit dish. Pour in a little more than you need to cover the bottom of the bowl, but you don't need a lot more than that. Then add a drop or two of liquid dish washing soap. Swirl it around and leave it on a counter. The flies are attracted to the smell of the vinegar and the dish washing liquid creates a film on the surface so the little suckers dip right in and then can't get out.

I have this morbid habit of counting the flies in there and seeing how many I have. I put a dish out last night and have caught 11 in there today.