latest wiki additions: bulb and iris flies
Jane McGary (Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:40:43 PDT)

Nhu wrote,
In only a couple of hours during the warmest part of the day, I caught

My latest attempt to control these pests is to go out near a lot of
daffodils in the warmest part of the day, as Nhu suggests, and nail
them with the spray that is sold for knocking out wasp and hornet
nests. It shoots about 10-12 feet and works best if the flies are at
a considerable distance, so the spread of the spray catches them. So
far no damage has appeared on plants the spray hits.

They seem to investigate colchicum leaves a lot, which is not one of
their hosts. Fortunately, most of my species Narcissus are already
withered away by the time the flies emerge, and so they're going
after the common daffodils in the garden. I've covered the
Sternbergia and Galanthus species in the bulb frames with Reemay
(fabric that lets through light and air). In the garden, I
experimented this year with heaping grit and sand over the centers of
Sternbergias before the flies emerged, in the hope that this would
prevent the ingress of the larvae.

Jane McGary
Northwestern Oregon, USA