insects on sunflowers

Hi! We have various bees on the heads of our sunflowers, but also a lot of flies.  Not a problem, th ebirds will enjoy eating them, I'm sure, but what are they doing there? Do flies take nectar?  Any ideas?

Hi their are several fly type insects that feed on plants like thrips, aphids, white fly and black fly. Their easily dealt with simply buy some yellow sticky boards on amazon,  a company called russell ipm seem to be a good seller i bought some from them. They seem to attract them pretty well and it helps to protect your plants

Sorry!!-yellow traps for catching insects outside-I think not!!

Fine in a greenhouse for an aphid attack but if you put these outside it will attract and trap all beneficial insects-I don't think Will was that bothered about the flies in his original post and nor should anybody else.

sotongeoff wrote (see)

Sorry!!-yellow traps for catching insects outside-I think not!!

Fine in a greenhouse for an aphid attack but if you put these outside it will attract and trap all beneficial insects-I don't think Will was that bothered about the flies in his original post and nor should anybody else.

I so agree with Geoff !!!

Pam x

Hi!  Sorry if I've started a dispute.  I certainly diidn't mean to! 

I don't want to get rid of the flies - I like the idea of everything being part of a big food chain.   They're just your basic houseflies, as far as I know.  If the birds etc want to eat them, that's fine too (the flies may feel differently about that!). 

Anyway, I've had a root around on the internet and it seems the Japanese rear flies specifically to pollinate sunflowers, so it seems the answer to my question is "Yes".

Well, I hope everyone has a great Bank Holiday weekend, with lots of sun for getting out in the garden.

All the best, Will.

Sunflowers are made up of many, many separate flowers in concentric circles.  To get the well-known sunflower seeds every flower has to be pollinated.  So leave the pollinators be!

If they are good seed-bearing variety you will have to put paper bags over the heads when the seeds are filling or the sparrows, etc will eat them all.

I find it hard to believe that anyone who has actually bothered to read what I have written in the discussion would think I want to kill any of these insects, but just for the record:

I DO NOT WANT TO GET RID OF THESE ANIMALS.

OK?