One great perk about living in Florida is the weather. We Floridians are lucky to enjoy the outdoors and sunshine, whether it’s bike riding or a backyard BBQ. While the warm weather leads to many fun activities outdoors, it also brings mosquitos. Not only are mosquitos annoying, they are potentially dangerous. Royal Pest Services wants to ensure you enjoy the outdoors with these tips on how to reduce mosquitoes in your yard.
Eliminate standing water: Reduce mosquitoes by eliminating standing water. Mosquitoes go through four stages in their life cycle from egg to adult, all but the last stage occurring in water. Without standing water, mosquitoes can’t reproduce.
Trim back plants: Mosquitoes feed on plant nectar when a blood source isn’t available. That means they spend a lot of time in tall grasses or around shrubs and bushes. If you’ve got heavy plants or vegetation around the house, remove or trim it to keep mosquitoes away.
Mosquito-repelling plants: Several types of plants act as a natural mosquito repellent. Feverfew, citronella, catnip and lavender are the most effective. You can also plant marigolds, basil and peppermint. Plant these in flower beds or containers placed around your garden and keep mosquitoes at bay.
Professional mosquito control: Along with prevention, professional mosquito control from Royal Pest Services can provide barrier spray treatments that kill adult mosquitoes, and larvicides that kill mosquitoes in the larvae stage.
Spray-on repellents: Products such as Off, Jungle Juice, or Repel, which utilize the chemical DEET, are very effective at reducing mosquito bites.
Citronella essential oil: One of the most effective natural mosquito repellents is citronella candles. Place a few candles around your patio or garden to create a mosquito barrier.
Lavender: A scent that is loved by humans all over the world is hated by mosquitoes. To keep mosquitoes away, add a drop of lavender to ribbon and tie it around outdoor furniture such as a chair or lamp.
Garlic: After eating lots of garlic, garlic oil is gently released from your pores. This garlic oil seems to act like a barrier between your skin and the mosquitoes. Garlic has other health benefits so eat up!
Follow these tips to ensure you and your friends and family enjoy the outdoors by keeping those pesky mosquitoes at bay.