We’re well into mosquito season, but that’s no reason why you can’t make your own mosquito repellent now. Actually, now is one of the best times to do it.
But before I get into the recipe, let’s get into natural ways you can keep the mosquito population down. After all, the best way to not get bit is to not have any in the first place.
Get Rid of Standing Water
I moved to a new house a few years ago. I walked into the backyard to tidy up the yard and was assaulted by dozens of mosquitoes. I knew the people that lived there before me kept chickens behind the garage, but what I didn’t realize was that they left the water dish behind. It was swarming with mosquito larvae. So I immediately dumped it out and threw the water dish in the recycling bin.
Mosquitoes require standing water to breed, so if you have some, get rid of it – no matter how shallow it is. If you’ve got a place where water collects and doesn’t disperse for at least 4 days, fill in the hole or get rid of the water after it rains. If you have a rain barrel, use mosquito dunks. Don’t worry. You’ll still be able to drink the water.
Attract Mosquito Predators
The best mosquito predator is the purple martin. Purple martins migrate all over the US from South America, but they’re not easy to attract. They require lots of open space because they swoop in from long distances. So a bird house on a pole about 5 feet in the air in the middle of a clearing is perfect. You want it to be a good distance (at least 40 feet) away from trees and your house.
Other than purple martins, the biggest consumers are spiders, frogs, and mosquito fish. As a general rule, don’t kill spiders unless they’re poisonous. Spiders are terrific at keeping the insect population down.
If you’ve got a koi pond, add some mosquito fish to it. They’re the best at eating insect larvae and will also help control algae.
Natural Mosquito Repellent
DEET works wonders, but is horribly toxic. I’ve tried citronella and while it’s better than nothing at all, it’s not much better than that.
A recent study found that 32% lemon eucalyptus oil was able to repel mosquitoes up to 95% for 3 hours. The good news is that it’s relatively simple to make. Just mix one part lemon eucalyptus oil with 10 parts witch hazel in a spray bottle.
Honestly, I’m not fond of spraying stuff on me. What I like to do is spray it on a paper towel, rub it on my skin and then put the paper towel in my back pocket for extra protection. You’ll need to reapply it every 3 hours, but it’s a lot better than dealing with DEET or those other natural “repellents” that don’t actually work.
Research References:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/
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