Mosquitoes

[Anonymous]

I'm dreaming of warmer weather right now. This year am hoping to enjoy our yard a bit more. Any tips on getting rid of the mosquitoes? Live in Potomac and the mosquitoes kill any joy I have for being outside during the season.

[Anonymous]

Outdoor fans. Mosquitos are very weak and can't withstand a breeze.

[Anonymous]

Get a gallon of Bifen IT and a hose end sprayer. Do some math for your mix rate as spray all shrubs and property perimeter. Repeat every 3/4 weeks and enjoy the summer again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Get a gallon of Bifen IT and a hose end sprayer. Do some math for your mix rate as spray all shrubs and property perimeter. Repeat every 3/4 weeks and enjoy the summer again.

Do not listen to this fool.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get a gallon of Bifen IT and a hose end sprayer. Do some math for your mix rate as spray all shrubs and property perimeter. Repeat every 3/4 weeks and enjoy the summer again.

Do not listen to this fool.

I'm that fool. Care to elaborate as to why implementing an extremely effective strategy makes one foolish?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get a gallon of Bifen IT and a hose end sprayer. Do some math for your mix rate as spray all shrubs and property perimeter. Repeat every 3/4 weeks and enjoy the summer again.

Do not listen to this fool.

I'm that fool. Care to elaborate as to why implementing an extremely effective strategy makes one foolish?

Your killing the earth with chemicals so you don't get a mosquito bite. Coward.

[Anonymous]

Move away from this god forsaken hellhole.

[Anonymous]

Mosquitoes don’t fly far from where they breed. Depending on the type of mozzie, it may be just a few feet to well under a mile. It’s well worth checking around your house to see if you can eradicate standing water or place mosquito dunks in sources that you can’t eliminate, like French drains and gutters. Reputable mosquito eliminating services will also do this for you, as it’s the most effective strategy.

Fans in your outdoor living spaces really do make a difference, but logistics can be tough because they need to be near you, have an electrical source, etc. I also love the
Thermacell device. It was about $20 and repels without odor or batteries in a 15 ft. area. Refill packs are available at the hardware store relatively inexpensively.

You can spray. Depending on the time of year a mixed herbal spray or a garlic spray may be most effective. Your hardware store that vends the stuff or a mosquito service will be able to advise. I self-sprayed my small DC yard with a set-up that attached to my hose. It was most effective for theee days, but benefits lingered for a couple of weeks, even with rain. That said, it also kept away beneficial bugs. As a gardener, this was a problem for me. I rely on the good guys to make light my work outside, and I missed my butterflies and lightning bugs.

There are a number of natural remedies to try too. Look up bathhouses. You can try planting lavender, mint, rosemary, and basil near sitting areas. Basil is annual, and mint spreads like crazy, so probably best to keep those in containers. All of these plants need full sun, and you probably need a relatively large quantity to keep the mosquitoes away.

Good luck!

[Anonymous]

We do mosquito spray every 3 weeks

[Anonymous]

Mosquito dunks and bits sold on Amazon have worked well for us. OK for environment.

[Anonymous]

How do you use a mosquito dunk if you don't have a clear area where there is standing water, but just general mosquito mayhem? Do you create a bin of standing water and put it in there in hopes that they'll be attracted to the water? I really don't want to spray, but they are nasty!!

[Anonymous]

I get at least 20 mosquito bites a day-not joking. They are terrible here. I don’t know what the solution is. I spray before parties. Currently I have standing water everywhere because it’s rained constantly for the last 1.5 years. Luckily though there’s still a frost. Once frost is over we’re in for a hellish spring summer and fall. My clay ground just can’t absorb more water.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:How do you use a mosquito dunk if you don't have a clear area where there is standing water, but just general mosquito mayhem? Do you create a bin of standing water and put it in there in hopes that they'll be attracted to the water? I really don't want to spray, but they are nasty!!

Noooo!!!! Mosquito dunks kill larvae only. Do not create new breeding pools for mosquitos. You will be doing nothing to reduce the problem you already have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Get a gallon of Bifen IT and a hose end sprayer. Do some math for your mix rate as spray all shrubs and property perimeter. Repeat every 3/4 weeks and enjoy the summer again.

Do not listen to this fool.

I'm that fool. Care to elaborate as to why implementing an extremely effective strategy makes one foolish?

Your killing the earth with chemicals so you don't get a mosquito bite. Coward.

+1

Nailed it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I get at least 20 mosquito bites a day-not joking. They are terrible here. I don’t know what the solution is. I spray before parties. Currently I have standing water everywhere because it’s rained constantly for the last 1.5 years. Luckily though there’s still a frost. Once frost is over we’re in for a hellish spring summer and fall. My clay ground just can’t absorb more water.

That’s exactly the issue, particularly with yards that are largely grass. If it’s an ongoing problem, you might consider having a landscape architect out to take a look (not just a designer, but someone who understands building). That person can advise on grading and soil amendment. You might change patios to permeable surfaces and convert some grass to planting beds. If you’ll be in your house a while it will add to your enjoyment as well as the value.