First, it doesn’t work.

Second, you risk killing bees and other pollinators.

Third, despite their denials, it’s toxic to many birds.

Finally, spraying toxic chemicals all over your trees is a really d1ck move.

First rule is don't use mosquito sprays. Be wary about implied claims that these treatments are safe because they are "natural."

Read about the risks of pesticides and safer alternatives here:
https://www.beyondpesticides.org/resources/mosquitos-and-insect-borne-diseases/overview

Spraying does not address the core problem. You need to stop mosquitoes from breeding in the first place. It is critical to get rid of standing water. Mosquitoes can breed in a container the size of a bottle cap, so you need to scour your property and encourage your neighbors to do the same.

So how can you address the root cause?

Over the past several years, residents in almost a dozen communities in Montgomery County, PG, and Shepherd Park have begun using passive BG-GAT Mosquito Traps from Biogents. (Communities buy in bulk and get a discount but individuals can buy directly as well.) The traps attract female Asian Tiger mosquitoes when they go to lay their eggs. For a belt-and-suspenders approach, you can also add Mosquito Dunks to the water in the trap. It costs about $55 (with discount) for two traps, which is enough for the average yard. You can use the traps for years. More:
https://us-shop.biogents.com

You should put the traps out early in the season because mosquitoes grow exponentially -- each female can lay about 150 eggs at a time, and so on. To be most effective, your neighbors should use the traps too. They won't totally eliminate mosquitoes but will make a big dent.

This approach was studied in University Park, MD. From Nature:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-018-34161-9

If you don't want to buy the traps, you can follow the same principle and make your own trap:
https://youtu.be/TqcDZDNtP-0

I agree with PP who suggest using fans as well.

Use mosquito dunks, a fan and some citronella candles + attract natural predators of mosquitos (like bats). Mosquitos fly in for miles-poisoning your yard and everything in and around it is ineffective and a waste of money.

We don't spray and enjoy the lightning bugs/fireflies, bats, etc, and have little to no mosquitos even without wearing any sort of spray. I recommend Badger, Murphy's or Nantucket Spider anti-big sprays.

You need mosquito control. Our area is absolutely INFESTED with horrible Asian tiger mosquitoes. They are an abomination of nature. Yes, they can absolutely carry disease in the US and do transmit it. They are insanely aggressive and do not behave like your typical mosquito. Horrible, horrible creatures. My wife has taken out the trash before, which is just a 4 minute task, and has come back with 17 bites from that short time outside. It is patently absurd. You can barely go outside to do anything because Asian tiger mosquitoes will eat you alive in 5 minutes. If you don't spray, machines like this are another option:




The mosquito dunks don't do crap, because if they come from your neighbors yard they won't do anything. We need to genetically engineer Asian tiger mosquitoes out of existence.

Anonymous wrote:$0. I don't want to kill off beneficial insects.

+1

In the 2000s, when I was doing genetic research at UMD, a lab across from me had interesting ideas about genetically modifying mosquitoes to control their spread.

Various companies have done very successful large scale outdoor experiments in other countries, but only last year did Florida start one in the US. Now there's going to be one in California as well.

I pray every year that we can have that come to the DC area!!! When it's discussed, please don't worry about the environmental impact on the rest of the foodchain. There have been no adverse consequences recorded in other locations.

[quote=Anonymous]Mosquitoes are the number one killer in the world. More than heart disease. More than HIV.[/quote]

In the U.S.? No.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:$0. I don't want to kill off beneficial insects.

Yep. When I sit outside I put a fan outside. After about 5 minutes bugs are gone

That's what we do too.

Need some pricing for DC area 1/4 acre

We pay $1200 a year

Around 1 acre

Completely worth it.

Mosquitoes are the number one killer in the world. More than heart disease. More than HIV.

$30k for a screened porch, the zero for spraying.

Anonymous wrote:OP here.
Thanks to those who responded to the actual question. As I stated, we tried _everything_ to make being outdoors bearable. Our lot is wooded and I think that makes it tougher to control mosquitoes.
We went with the garlic oil repellent from Mosquito Squad. It is working great and it’s not harming bees.

How much are you paying and how often? I heard the garlic oil needs to be sprayed more frequently than the usual stuff.

OP here.
Thanks to those who responded to the actual question. As I stated, we tried _everything_ to make being outdoors bearable. Our lot is wooded and I think that makes it tougher to control mosquitoes.
We went with the garlic oil repellent from Mosquito Squad. It is working great and it’s not harming bees.

$20

Try this instead of spraying. I intentionally put out standing water containers in areas around our property. I put in mosquito dunks which are safe for other insects, animals, etc. The dunks kill off any mosquito larvae, which crashes the adult population. It greatly helps to control the adult mosquito population. Just be sure to add more dunks each month.