Photo: RossHelen/iStock
By Rose Maura Lorre | Wirecutter
Uninvited guests can ruin any gathering, but mosquitoes may be the worst party crashers of all. Feeling forced to take your warm-weather, al fresco festivities inside because of bugs is a summer bummer. However, it’s also a problem that comes with many potential remedies. The first one is to reduce or eliminate standing water—which serves as a mosquito breeding ground—from your outdoor space.
Mosquitoes need just a few ounces of water for their eggs to hatch, which takes anywhere from four days to seven days as the eggs mature and insects emerge, Dan Markowski, PhD, technical adviser at the American Mosquito Control Association, said in an email interview. “A cup, maybe half a cup, could easily be enough water for mosquitoes to successfully lay their eggs,” he added.
That’s why even though spatial and topical repellents should be a part of your bug-bite defense plan, a “dump and drain” strategy to rid your property of potential skeeter breeding spots pays big dividends.
“Preventing mosquitoes from breeding is the best way to ensure you don’t get bitten, mostly because it’s a numbers game,” Markowski said. In other words, contending with a few mosquitoes is much better than contending with lots of mosquitoes. By letting them multiply unabated on and around your property, you’re much more likely to have to deal with the latter. Here we share how to make your outdoor space less hospitable to mosquitoes and their eggs, whether you’ve got an expansive yard, a cozy balcony, or anything in between.
Your mosquito-reducing game plan
- Dump standing water weekly
- ID your mosquitoes
- Drill holes in trash cans and recycling buckets
- Use larvicides on water features
- Carefully check your gutters
- Fill in low-lying areas on your property, such as ditches and foot slopes
- And use repellents, too
Read the expanded article here.
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