How to Have A Mosquito Free Yard

How to Have A Mosquito Free Yard

Summer is here and the temps are up and luckily we’ve had plenty of rain in Gainesville.  Don’t let mosquitos ruin your outdoor fun. Here are a few tips for how to have a mosquito-free yard.

1. Be on the Look out for standing water
Standing water of any depth – whether it’s the half-inch at the bottom of a planter or the six inches stagnating in your wheelbarrow – is an invitation for mosquitos (they need water to breed). Be careful not to overwater your lawn and to refresh water containers, like dog bowls, often.  Don’t forget your bird baths, make sure that fresh water is added to the bird baths every couple of days.

2. Check our your gutters
Make sure your gutters are clean and water drains freely. Otherwise, you’re the proprietor of a very long singles bar for mosquitos. If you have a tree canopy in your yard, your gutters are full of leaves. Wet leaves turn into mosquito condos! Remember to clean out the gutters twice a year.

3. Switch your outdoor light bulbs
In some areas of the country, depending on the breed of mosquitos, swapping out the bulbs you use in your outdoor lights for yellow bug bulbs can mean fewer insects swarming the lights.

4. Trim Shrubs away
Mosquitos like to hang out in the shade and feast on plant nectar. Keep your lawn cut and hack down heavy vegetation near your patio and house to make your property less appealing. Find some plants that mosquitos don’t like. My favorite that is planted around my rear deck are Tea Olive shrubs. Their blossoms are natures mosquito repellant.

5. Blast the buggers
Mosquitos aren’t powerful fliers. Strategically placed fans around your deck can blow them away, and a ceiling fan above your covered porch can help too.

6. Hang a net
When done correctly, mosquito netting can drape your patio or outdoor eating area in elegance while keeping the bugs at bay.

7. Light candles
Citronella candles, lamps and coils can help repel mosquitos.

Gainesville is A Great Place to Live

Give me a call if you know anyone interested in buying or selling a home in Gainesville!