Mosquitoes may be attracted to your yard or outdoor area for various reasons, including stagnant water sources, yard debris, and clogged drains. You might be thinking, well, this covers most of the things in my yard, but don’t worry, because there are some simple solutions to keeping your yard mosquito-free.
DID YOU KNOW?
Of the 3,500 types of mosquitoes, some can spread viruses and diseases, including Zika and West Nile, obtained from biting other animals and humans.
Does Smoke Keep Mosquitoes Away?
Smoke is a natural mosquito repellent and can be further enhanced by burning the various plants and types of wood mentioned in this article. It’s good to note that any amount of smoke can be helpful when it comes to preventing pests, although a central fire pit or several torches spread out around a larger area will typically have more success.
You can even burn something on your barbeque grill, such as a paper carton, to create the kind of smoke that bugs don’t want to be around.
Does a Fire Pit Keep Mosquitoes Away?
Aside from being an attractive focal point in your yard, a fire pit is a solid first step towards keeping your yard pest-free. Like many bugs and insects, mosquitoes are not fans of smoke produced from a pit, especially when combined with the burning of other plants and herbs that can increase the efficiency of the pest-deterring smoke.
You should note that it’s the smoke generated from the fire pit that wards off mosquitoes, and, as such, smokeless pits such as gas-fueled variants won’t have an effect on keeping them away. If you have a smokeless fire pit or gas-powered fire pit, consider burning citronella candles.
A smokeless fire pit will not generate any smoke, but the heat generated will help to keep some pests at bay.
Another factor to consider when installing a fire pit to keep your yard bug-free is that only areas reached by the pit’s smoke will be affected, so those with large areas may find that mosquitoes are still harboring around in areas of their yard not reached by smoke. Adding citronella torches to more remote areas of a larger yard can help cover the entire space with smoke.
Of the 3,500 types of mosquitoes, some can spread viruses and diseases, including Zika and West Nile, obtained from biting other animals and humans.
Mosquitoes may be attracted to your yard or outdoor area for various reasons, including stagnant water sources, yard debris, and clogged drains. You might be thinking, well, this covers most of the things in my yard, but don’t worry, because there are some simple solutions to keeping your yard mosquito-free.
Does Smoke Keep Mosquitoes Away?
Smoke is a natural mosquito repellent and can be further enhanced by burning the various plants and types of wood mentioned in this article. It’s good to note that any amount of smoke can be helpful when it comes to preventing pests, although a central fire pit or several torches spread out around a larger area will typically have more success.
You can even burn something on your barbeque grill, such as a paper carton, to create the kind of smoke that bugs don’t want to be around.
Does a Fire Pit Keep Mosquitoes Away?
Aside from being an attractive focal point in your yard, a fire pit is a solid first step towards keeping your yard pest-free. Like many bugs and insects, mosquitoes are not fans of smoke produced from a pit, especially when combined with the burning of other plants and herbs that can increase the efficiency of the pest-deterring smoke.
You should note that it’s the smoke generated from the fire pit that wards off mosquitoes, and, as such, smokeless pits such as gas-fueled variants won’t have an effect on keeping them away. If you have a smokeless fire pit or gas-powered fire pit, consider burning citronella candles.
For a smaller backyard, a small fire pit will suffice. For any larger area, using citronella torches will help to deter mosquitoes.
Another factor to consider when installing a fire pit to keep your yard bug-free is that only areas reached by the pit’s smoke will be affected, so those with large areas may find that mosquitoes are still harboring around in areas of their yard not reached by smoke. Adding citronella torches to more remote areas of a larger yard can help cover the entire space with smoke.
Does Sage or Rosemary Keep Mosquitoes Away?
Burning dried herb bunches can have amazing pest-deterring effects, on top of producing a subjectively gorgeous smell. Adding herbs such as sage or rosemary can also boost a fire pits’ efficacy at keeping mosquitoes away.
Rosemary, a natural herb belonging to the mint family, with its pungent earthy smell, can help to keep mosquitoes away when dried and burned and can also be rubbed on exposed skin to afford the wearer a natural insect repellent.
Although the burning of rosemary is an excellent insect repellent, simply growing it and having it around your garden won’t help in keeping pests away.
Rosemary can be burned green to produce even more pest-deterring smoke.
Sage, another member of the mint family, is another tool to keep insects out of your yard. Burning sage gives off a burnt grass smell, or perhaps a light herby fragrance. It is also said that the burning of sage helps promote calmness in the body, although this isn’t backed up.
Rosemary and sage can both be burned in fire-proof containers or purpose-built holders for dried herbs. You may also find candles with sage or rosemary scents, although depending on the candle, these may or may not be effective at preventing mosquitoes from hanging around.
What Else Can You Burn to Keep Mosquitoes Away?
Other Effective Herbs
Two more useful herbs you can burn to get a striking mosquito-repelling effect are citronella and lemon balm. Citronella is a common ingredient in mosquito-repellent candles, and lemon balm has been proven in studies to have one of the top plant-based insect-repelling effects.
Citronella has an oil that is super-effective in repelling mosquitoes, although this oil evaporates quickly. When mixed with certain chemicals in the production of manufactured repellents such as candles, the effects of the citronella oil are much more spread out, and so you might find the best results with a candle of some sort.
We recommend the Cutter’s Mosquito Candle with Citronella
Repels mosquitoes and other flying insects. Made with real citronella oil: Triple-wick, 20-ounce candle burns for up to 40 hours.
Mosquito-Repelling Firewood
If you’re not into burning herbs, certain types of firewood offer advantages over others. Eucalyptus is an example of excellent mosquito-repelling firewood. Eucalyptus contains eucalyptol, an active ingredient in many insect repellents, and smells pleasing when burnt. Eucalyptus burns very hot, and it is advised that it only be used as outdoor firewood.
Pinion wood is another firewood that helps keep mosquitoes away. Pinion wood has a strong pine scent, which pests hate. It is important to note that some sources say that large chains are mislabeling pine as pinion, so you should try to find an authentic source.
What Can I Do to Prevent Mosquitoes In the First Place?
You can take some preventative steps to make sure your yard is not attracting unwanted mosquitoes to begin with.
Stagnant Water
Mosquitoes spend a large proportion of their life in stagnant water, and that’s where they lay their eggs and reproduce, so it’s the first place you should look at in your yard. We’re not talking about pools or ponds here, mosquitoes can lay their eggs in as little as a splash of water in the bottom of a cup, so you need to look out for these sources.
Some common places you might not think about are flower pots, rain covers, buckets, pet bowls, and anywhere else rainwater might find a place to pool up.
Yard Debris
Another hiding place for mosquitoes is in debris around your yard. Mosquitoes love finding shelter to keep them safe from the elements, so be sure to limit the areas where they can safely harbor. This includes compost piles, grass clippings, piles of garden waste such as leaves or trimmings, and shrubby plants.
Clogged Drains
Lastly, as a combination of the two previous points, mosquitoes love clogged drains. Uncleaned drains can often trap leaves and other things inside. Enough water caught inside this drain debris can provide enough shelter to accommodate mosquitoes with the perfect breeding ground. Therefore, if you’re having a major mosquito problem, your drains could be a good place to start your investigation. [2]
Removing stagnant water sources from your yard, cleaning yard debris and mosquito shelters, and clearing your drains should help with an ongoing mosquito problem. Combined with smoke and mosquito-repelling firewood and herbs, it may be enough to keep your yard pest-free and discourage these annoying and dangerous insects from bothering you.
Remember that mosquitoes are active at both daytime and nighttime, so don’t be afraid to light up those candles or even the fire pit if you are being attacked during the day.
We recommend the Tiki Brand Bamboo Citronella Torches
Add functional appeal to outdoor entertaining with real oil-burning torches — Features fiberglass wick, wooden snuffer cap, and speared bottom
Mosquito-repelling Firewood
If you’re not into burning herbs, certain types of firewood offer advantages over others. Eucalyptus is an example of excellent mosquito-repelling firewood. Eucalyptus contains eucalyptol, an active ingredient in many insect repellents, and smells pleasing when burnt. Eucalyptus burns very hot, and it is advised that it only be used as outdoor firewood.
Pinion wood is another firewood that helps keep mosquitoes away. Pinion wood has a strong pine scent, which pests hate. It is important to note that some sources say that large chains are mislabeling pine as pinion, so you should try to find an authentic source.
What Can I Do to Prevent Mosquitoes in the First Place?
You can take some preventative steps to make sure your yard is not attracting unwanted mosquitoes to begin with.
Stagnant Water
Mosquitoes spend a large proportion of their life in stagnant water, and that’s where they lay their eggs and reproduce, so it’s the first place you should look at in your yard. We’re not talking about pools or ponds here, mosquitoes can lay their eggs in as little as a splash of water in the bottom of a cup, so you need to look out for these sources.
Some common places you might not think about are flower pots, rain covers, buckets, pet bowls, and anywhere else rainwater might find a place to pool up.
Yard Debris
Another hiding place for mosquitoes is in debris around your yard. Mosquitoes love finding shelter to keep them safe from the elements, so be sure to limit the areas where they can safely harbor. This includes compost piles, grass clippings, piles of garden waste such as leaves or trimmings, and shrubby plants.
Clogged drains
Lastly, as a combination of the two previous points, mosquitoes love clogged drains. Uncleaned drains can often trap leaves and other things inside. Enough water caught inside this drain debris can provide enough shelter to accommodate mosquitoes with the perfect breeding ground. Therefore, if you’re having a major mosquito problem, your drains could be a good place to start your investigation.
Removing stagnant water sources from your yard, cleaning yard debris and mosquito shelters, and clearing your drains should help with an ongoing mosquito problem. Combined with smoke and mosquito-repelling firewood and herbs, it may be enough to keep your yard pest-free and discourage these annoying and dangerous insects from bothering you.
Remember that mosquitoes are active during both daytime and nighttime, so don’t be afraid to light up those candles or even the fire pit if you are being attacked during the day.
