Mosquitos are so bad in the backyard heavy clothing and chemicals are required to avoid death by exsanquination. Removed any sign of standing water. Keep grass short, remove most foliage. What else? At other times I’ve used sprays for lawn and bushes and those helped. Haven’t done that in years and won’t. Don’t want the chemicals in our systems through the skin or the vegetable garden at the bottom of the yard.
How do I reclaim our yard? Help!
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Replies
We bought two of the "mosquito magnet" machines two years ago. Expensive, yes. Worth it? In my opinion, maybe; my wife gives them an emphatic "two thumbs up".
There is a great sense of satisfaction (revenge?) from dumping out a hopper full of mosquito carcasses. In a year with heavy infestation you'll dump out hundreds if not thousands per day.
Scott.
Mike Smith's (in case you don't know, a long-time regular here) cousin is the inventor of those. Mike hooked me, my son and Luka up to go fishing with him one morning when we were all in RI,
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I refuse to accept that there are limitations to what we can accomplish. Pete Draganic
Take life as a test and shoot for a better score each day. Matt Garcia
Cool, yup, I know Mike "Über Thread" Smith. It's pretty hard not to.So did you lug one of those magnets on the fishing trip?Scott.
What is around you. They will fly a quarter mile or more looking for blood.
Suburban neighborhood; people, pets, wildlife. They're not gonna starve.
I was more thinking about where they might be breeding. Your county might give you the larvacide to treat the wet spot where they are hatching or treat it themselves. This is really a community effort. You should also be working with your neighbors to clean up their yards. It doesn't take much of a body of water to breed a lot of mosquitoes. Buckets and bird baths will do.
As you say; it doesn't take much of a body of water. Hell a damp bush will do. I can't imagine getting everybody within a half mile radius to clean up all the possible nesting spots.
Thermacell makes a good product - essentially they're butane lanterns that heat a pad saturated w/ repellent. Works a treat. You can get them at sporting-goods stores and Wal-Mart, among other places.
Jason
Went to look at Thermacell, sounded good. Until you read the warnings. Cover your food, avoid breathing, wash any skin or clothing contacted, DO NOT use in enclosed spaces,...
It is basically another method of dispensing poison, albeit in small doses, but not necessarily less than a fogger. I'm not a health nut, but we are exposed to so many poisons we can't avoid, I try to avoid the ones I can. They tend to build up in the system and we come into contact with thousands that have never been tested. But, then there is west nile. My sister got it. Nasty.Bats, martins.
Sure, and I fully agree. Those same warnings are on pretty much any non-natural mosquito repellent I've ever seen. I've got some 100% DEET I keep in my fishing tackle that has warnings on it that make it sound like Agent Orange. I half-jokingly call it "cancer in a bottle." Works well, though. I'd think the amount of poison dispersed by Thermacell is quite minimal, just based on the size of the repellent pads. Still, I understand your concern.
If you don't want to go that route, I'd look hard at the Mosquito Magnet and its ilk.
Jason
http://www.bhg.com/gardening/pests/insects-diseases-weeds/attract-bats-for-organic-insect-control/
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jeff
I second the "bat" method.
It does work.
As long as you are not afraid of the whole "undead walking the earth" thing, Dracula will keep your are mosquito free with no maintenance. And I hear that bat guano make a great fertilizer.
Good luck, this year has been terrible in NY for all flying bugs - I guess it is all the rain we had earlier in the year.
I agree. We set up a light for the back yard. When we lit up the light we noticed we attracted the local area bats for dinner. But............we've noticed they didn' come back . I've read somewhere there was a large dieoff of the bat population. No one knows why. I was thinking of setting up a bat house in the back yard
Saggy gutters are a prime spot often overlooked.
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Took off the gutters.
If you have a relatively clear back yard with long glide paths, check into purple martin houses. Too late for this year, as they select their nesting spots in late February or March.
These birds eat an incredible number of mosquitoes per day. Something along the lines of 1/2 their body weight daily. Great flyers and fun to watch as they catch their dinner on the wing.
Knew a fellow who lived in New Jersey, on a canal, with 4 houses (~15 "apartments" per house) - mosquito free yard.
However, no long glide path to the houses = no purple martins.
Zappers placed away from the areas you use would be the second choice.
Jim
Purple Martins are great.
I have heard a few folks swear that listrine the original old stuff works well. spray some around your yard and let us know
Bats! Bats! Bats!
Can't say it enough. Just build a simple bat house (plans on the web can be found here: http://www.bat-houses.org/) or two and they will come. You don't have to feed them or water them or sing to them. Nothing.
Just make sure your doors fit snugly otherwise you'll get a visitor flying around inside your house every once in awhile. And, don't place the bat house over anything you have to walk through or sit under - you don't want to have to clean up their guano.
Other than that you can get an exterminator in to do a one time spraying (maybe fogging is a better word) of your backyard, plants, grass, etc. If you're planning on having a party one evening, that can be helpful. That'll also kill off the moths that might be attracted to lights, candles, torches, etc and any other creeping or crawling bugs that might spoil an event.
I've done the spraying or fogging route in the past. It works. Just don't want to ingest it. I like what comes out of the garden better than the store.
Can't argue with that.Griff
I've often thought about a bat house, or houses, which would be an easy and fun project for me and the kids. Do they really set up shop and do they really make a difference in the bug factor? Can you watch them in action in the evening?Scott.
I have 4 houses I built over a period of 3 years (during the winter - put them up in the spring) attached to trees on my property. I noticed that all of them had been occupied when I inspected them in the fall. So, I guess they either moved in because it was better quarters than they had or they multiplied enough to need the extra room.
Can't see much of them at night - they're pretty dark in color and they're fast and they're silent. I suppose you might see something whiz past the moon if you're watching closely, but...
You can see them come out of the nest at dusk though if you get there at the right time.
I had some make a nest (roost?) in the space under a ridge board one year. I flushed them out with the hose and you could watch them scramble out of the area. Took me having to do that for 3-4 days before they got the idea and found somewhere else to stay.
Hate to think why those houses are so popular. I must have had a great crop of mosquitos growing each year. And this summer is supposed to be one of the worst year due to all the rain we've been getting.Griff
mosquito magnets work, but tend to be flaky, I have had several, and finally have a good one that has been trouble free for 2 years[knock wood]Bug zappers are just as effective, there are thousands of dead ones every weekcheaper too
They sell a CO2 kit to 'blow out' the MMagnet because in the off season spiders will build webs in the interior.
Good product but not very green ... think about it converting propane into a plume of carbon dioxide (to attract). Big carbon footprint I would think ...
Jeff
From what I recall from the inventor, the device is designed to mimic human output of co2. Therefore, I assume the unit creates no more than you or I.
<!----><!----><!---->
I refuse to accept that there are limitations to what we can accomplish. Pete Draganic
Take life as a test and shoot for a better score each day. Matt Garcia
According to one website that I could find, the device (depending on the model) emits the rough equivalent CO2 emissions as two cows.
It also smells better and doesn't moo ;o)
Jeff
Trust me Jeff, I know lot more about mosquito magnets than I really want to. The blow out kit blows the contaminants from the burning propane out. The things are just too fussy for what they do. they do their job thoI have radically changed the mosquito situation in my yard over the last 4 or 5 years. I do not believe that mosquitoes travel far on purpose, and if you manage to eradicate them from your personal area, and can convince your neighbors to do the same, it can really workAdditionally, the magnets and zappers waste their time and attract them away from you, all good things. My2/3 or an acre used to be unwalkable in the spring/summer, you would be surrounded with hundreds of mosquitoes, having to brush them off of you and the dog to go inside, run from the car to the house. now there are mosquitoes around, but nothing like before. When my current magnet dies, I will probably buy another zapper, as even though they die if you let them get full of bugs, the replacement cost is a fraction of the magnet's
correct on the CO2 output.
I worked for American Biophysics, the company that made the mosquito magnet for almost 5 years. When they work, they work great but they all (every model) have high field failure rates. The knock offs all had similar problems.
Aside from spraying pesticides there is a simple way to keep them away from the area youre sitting in. Place a box fan behind you and blow them away. They are weak flyers and usually that breeze is enough.
Are your houses still full. I've heard there was an unexplained die off of the bat population. Was going to set up houses myself
Hope this is not a duplicate - I typed out a reply and thought I clicked on the "Post" button, but I can't find what I wrote. Oh, well...
I never counted the number of bats that have made a home in the houses so I don't know if that population has changed over time or whether there is evidence of dwindling numbers this summer. As long as the houses seems to be sturdy and solidly attached to the trees they are mounted on, I sort have left them to their own devices.
I read somewhere that the bats are suffering from a fungus but how they contract it or why it makes them ill is beyond my knowledge. I don't believe there is a cure for the illness.
Hopefully they won't go the way of the bumble bee.Griff
Zappers will not work on mosquitos. The co2 that we exhale is what attracts them. Light from a zapper will attract moths and pest that like light, but will not do anything to control mosquitos.I have bats at my house that live behind the trim boards. They do a good job and they are fun to watch at sunset.
When I was a kid we used to throw gravel up in the air to watch the bats swoop at it. That was back when toys were; balls, bat or stick, hammer saw and shovel. Then they came out with wild new things like a yo-yo that would "sleep" and super balls. Older kids told us how spoiled we were.I figured zappers were too easy, but the magnets are beaucoup(?) $$$.Oh yeah we had sling shots and bow and arrows we made. Then there was the grand, glorious, revered (wait ... for ... it) BIKE.
Purple Martins are misquito eating machines.. If they are in your area make things attractive for them by building/buying a Martin house. We used to have a lot of these giant misquitos but nowdays I haven't seen one. I can go outside in the evening and never get any bites or hear them..
That's one thing our taxes pay for is misquito control. They toss out these biodegradable pellets wherever misquitos' are and that pretty much eliminates them..
I've heard good things about "Mosquito Barrier". It is based on a special garlic oil and repels mosquitoes around your yard. One application i ssupposed to last up to 1 month.
http://www.mosquitobarrier.com
Angus
I vote for mosquito magnet. My acre was unusable without mosquito repellant spray to mow the lawn. Three years of the magnet and I have not been bitten. The magnet attracts the females. It takes about 3 to four weeks to notice the difference but then it carries over to the next summer. No chemical sprays and a propane tank every three weeks. You have to follow the maintenance instruction on bleeding the tank and back pressurizing the catalyst. It does require some attention.
I can now eat on my back deck without a bite. Kevin
I got my wife the MM about 4 - 5 years back. It works well, although finding the right placement is the key, and can be tricky. The octanol co-attractant (cartridge on the MM) helps the MM CO2 technology considerably.Bats are great, and I love them and encourage them, but I think the jury is out on their mosquito reducing effectiveness. You see dragonflies are the real kings of the mosquito-eating world, and bats eat lots of dragonflies. However, watching martins, bats and dragonflies swoop about is pretty nice, regardless of what's getting eaten...-t
Haven't seen a dragonfly in ages. How do you hire them. I'm willing to get my mouth sewn shut, might be for the best. Have bats. Will build 'em condos and ask them to bring their relatives and friends. Wouldn't know a Martin if I saw one, purple or otherwise. I'll look into attracting them, as long as I won't get Bluejays. Them I know. I live in a MD suburb of DC.MM's seem to get the vote but can be finicky. What do you folks recommend? Zappers work, are cheaper, less trouble but noisy.
Guess I'll try on of each.
Till those things take effect I'll have to use the deet spray. Bad enough to put it on my skin don't want to also eat it. Which is why I think I'll avoid fog, spray and Thermacare.
Thanks for all the responses. I just want my yard back. Mosquitos ruin the enjoyment of our deck, gardening, Tai-Chi/Gung Fu, building projects, the whole outdoors.
"watching martins, bats and dragonflies swoop about is pretty nice, regardless of what's getting eaten..."
True. Yesterday I watched a nest full of baby swallows getting up their courage to try flying for the first time. Magic!
Cant believe back in the 60's my parents hung those Shell Pest Strips in all our rooms.Wonder what was in those things ? Im sure it had no lasting affects on....what was i talking about ?
No Pet Strips. I had forgotten about those!
A friend of mine spent Christmas at a resort in Mexico. Every day while the maids were cleaning a small boy wearing only shorts and carrying a large spray tank doused their room. They said you could stand at the door and watch the flies drop out of the air as they flew into the room.
Zappers absolutely absolutely absolutely work on mosquitoes. catch thousands of them they now have attractants to put on them
Put up a zapper over a week ago with nosquito bait. Zapped a bunch of moths - don't see any dead skeeters.
can't say what kind of mozzi's qusfhb has but I never saw them caught in a zapper. As I said, I made Mosquito magnets and they did put a lot of science behind trying to catch and kill em.
they are attracted to CO2 primarily, ocetnol and other attractants secondarily and also dark colors, black specifically.
Mosquito Magnet. That's the only way we can control mosquitos. Trust me, I live in Alaska!
Looking at the price I think I'll try a zapper first.
Off makes a product that has a pad and a candle that you burn in a special lamp. Cost about $15 for the setup, but I've never seen anything that works better. It may be similar to the other pad product, but it really works. I would put it under the table while we were eating meals outdoors.
Just to give you an idea of how much mosquitoes like me... many years back a girlfriend and I found a secluded outdoor spot for some impromptu fun. Afterwards, i looked at myself and found my chest, still covered in a white tee shirt, covered with one mosquito ever 1"! My girlfriend had no mosquitoes at all.
It was worth it!
Tu stultus es
Rebuilding my home in Cypress, CA
Also a CRX fanatic!
Look, just send me to my drawer. This whole talking-to-you thing is like double punishment.