How to drive away mosquitoes with natural remedies

How to drive away mosquitoes with natural remedies

Insecticides are always the first option. However, if you prefer more natural options, we give you some tips to drive away mosquitoes without chemical agents.

With the heat of summer come open windows, dinners with friends in the garden, swimming pools , terraces and, unfortunately, also mosquitoes, ready to spoil the party with their buzzes and bites, some of which, like that of the tiger mosquito , are potentially dangerous.

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Mosquitoes are especially concentrated in humid areas and do not attack all people in the same way, but 20% of people are a pole of attraction for their bites.

How to repel mosquitoes indoors
There are many types of solutions to ward off mosquitoes, some more effective than others and some more environmentally friendly than others.

In the first place, we have solutions based on the use of chemical products, such as insecticides or repellents . These products are quite effective, but only temporarily, and have the disadvantage of being expensive (at least those that are really effective), and that some of their components are very harmful both to the environment and to people and animals. house animals. In addition, chemical insecticides lose their effectiveness outdoors , where the action of the air eliminates them in a matter of seconds unless they are very powerful products and therefore not recommended for domestic use.

Secondly, we have the repellents that are sold in pharmacies or supermarkets in the form of a bracelet, pendant, brooch... These usually have more natural components, such as citronella extract , and are hardly harmful, although they can cause irritation in some people . Their effectiveness is real, although limited in time and, above all, in space, since, although they protect from bites, they do not prevent the low flights of insects that sometimes do not even let us sleep.

And, finally, there are the tricks to drive away mosquitoes that have been used all our lives and that are the ones that work best, are cheap and most effective. Among these tricks are the following:

• Hang bags or other containers filled with water on doors and windows. This causes flies and mosquitoes to be reflected in a deformed way and create a possible predator. This same trick works for open spaces.
• Mosquito nets can also be placed on the windows or around the areas that we want free of mosquitoes.
• The smell of vinegar bothers mosquitoes . If containers with water and vinegar are placed in the windows they will not enter.
• Homemade mosquito traps . To make them, simply cut a plastic bottle in half and invert the upper half before putting it back together with the lower half, where we will have previously introduced a mixture of water, sugar and yeast . The mosquitoes will enter the trap attracted by the sweetness and will not be able to get out of it, so they will drown.
• Natural herbal repellent: mix 25 drops of peppermint oil, 15 drops of clove essence, 5 drops of lemon essence and 2 teaspoons of degreasing soap and use the resulting mixture as a cream.

But to avoid mosquitoes it is also important not to engage in a series of behaviors that attract them and encourage others that repel them.

• Stagnant water is the ideal place for mosquitoes to deposit their larvae, so try not to leave open containers of water.
• Mosquitoes are attracted to sweet smells and/or floral perfumes , so avoid them. You have to look for a neutral perfume, with a citrus or mint scent, which bothers them.
• Avoid having the light on.
• Foods rich in Vitamin B , such as legumes and nuts, produce enzymes that mosquitoes will detect, so they won't bite you. Garlic, onion, clove oil, and brewer's yeast will also help prevent bites.

How to get rid of mosquitoes outside

Repelling mosquitoes from outdoor areas is much more complicated, but there are two infallible systems that are also very ecological and useful in gardening :

• Use plants that are a natural repellent: Grandmothers have always planted geranium flowers on balconies and gardens ( we already gave you the home remedies to take care of a geranium ), since this plant, in addition to being beautiful and requiring of little care, it repels flying insects. Other plants with a similar effect include basil (which can also be used in cooking), cloves , lavender, and rosemary . And if you live in Galicia, you're in luck, since one of the few benefits of eucalyptus forests is that mosquitoes don't like the smell. And one of the most effective natural repellents is catnip or catnip., a plant that, according to some studies, repels mosquitoes with 10 times greater power than any industrial repellent, and that we can plant in our garden .
• Maintain a population of natural predators: Although rare in the city, in the countryside it is common to maintain and accept as neighbors animals that regularly hunt flies, mosquitoes, moths, and other insects . The three most efficient natural predators of mosquitoes are spiders, frogs and toads , and geckos , and since spiders end up being annoying to people and frogs and toads need water nearby, geckos are ideal. A garden with these types of animals is a garden clean of insects .