Using Landscaping to Repel Mosquitoes
Summer is well underway for 2018 and mosquitoes are once again making outdoor activities difficult. These insects can make any outdoor party or sporting event miserable. Mosquitoes have transmitted many diseases including malaria, dengue, yellow fever, encephalitis, and more recently the West Nile and Zika viruses. They can even cause a client’s pet to get heartworm. Keep clients in the know as to how you can keep mosquitoes at bay on their property using various special landscaping techniques. Use these suggestions when educating clients on mosquito-proofing their yard.
One of the easiest ways to mosquito-proof a yard is to grow plants that repel them. Lavender, Citronella Grass, Catnip, Marigolds, and Geraniums naturally repel mosquitoes. Suggest these plants if your client wants to seek out a more natural way to combat mosquitoes.
Another easy way to keep mosquitoes at bay is to make sure your client’s yard is free of standing water. Watch for mud puddles, tire tracks, and poorly drained low areas. Take care of the problem by adding a layer of stone, covering it with topsoil and then reseed it if needed.
If you need to lay down mulch, try using cedar. Cedar oil repels many types of pests. Suggest mulching around the spots where your client spends the most time outside. The oil will eventually dry up so you will need to mulch again. It is easy to tell when to do so because the cedar will no longer give off a scent.
Mosquitoes will often retreat to tall grass and or weeds to take shelter from the heat of the day. Eliminate the tall plants on the outskirts of their lawn to eliminate this problem. If these techniques are not enough, it might be time to suggest a chemical treatment to keep the mosquitoes away. Valley Green has several products that repel pests including mosquitoes. Call us today to find a location near you. 1.800.862.0089
Valley Green was founded by Charles Dooley in 1990. Headquartered in Holyoke, Massachusetts, we have grown to eight branch locations supported by inside & outside sales associates specializing in turf seed, sod production, golf sales, turf maintenance, nursery production, agriculture and arboriculture. The average green industry tenure at Valley Green is well over 20 years per associate!