Mosquito Control

To the city dweller, that constant annoyance of buzzing in your ear, and the subsequent bite of the mosquito has taken on a new importance with the threat of West Nile virus. In Ontario last year, more than 390 people became ill, 17 people died, 12 of those were in Toronto.

What You Can Do To Help Protect Yourself

  • Avoid going outside, especially in the early morning and evening.
  • Do not go outside when the wind is under 15 mph.
  • Do not wear dark clothing.
  • Make a fashion statement: wear a mosquito net jacket or hat.
  • Apply mosquito repellents containing deet (n,n-diethyl-2-tolumide). This is not recommended for children under two years of age. Repellents with thirty percent deet will provide 6.5 hours of protection and repellents with ten percent deet will provide 3 hours of protection.
  • Avoid bushes and shrubs, as this is a hiding / resting area for the mosquitoes particularly during the hottest time of the day. These areas should be pruned to allow air and sunlight penetration to help to reduce this risk.
  • In patio areas, gazebos or screened in porches, you can burn mosquito coils which contain the pesticide permethrin. In enclosed areas you should only re-enter the area after the fog (fumes) have dissipated.
  • Use a bug zapper light and lure all kinds of insects (both good and bad) to their deaths.
  • Use an indoor bug trap to attract all kinds of insects (both good and bad) to have them drown in soapy water with out the annoying zapping noise.
  • Burn numerous citronella candles and citronella lawn spikes in the immediate activity center. i have never found that this works well, but it helps.
  • Clean out all possible breeding sites such as your eavestroughs or anywhere that water may sit for 3 to 7 days. Examples: bird baths, tires, old containers, and kiddie pools.
  • To control mosquito larvae in fish ponds, just do not overfeed your fish - they will eat the mosquito larvae.
  • Fill in low depressions on your property where water may stand for 3 to 7 days in wet times.
  • Avoid storm drains and storm ditches.
  • Only live in municipalities which apply larvacide to their standing water areas including catch basins with methoprene or BTI (bacillus thurengiensis israelensis) three times a year.
  • Spray your yard with malathion for mosquitoes following the label directions. Malathion can kill some plants so be careful and read the label. follow all safety precautions.
  • Fog the city streets with insecticides. This is only done by professional applicators.
  • Use a larvasonic machine to kill mosquito larva in standing water. The larvasonic kills using inaudible sound. Health Canada and the pest management regulatory agency have stated that the larvasonic is exempt from registration and consideration under the Pest Control Products Act of Canada.

Related Posts

View More Articles