Mosquito Repellent Plants

Question:

I have been hearing that marigolds help with mosquitoes, but I have also seen at least three different kinds of them. Can you please let me know which kind you use? They are eating my little 3 year old up. I will try anything to get rid of them. Thanks, hope to hear from you soon.

Michelle

Answer:

Michelle,

At least in my part of the world, this seems to be a particularly bad summer for mosquitoes. Lots of different flowers and herbs are said to repel mosquitoes. Try planting some of the following:

• Mexican marigold
• lantana
• lemon grass
• catnip
• rosemary
• American basil
• horse mint
• ageratum
• eucalyptus
• chrysanthemum
• American beautyberry

In regards to marigolds, it has been said that mosquitoes (and other insects) are repelled by their strong smell. To that end, my advice would be to find the smelliest marigolds you can get your hands on!

Here are some other tips for keeping bites to a minimum:

• Wear light-colored clothing. Light colors will keep you and your little one cooler thereby making you less attractive to mosquitoes. Wear long sleeves and pants when practical.

• Keep your yard mowed and trimmed. Remove brush piles and use a weed whacker to keep grass and tall weeds from growing up around the house.
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• Avoid being outside during dawn and dusk. This is when mosquitoes are the most active.

• Eliminate standing or stagnant water where mosquitoes may breed. Change the water in your birdbath every few days and empty your watering can after each use.

Ellen

We lived on the Erie Canal when we lived in NY. We had tons of mosquitoes! One year, a friend told me about planting Marigolds to keep them away so we tried it the following year. Every spring after that, I planted Marigolds on each side of the sidewalk leading to my side door, which was the door we used all the time. We never had problems with mosquitoes after that! It doesn't matter what kind you get, large or small...they all smell! You don't smell them but the insects do.

Plus, you can get them in variations of light to dark yellow and light to dark orange colors. Just dead head them when the flowers dry out and they will spread like weeds. I live in GA now and I still plant Marigolds in the spring. We no longer buy them, though, because we dead head them all the time and save the dead flowers to plant again in the spring. This is where the seeds are. Try it...you'll be pleasantly surprised how they keep mosquitoes and other flying insects away.