How to Limit Mosquitos in Your Yard

Nothing ruins a perfect summer afternoon in the garden like a swarm of pesky mosquitos. But did you know you can actually use your yard to deter these incessant insects?

1. Plant mosquito-repelling plants

Marigolds, lavender, lemon grass, basil, lemon balm, catnip, rosemary, lemon thyme, mint, bee balm, and sage are just a few of the plants that work well for repelling mosquitos. In addition, planting sunflowers and creating small habitats to attract spiders (infamous mosquito-eaters) is also a good way to keep your mosquitos to a minimum.  

2. Keep your grass short

Mosquitos tend to hide in tall grass so keeping your lawn trimmed regularly is a good way to keep them away.  

3. Get rid of standing water

Mosquitos lay eggs in still standing water so keep an eye on fountains, children’s pools, dog dishes, and toys—getting rid of outdoor standing water can help to keep larvae around your home to a minimum. Standing water can also collect in gutters, ditches, bird baths, tires, and flower pots.

4. Make your pond a dragonfly oasis

If you have a pond in your backyard, you might find mosquitos nearby since they lay eggs on standing water. However, you can offset this by attracting dragonflies to your pond. Dragonflies can eat 100 mosquitos per day! Dragonflies love black-eyed susans, borage, water horsetail, coneflowers, swamp milkweed, and water lilies.  

5. Be wise about pesticide

Although you might be tempted to use a pesticide on your lawn to rid yourself of mosquitos, these same pesticides can harm the birds, bugs, and bats that eat mosquitoes. These mosquito-eating creatures are important to local ecology so keeping them healthy is critical.