Few things can spoil an outdoor summer activity like mosquitoes buzzing around your head and biting you. Aside from the itchy bites and potential for carrying diseases, they are just plain annoying. These mosquito yard control tips will help you get a handle on your mosquito problem and let you take back your summer outdoor fun.

Mosquito Yard Control Tips

**1. Remove dense foliage from around the home, patio, or pool.**If you have a heavy covering of plants or bushes near any outdoor gathering areas or along an exterior wall of your home, you may want to thin it out or remove it altogether. Mosquitoes are drawn to shady areas with lots of coverage.

2. Consider creating more sunlight in your yard. Heavy tree covering can encourage mosquito populations on your property. By creating more sunlight in your yard you give mosquitoes fewer places to hide and live.

3. Eliminate any areas that have standing water. Look around your yard and empty any areas that have standing water. Typical culprits include gutters (especially if they are blocked), children’s toys, pet dishes, potted plants, ponds with no water flow, old tires, and the crotches of trees.

4. Wear long sleeves and long pants when outside. Mosquitoes can’t bite what they can’t get to. If you are covered, they can’t get to you to bite. This may not be an optimal solution, but it will reduce your chance of mosquito bites, thus reducing your risk for contracting Zika virus, West Nile virus, and other diseases.

5. Light some citronella candles. Citronella candles have long been used as a pretty effective type of mosquito repellant. When you are outside, place the lit candles along the perimeter of the area, a couple of feet apart.

6. Use fans to blow across the perimeter of your patio or gathering area. Mosquitoes are terrible flyers so when you introduce wind they will have a difficult time getting past it. Place fans along the perimeter of the area where you will be and direct them so that they blow across the perimeter line.

**7. Use mosquito traps at the edge of your property.**Mosquito traps or gravid traps can be effective in controlling mosquitoes. Don’t place them close to your home or gathering area, though. You don’t want to draw the mosquitoes to you. Place them at the far edge of your property.

8. Remove clutter from your yard. Clutter attracts not only mosquitoes, but other pests as well. It provides shade, and in some cases, there is standing water or moist air underneath the items. Clean your yard and eliminate all the clutter to make your yard less attractive to mosquitoes.

9. When outside, use a mosquito repellant. Mosquito repellants will cut down on bites; although if the environment attracts them to your yard, you may still have them buzzing around you. There are topical applications in the form of lotions or sprays as well as specially treated bracelets.

10. Invest in regular, scheduled professional mosquito yard control. Cleaning your yard, thinning out foliage, and getting rid of standing water is a good start, but there is no comparison to regular, scheduled professional mosquito control. It is an investment that is well worth the money. Your outdoor summer activities will get more enjoyable.

Don’t let mosquitoes ruin your family fun. Call North Fulton Pest Solutions and make an appointment for one of our knowledgeable mosquito technicians to visit your property, make targeted applications, and advise you on ways you can prevent mosquitoes in your yard. Mosquito yard control can be the difference between tons of summer fun and family barbecues or being driven indoors by blood thirsty mosquitoes. Call us today and let us make your summer just a little more enjoyable.