It’s July in Central Florida. The single biggest group of visitors? Mosquitoes. With the size and temperament of blue jays.
They’re out in force, with all the recent rain. They’ve been breeding quietly in puddles, in ponds, in the woods.
Unwelcome pest
Volusia County is under a Health Department advisory regarding equine encephalitis, spread by mosquito bites. We’re warned to take precautions.
Back in the early 1800s, Volusia County was part of what was Mosquito County, a huge tract of land, later broken into several counties. Enterprise was the county seat. It wasn’t named “Mosquito County” for nothin’!
Just got this in from my alert cousin, Gary, who’s into astronomy and all things heavenly. I had never really considered the mosquito problem from a backyard astronomer’s point of view.
Maybe this techhie repellant called Thermacell can be put to good use locally!
Check it out at One-Minute Astronomer.
Another, less high-tech repellant I’ve heard of recently is applying a little Listerine. The scent is supposed to confuse the mosquitoes, so we don’t smell tasty to them, and they don’t bite. I haven’t tried it out.
Then there’s the old standby, Skin So Soft. It seems to work pretty well. As do DEET products, but they are strong chemicals to apply to one’s clothing or skin.
Tags: mosquitoes, summer
I use pure tea tree oil. Smells a bit funny but works great.
Must confess I am not familiar with that stuff. There are some times when it might come in handy, especially if it is mostly harmless to humans.
It is completely harmless to humans. I get mine at Debbie’s Health Food in Orange City. It’s a bit expensive but only takes a drop or two to do the job. I mix mine with water or alcohol & spray it on. Put a drop or two of the oil on your clothing if you don’t like to spray. You can also rub it on but some people find that it makes a little red spot. Here is a link for more information http://altmedicine.about.com/od/herbsupplementguide/a/TeaTreeOil.htm
It is great for so many things but make sure you get pure oil if using as a treatment
Looks like it is made from our old friend, the Melaleuca tree. It would probably be good if we could encourage demand for the stuff, resulting in more Melaleuca trees being harvested; they are a blight on So Fla and appear to have no natural predators.
Refreshing blog.