How do I get rid of thousands of mosquitoes in my backyard?

Question

I have inches of standing water from all the rain my town has gotten. In the last two months I've gotten 20+ inches of rain. This is triple what we've usually gotten. And my backyard is flat and now it's almost completly in standing water. Its been this way for a few weeks and now that the rain is stoping, I've been able to go outside but to my dismay I have about 20,000 mosquitos everywhere. How do I kill them. Is there anyway I can do this without pesticides because I have wildlife that may be affected by this. Please Help!!

Answer 1

Definitely put up bird and bat houses. Bats are the greatest mosquito eaters.



The lights that kill bugs have been said to kill pretty much everything but mosquitos. A study just released in the news said that for like every 100 bugs, 2 were mosquitos, and a lot of the dead bugs actually ate mosquitos. Waste of money.



As the water recedes, make sure that there is no standing water left in buckets, or other containers. Since your entire yard is flooded, I don't think there is much else you can do about it.

Answer 2

I wish I could help, but the usual remedies won't do much if your yard and the surrounding area are flooded. The problem you described is too widespread to be affected by anything except a county-wide spraying operation or until the flood leaves and the ground dries out. So--your best bet is mosquito repellant.

Answer 3

This is an unusual circumstance for to be sure.. but with copious rainfall and flooding comes mosquitoes..



If you can, look into a bat house. Bats eat TONS of mosquitoes nightly. But, until they find the bat house, though.. you're out of luck. Martins and swifts/swallows eat them, too. Encourage habitats for those animals to help.



Your best bet is to stay inside from dusk to dawn and wear a good insect repellent with DEET to keep yourself from being carried away by the swarms.... sorry!

Answer 4

First, try to removed standing water & fill in low areas in yards to discourage puddles. Keep drains, ditches and culverts clear to allow proper drainage. Check for any damp spots where mosquitos can hide & breed such as clogged roof gutters.Trim shrubs to discourage them from resting on foliage.



Using garlic sprays on bushes & shrubs should reduce the mosquito population.Mosquitos avoid garlic. It appears that the strong smell of garlic overwhelms the mosquito's sense of smell and prevents them from finding their prey (us!)."



Blend well 1garlic bulb & 1 onion add 1Tbsp cayenne pepper & 1 quart water. Steep ingredients for 1 hr, then strain & add 1 Tbsp dish soap and your non-toxic spray is ready to use.



Besides Garlic, mosquitos also don't like Citronella, Catnip, Rosemary, Thyme, Lemon Balm, Mint, the oil of Lemon Eucalyptus, or Tea Tree Oil. Make a spray of one of these & add a tablsp Ivory soap to a gallon of water & spray your bushes with it when you're outdoors. You can also add a tablsp. soybean (vegetable) oil to the soap & water spray.

OR ...

Use citronella torches &/or candles.



Cinnamon oil shows promise as an environmentally friendly pesticide, killing mosquito larvae more effectively than DEET.



Cedar chips are helpful. Spread on pathways.



Mosquito Dunks destroy Mosquitoes - by killing the larvae before they mature into biting adult pests. They're the only sustained-release B.t.i. mosquito larvicides available.



You could check out the high tech Infrared Mosquito Killing Trap (IMKT), to see if this is an option. I haven' t had any experience with this, though.



While combating those bugs, avoid the mosquito's most active time between the hours of dusk and dawn. On windy days you can usually move about outside with less mosquito confrontations & protect yourself.

The CDC says " oil of lemon eucalyptus provides protection time "similar to low-concentration DEET products in two recent studies."

Iowa State U. researches have reported that an essential oil found in catnip (Nepetalactone)

is more effectivethan DEET. (Organic Gardening Aug/Sept '06)

Rub Lemon balm leaves over yourself & your clothing to repel mosquitos.



Good luck! I hope you get rid of those mosquitos.

Answer 5

I believe that they make special lights that will attract the bugs and kill them. You may find them by doing a search online. good luck. Any chance of getting rid of the standing water? Planting grass, trees, flowers, etc.?

Answer 6

dump all standing water. go buy a electric shocker lite and plug it in and then iof that dont work call the mosquito people if the problem gets worst someone might be raising them and they are in your yard hope i helped some take care

Answer 7

yes two things first one is very effective and expensive it is called mosquito deleto. can be purchased online at sportsmansguide.com. second option not as effective but considerably less expensive is coleman productcalled firelight torch. it uses disposeable propane bottles and citronella rings all sold seperatly. both harmless to wildlife.

we use them and have turkey, bunnies and dog. no harm at all.

Answer 8

what you can do is put those sticki tapes for mosquitos they sale it at wal mart, just put it all over your backyard and mosquitos will get stock on it because it has a chemical that attract insect such as mosquitos if that does not work you can go to google.com and search for that problem.