Question:
I will de-lurk to introduce myself and thank all of you for your
postings. My gardening this summer has been severely limited (like,
everything's gone to pot) because I have a 2-year-old now. I hope next
year he will be more cooperative about staying with me outside. We live
near the gulf coast of Alabama, where it's really too hot anyway.
Reading your posts has been almost as good as being there. I will share
with you something that has saved our skins, literally. We don't have
mosquito spraying here (we're not in city limits) and with the woods
behind our house and other ideal conditions, mosquitoes are fierce.
One day last year I saw a jug of stuff ($12) that claimed to be
effective and safe for children and pets. When I read the label I saw
that the active ingredient was garlic! I grinned and headed to the
produce section.
I started out by roasting garlic in the microwave, squeezing the pulp
out and spinning it in the blender with a little oil. I would then add
water and some blue food coloring, and put the concoction in the
fertilizer dispenser that hooks to my hose-- it came with Miracle Gro.
(the color was so I'd know when it was done dispensing) I've since
figured out that mixing garlic powder with water works just as well and
is less trouble. Just spray it all over the grass, vegetation,
everything. It will be effective immediately and the smell does go away
quickly. It lasts for me about 2 weeks or until we have a hard rain.
Several friends have tried it at my urging and have been amazed. One
has taken my idea and improved it even further-- she simply sprinkles
garlic powder all over everything. I'll do that next.
If the children and I are going to be outdoors away from home, I make a
paste of garlic powder and water and dab a little on their foreheads and
jawline, knees and elbows. My 8-year-old complains about the smell, but
is gald to avoid the bites. The stuff is pure magic. It also keeps the
gnats and "no see 'ems" away, and even deters the yellowflies. If only
it would work on fire ants!
Answer:
Thanks for the tip, Here is my wife's concoction: place a few drops
of 4 essential oils - eucalyptus, rosemary, lavender and tea tree - in
distilled water. Put in spray bottle and apply to exposed skin. Do not spray
in eyes - wipe on face instead. I don't know how it would work on fierce
Southern mosquitoes; we have only tested it on the mellow California variety.
Also, the smell is pretty mediciney. Whether it is better or worse than garlic
is in the nose of the beholder...perhaps it is a little sweeter.
