How to keep your garden free of fleas, ticks and mosquitoes

Now that we find ourselves in the middle of summer, it’s likely that you and your family are going to be spending more and more time in your garden. Unfortunately, you won’t be the only things looking to spend time there; in the hotter months particularly, you can find yourself joined by a host of irritating insects including fleas, ticks and mosquitoes.

There’s no need to despair, however, or barricade yourself indoors. Simply follow our handy tips below to help you keep your garden free of these particular creepy crawlies.

Mow your lawn properly

Like a particular nursery rhyme character would appreciate, you need to mow your grass down to a length that is just right. Leave your lawn to grow too long and it can become the ideal environment for ticks and fleas to flourish. Typically, you want your grass to be between 1 and 3 inches tall, not tall enough to encourage the ticks and fleas, but long enough to attract spiders and ants, which are predators for fleas.

But don’t over water it

There is nothing fleas and ticks like more than damp, moist environments, so make sure you don’t have any drainage issues and that you aren’t over watering your lawn or plant life to make sure you aren’t doing anything to encourage them.

Prevention

One of the best ways to keep mosquitoes out of your garden is to prevent them from ever setting up shop there in the first place. Mosquitoes look to lay eggs in any form of stagnant water they come across. So, make sure you keep your rain gutters clear and sort out any blockages, and make sure any water fountains or bird baths in your garden are either in regular use or drained of any water.

If you do have standing water you cannot get rid of – such as a rain barrel – then consider getting a drip oil can. These cans cover the surface of the water in a thin sheen of oil, preventing mosquitoes from successfully laying eggs there.

Go all natural

If you want to make sure your garden is mosquito free but don’t want to spray your lawn down with countless chemicals and pesticides, then you might prefer to take a more natural approach.

The first option you could try is burning mosquito coils, or any mosquito repellent made from citronella oil which is derived from lemongrass. Citronella oil has been recognised as a safe bio fungicide for over half a century.

Alternatively, consider growing some herbs in your garden, particularly rosemary, which has been known to repel mosquitoes and, as an added bonus, will improve the taste of all your home cooked meals to boot!

Also, any cat owners looking to get rid of mosquitoes can take some of their pet’s catnip and scatter this throughout their garden, as research has shown that something in catnip – though it still is not clear what exactly – acts as a more effective mosquito repellent than many commercial options.