It’s that time of the year, they’re back…. Those annoying, biting, mosquitoes that will make your time outdoors a living hell. I love being outdoors gardening and nothing puts a damper on my gardening than those miserable mosquitoes. After a morning of getting bit I realized that something needed to be done.
I wanted to be really careful as I have chickens and goats on the property that are forever getting into mischief. So I needed something that would be effective. My neighbor knows that I organic garden so they were nice enough to share their DIY homemade organic mosquito spray. They have been using successfully for years. I figured It was worth a shot as something had to be better than nothing!! Thankfully it’s super easy to make, the hardest part was dissolving the salt!
Ingredients:
- 1/2 liter (17 ounces) bottle of mint flavored mouth wash - I used Listerine
- 3 C Epsom salt
- 3 - 12 oz. beers, the more stale the better (I used Miller Beer - Milwaukees Best/ Don‘t use the good stuff save that for drinking)
Directions:
- Grab yourself a large bowl and add all your ingredients. Using a whisk mix the solution until your Epsom salt is dissolved.
- Using a funnel pour your solution into your spray bottles. I like to use bottles that are around 24 ounces, they are just a bit easier to hold in your hands.
- Your solution will separate a bit, just shake it well prior to spraying. Make sure you spray all around your property, in areas that you frequent (like the garden or the kids playground, fenced in yard area for the dogs etc.). This organic solution so far has been working really well for me. My neighbor stated that it’s good for about 6-8 weeks.
Note:
When you first make this recipe, it makes around 8 cups. You will need to let the Epsom salt completley dissolve - when you do this it displaces some of the column from 72 ounces down to 64 ounces. It’s much easier to spray once the salt has been dissolved.
Worried about our Bee Friends?
Bees can get “drunk” from consuming too much alcohol, that being said bees don’t like mouthwash, so they will more than likely stay away from the spray.
References Adapted By:
Bertrand M., (2023, May13) How to Make Homemade Organic Mosquito Yard Spray [Blog Post] Retrieved from:https://dengarden.com/gardening/Organic-Mosquito-Yard-Spray
Lefler, L., (2023, April 30) What Can Epsom Salts Do for Your Plants? [Blog Post] Retrieved from: https://dengarden.com/gardening/What-Can-Epsom-Salts-Do-for-Your-Plants
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