4 plants you need to get now to keep mosquitoes away
All the recent rain means even more mosquitoes and in just the last week, a few mosquitoes tested positive for West Nile in Spring.
I turned to the plant experts to find out the truth behind how plants and herbs can keep the mosquitoes away.
"We've got eucalyptus, lemon grass is an excellent one," said Zach Buchanan.
Buchanan is the owner of Buchanan's Native Plants off 11th Street in the Heights. After 20 years in the business, he's learned the realities behind how to truly keep mosquitoes away.
"There's a lot of plants that are recommended especially herbs including citronella, scented geraniums, lavender lemon grass and native shrubs," said Buchanan.
Buchanan warns you'll need more than just one or two plants for this to be entirely effective. This is something Kate Thomas learned very quickly.
"If we were near it and broke it off and rubbed it on us, it worked. But just to have it on the porch to keep mosquitoes away, it didn't," said Thomas.
Buchanan says to get the best results, tackle mosquitoes from all angles including oils.
"So a lot of other products we recommend are oils. It's the oils in those plants that do the repelling," said Buchanan.
Finally, don't skip out on the candles.
"We also recommend incense sticks or candles that have citronella oil in them as well," said Buchanan.
As far as ultrasonic devices that claim to emit high-frequency sounds to keep mosquitoes away, Consumer Reports says there's just no proof that they work.
Buchanan says these tips are your best bet. First, maintain your yard. Make sure there isn't any standing water or low lying areas. If you can't drain the area, then you can purchase an organic product that will kill any larva.
