Preparing for Mosquito Season (before it gets bad)

In the dead of winter, it’s easy to forget about mosquitoes and all the frustration and misery they brought you and your family last summer. But just as the sun sets in the West every evening, mosquitoes come back every Spring. While their main goal in the summer was reproduction (and sucking your blood), their focus shifts to survival come the chilly winter months. You usually won’t see them again until the temperatures start to warm back up in the Spring. In the beginning their populations will be light, but with more rainfall and warm weather, the population explosion commences as they shift into reproduction mode.

Because mosquitoes reproduce quicker and in larger numbers in peak mosquito season, it can be tougher to get them under control once they have reached an unmanageable level. Therefore it is critical to take action early so mosquitoes have less opportunity to exponentially grow their populations within your yard.

In early Spring, we recommend scoping out your yard for areas that may easily pool with standing water, whether it be from snowmelt, rainfall, or sprinklers. A teaspoon of water has enough volume to breed a couple hundred mosquitoes and they love to lay eggs in multiple areas around your yard. It’s a good idea to talk to your neighbors and check their yard for similar factors, which can ultimately lead to more mosquito activity in your own yard. Here are a few simple things you can do to reduce the chances of mosquitoes breeding in your yard or the neighboring areas:

• Fill in low-lying areas or tree holes in the yard that always pool with water
• Try to limit objects in the yard that collect with water
• Cover trash cans or any water-collecting objects that have to be left outside
• Ensure spigots and pipes are not leaking into puddles
• Clear your gutters so water can’t collect in areas we can’t reach
• Keep an eye out for new pockets of water after it rains
• Talk to your neighbors about doing all of these things, so less mosquitoes can enter your yard from the surrounding areas

Also, keep in mind that Mosquito Hunters’ first treatment of the year in the Spring is specifically focused on cutting down mosquito populations that have emerged after the winter before they start to exponentially reproduce. While they may not be very active yet during the first few weeks of our season, the post-Winter treatment allows you to reap the benefits throughout the coming months. Less mosquitoes at the start of the season simply leads to less mosquitoes exponentially reproducing once peak mosquito season rolls around.