Rainy season brings mosquitos
Rainy season has begun – thank goodness.
We welcome the rain, much needed in the wake of the winter drought.
It brings its own problems, though, some more serious than a washed-out afternoon party or a quick downpour at an inopportune time.
Rainy season is also skeeter season with the peak invasion beginning in May and running through October, a time of both high tides and summer showers.
The Lee County Mosquito Control District has lots of good information online at lcmcd.com where a couple of brochures are available for download.
Among the tips in the agency’s spring handout?
For personal protection, the district advises residents to:
-Apply repellent containing DEET according to the label’s directions.
-Wear light colored clothing with long-sleeved shirts and long pants.
- -Avoid being outdoors during peak mosquito activity (from dusk to dawn).
-Make sure all window and door screens are secure and functional.
To keep mosquitos from breeding in your backyard, the online brochure advises residents to:
-Examine containers. Remove, cover, invert, or dump regularly, including saucers under pots
– Look at drainage ditches and swales. Remove obstructions to water flow such as emergent vegetation and do not leave grass clippings or yard waste in ditches which can act as an attractant to mosquitoes and a food source for larvae.
– Examine rain gutters. Keep clear of debris so that water can drain.
-Secure rain barrels. Cover rain barrels with house screening.
-Maintain ornamental ponds. Stock with fish, remove excess emergent vegetation
-Maintain swimming pools. Keep chlorinated and filtered for large pools; empty or flush wading pools weekly.
– Maintain bird baths. Change the water once a week
– Check your bromeliads. Flush the reservoirs weekly or treat with appropriate material.
Good advice from the district.
For a complete look at the brochure content quoted here and a much longer one called “The Florida Resident’s Guide to Mosquito Control” visit the district web site at lcmcd.com.
The Lee County Mosquito Control District also invites property owners to call 239-694-2174 if mosquitoes increase and impact your daily activities.
-North Fort Myers editorial