Mosquito Prevention – Control Standing Water

It is that time of year again. School is almost out, the heat is rising, and mosquitoes are hatching. Though it is not constantly in the news, West Nile Virus is still a prevalent concern and as property owners we have an opportunity as well as a responsibility to try and eliminate the threat of this disease. Besides using mosquito repellents to protect your person against insect bites, those working on the landscape can take measures to help stop the spread of West Nile virus. Since it is transmitted to humans via mosquitoes, and since the larvae of mosquitoes are found in standing water, one group of measures should obviously focus on sources of standing water in your landscaping. But just what those sources consist of can be far from obvious.

But first, let's consider the role of mosquito larvae in our war against West Nile virus. Successfully killing mosquitoes is based on a simple yet important observation. When mosquitoes become adults, they rule the skies. Locating and killing winged bugs is difficult. Consequently, mosquito control that focuses instead on killing mosquito larvae or depriving mosquitoes of breeding grounds makes a lot of sense. If you can eliminate sources of standing water on your landscaping, you're hitting mosquitoes where it really hurts. Or else you can kill the mosquito larvae while they're still confined to the water. They're vulnerable while they remain wingless, swimming in an artificial pond, say, or a swimming pool. This is the time to kill them and you can even do so without resorting to chemicals.

But before considering ways to kill the larvae in areas of your landscaping where you intentionally keep standing water, let's look at some of the sources of standing water that you might not immediately think of. Walk your property and look for the following:

Small Areas of Standing Water

Water buckets and rain barrels.

Bottles and cans.

Empty plastic plant pots and other concave odds and ends

Old car tires (notorious rain-catchers).

Boat tarps or pool covers in which water can puddle.

Uneven areas in lawns or gardens where irrigation water can collect.

Clogged rain gutters and clogged drains.

Birdbaths and water bowls for pets.

Seepage from septic tanks.

Swimming Pools, Ponds and Fountains

Keep swimming pools clean, aerated and chlorinated.

A bacteria called "Bti" (Bacillus thuringiensis) is often used for mosquito larvae control in standing water.

Aerate artificial ponds.

Stock artificial ponds with fish that eat mosquito larvae.

If you have ponds or fountains on your property perhaps you've thought, "Too bad there isn't a 'mosquitofish' I could put in my water garden to eat mosquito larvae." Well, believe it or not, the mosquitofish isn't a mythical beast, there really is such a thing as a mosquitofish! 

But which fish are the best eaters of mosquito larvae? Minnows and goldfish are common denizens of artificial ponds, and they do a fine job of eating mosquito larvae. But another fish, Gambusia affinis, has acquired such a reputation as an eater of mosquito larvae that it has been nicknamed, "mosquitofish." 

Formerly an obscure species, the mosquitofish is now enjoying the limelight due to the West Nile virus' invasion of North America. Avoid the temptation to mass aquatic plants together excessively in artificial ponds (mosquito larvae can hide from the fish if the vegetation is dense).

Just remember standing water equals mosquitoes.

It doesn’t matter to us whether you want lush lawns, desert landscaping or some type of landscaping in between, we can help your commercial property.  To find out how give us a call at 623-848-8277.

Presented by:
Greens Keeper Landscape Maintenance, LLC
623-848-8277
http://www.commerciallandscapecare.com

greenskeeperllc@cox.net