Summer Insect Awareness and Prevention

We all love spending time outside when the sun is out and the weather is warm. Unfortunately, insects seem to have the same idea. That being said, there are plenty of things you can do to lessen their impact on your outdoor enjoyment. Follow these tips to help improve your sunny days!

Ants

Ants are a classic pest at picnics; any food you leave out is very enticing. Keep ants at bay by keeping food and drinks well-covered when you’re outside.. If ants get inside your home, don’t start killing them right away– the queen will just send in more of these workers, and the problem will continue. Wait until you can figure out how they’re getting in, and block off that entrance. If you can, follow them to the nest so that you can remove that as well. You can also purchase ant bait products which you can leave out for the ants to carry back to eradicate the nest.

Mosquitoes

It’s probably safe to say that no one likes mosquitoes. Aside from having your swatting hands ready, the most obvious preventative method is to apply bug repellant when outside. Use it especially on your wrists, ankles, neck and feet. These are the most appealing areas to mosquitos because the skin is thinner. What you wear can also affect how attractive you are to mosquitoes– they’re most attracted to deeper colors such as black, blue and red, so keep to light colors, thicker fabric and looser fits. To deter mosquitoes from nesting nearby, make sure to dump out any standing water that accumulates in your yard. If you do have to have standing water on your property, consider treating it so that mosquitoes don’t breed there.

Stinging Insects

Perhaps the most unwelcome of the summer insects are those with stingers. Not only are they pesky, but they can be painful and even dangerous! The best practice for these is avoidance, as these insects spend most of the season focused on raising young and don’t feed themselves. As a result, by the end of the summer the drones are hungry and angry, making the risk of unprovoked stings much higher. Hornets, wasps, and yellow jackets don’t lose their stingers, so they can continue stinging many times. To discourage them, ensure that you keep food and trash covered, as these pests are attracted to sweet smells. Also, keeping your lawn healthy discourages ground-nesters from making their homes in your yard. If you do end up with any nests around your property, ensure that all pieces of the nests are removed by professionals so that the insects are less likely to return the following year.

It certainly isn’t fun to deal with insects that can cause inconvenience or pain. But by following these tips, we hope you’ll be able to safely enjoy your time both indoors and outside!