Prevent mosquitoes in your garden? 5 practical tips

Do you have a lot of mosquitoes in your garden? Prevent them from becoming even more so that you don't turn into a pincushion on a warm summer evening in your garden. We give you a number of sustainable tips to get started.

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Working with poison in the garden is not the solution against mosquitoes: prevention is better than cure! These 5 sustainable tips will help you limit mosquitoes in the garden.

Mosquitoes need water to reproduce. When it has rained a lot, water easily remains in buckets, pots, watering cans, gutters and also in tree hollows. Make sure you empty these in time, so that the eggs do not hatch or that larvae cannot grow into mosquitoes.

Saving water is important, which is why many people have a rain barrel in their garden. This is an excellent breeding ground for mosquitoes. By adding a layer of (neutral) vegetable oil, you ensure that the water surface is sealed off. Mosquito larvae cannot get oxygen and cannot pupate.

Note: Make sure you get water from the tap and not from above. This will prevent you and your plant from getting covered in oil.

Many animals love mosquitoes and their larvae. If you make sure that your garden is animal-friendly, your mosquito problem will often be solved by itself. Provide many unsprayed, diverse and native plants . That is how you attract the most life.

For example, hang up a swallow nest box: a pair of house martins eats up to 9000(!) insects per day, including many mosquitoes. Amphibians, bats , spiders and other insects help you keep mosquitoes under control, so give them space in your garden.

If you have a pond, you will understand that mosquitoes love it! Mosquitoes especially like stagnant water, so by adding a circulation pump you ensure less favorable conditions. In a small pond you could put a small air pump.

An advantage of a natural pond is the aquatic animals, such as dragonfly larvae and water beetles. These love mosquito larvae. Don't have a pond yet? Create a natural pond to attract these animals.

You can also make your garden less attractive to mosquitoes by planting 'mosquito repellent' plants . They are not fond of strong smells. The plants are most effective when you place them in a place where you often sit, such as at the dining table or your favourite relaxing spot in the garden.

It is not possible to completely prevent mosquitoes from being in your garden and in many cases it is not necessary at all. It is a myth that all mosquitoes bite.

Of the many types of mosquitoes that exist, the family of mosquitoes is the most well-known. These do indeed sting, but only the females! Mosquitoes are an important link in the ecosystem and form the food of many animals.