Beware of claims that the pest control companies tell you about their products being natural. Natural is not always good for you. Petroleum is natural but you would not drink that or put it around your home would you? Become a label reader. I learned how to read labels when my mother would tell me that preservatives were not good for you  and that they caused cancer. Now that was in the 60's and early 70's when no one talked about organics except for hippies. Well, my mom was a hippy and she was also a straight A Phi Beta Kapa at Stanford so I has a tendency to believe she may know a thing or two! When she would tell people that they would laugh and say, " Oh, our government wouldn't let companies put things in our food that is not good for us." I am afraid that thought pattern persist in the general population even today. My mother knew that DDT was lethal and that when they finally outlawed it, she told us that it would be in the earth for years and years. She was right again! So I learned a lot from her and continued my natural path and learning all about natural alternatives and organics and non toxic household cleaners because I was raising a family and decided to be proactive in their health. 

Mosquitoes and fleas are a big problem here in South Florida. I am sure that all the Southern states have issues with mosquitoes. DEET is not natural and is not good for you or your children. So please try to avoid products such as Off. Also avoid using products containing Permatherin. It kills bees, fish and beneficial insects. It is not to be sprayed around creeks, rivers, lakes and fish ponds. Well, if it kills fish it can be good for us! 

You are not ever going to be able to spray poisons enough to kill all the mosquitoes.  One mosquito has a five mile flight plan in it's lifetime. The most productive way to limit mosquitoes is by eliminated their breeding grounds. That means getting rid of all standing water around your home and yard as well as getting your neighbors to do the same. Even a little tiny toy bucket left outside and fills with rain is the perfect hatching place for thousands of mosquitoes.This sounds so simple but it really is the most efficient thing you can do right now. 

The next thing is to keep them from biting you. Since we can not get rid of all of them and we don't want to poison them all because then you also poison the frogs that eat the mosquitoes and so forth. The way that you keep them from biting you is to create confusion to their sense of smell and disorient them with masking your smell.If they can't find you they can't bite you. Mosquitoes are attracting by the smell of the carbon dioxide we give off.

The best natural product that we have used is a mosquito garlic spray. It is made from 99.3% garlic juice and you just spray it all over your yard. It does contain some food preservatives to keep it from molding. It lasts for about 2 months.  In Florida since we have them year round, you would spray about once every two months depending on where you live and how infested the area is with mosquitoes that year. Here is the link to the company that sells the garlic spray:

http://www.Mosquitobarrier.com 

 If you mix this oil with soybean oil you can layer all your plants with an extra long coating. This product will kill the larvae in standing water and it will kill the adults on contact. It repels them because the smell of the garlic disorientates their sense of smell.  It does not kill bees, butterflies or birds. It is also safe around children and pets.  It contains a natural sulphur and also repels fleas, ticks and black flies. There are cities and parks now spraying this instead of the poisons. It is safe for horses. 

When you go out walking cover your body as much as you can and wear clean socks. Mosquitoes are attracted to stinky, sweaty socks so never wear the same pair two times in a row. 

Mosquitoes are attracted to bright lights so make sure to dim your lights in the evenings outside. They are most active at dawn and at dusk. There is a recipe on the website that tells you how to mix and make your own spray that you can spray on your body without poisons.