We gardeners are all plagued to a varying extent by blood sucking, disease-spreading, itchy Mosquitoes in the Houston area. Currently they’re not especially annoying at WCG until dusk. But this will likely change with heavy rains & absent lovely summer breezes.
I’ve read that rubbing native American Beautyberry leaves on your skin is a natural repellent but we currently only have 1 shrub growing in our front Butterfly bed. I’ll experiment with mine in home gardens.
This article presents homemade DIY repellents for those who wish to avoid DEET. It also includes a list of plants which naturally repel mosquitoes, such as Basil & catnip, which are growing in the Garden.
Check it out if you’d like! (And please let us all, Wayne Slaikeu & Julie Fordes, our WCG Herbalists, know if they work!)
Kat Elder
Specialty Gardens Chairman