These Insanely Helpful Garden Plants Keep the Mosquitoes Away
Say goodbye to the outdoor pests. Bugs come with the territory when you’re outdoors, but some are more tolerable than others. If it feels like mosquitoes are invading your yard, it’s understandable to want to do what you can to get rid of them. Enter mosquito repellent plants. Here’s the thing: Experts say that the best way to keep mosquitoes at bay is to use personal repellents recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). But if you want to go a more natural route, you may be interested in selecting certain plants—they’re just not necessarily guaranteed to work as well as a spray. “The idea that planting certain plants around your home will successfully repel mosquitoes is only supported by anecdotal evidence and not empirical evidence,” says Eva Buckner, Ph.D., assistant professor and state extension specialist at the University of Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory. It’s important to note, though, that there is some evidence that certain plants may help discourage certain mosquitoes from setting up camp in your yard—they just don’t work as well as a chemical or spray. If it feels like your outdoor space is a haven to mosquitoes, it’s a good idea to “eliminate mosquito breeding grounds on and around your property by draining standing water from flowerpots, birdbaths, grill covers, baby pools, and other sources,” says Jim Fredericks, Ph.D., board-certified entomologist and senior vice president of public affairs at the National Pest Management Association (NPMA). Using a small fan outside may also help keep mosquitoes away since “they are not strong flyers,” Fredericks says. But if you like the look and smell of certain plants and want to see if they keep the mosquitoes away, too, there’s no reason not to try them. These are the plants fans swear are most likely to help get rid of mosquitoes. Snap up one or a few to enhance your outdoor space.
2023-06-26T20:04:01Z
Colic: What it is, what causes it, and how you can treat it
Welcoming a child into the world can be one of the happiest and most beautiful experiences in a person's life. Countless people around the world hold newborns in their arms and look towards a purposeful future of love, nurturing, and, of course, hard work. Caring for an infant is a roller coaster of emotions, oscillating between extreme joy and extreme exhaustion. For many new parents and caretakers, one of the first extreme hardships will be caring for a colicky baby. Babies with colic are known to cry incessantly into the night, suffer from gastrointestinal pain, and be subjected to so much stress that their face turns red. Thankfully, colic is rarely dangerous, but it can take a massive toll on both the baby and the caretakers who can suffer from irritation and sleep deprivation as well. The more one knows about colic, however, the easier it can be to handle this condition. Read on to find out all you need to know colic, and how to get you and your baby through it.
2024-01-16T16:52:02Z