During the summer, people who go on camping trips know that the biggest problem is not hiking for hours to get to the campsite or setting camp – the biggest problem is mosquitoes! They can ruin your camping trip by flying all around you and biting you all the time. If you do not know how to ward off mosquitoes, chances are that you will be going home with a lot of bites all over your body!
When I first started camping, I went over a ton of articles and read a lot about the most effective repellent ingredients that I could use to keep mosquitoes as far away from me as possible. These insects cannot stand certain scents, so people like you and I can use that to our advantage.
If you want some help in learning about repelling mosquitoes, go over my list of the top 11 things mosquitoes hate the most. These things serve as the best mosquito protection, so you have to know them. Without further ado, let’s get right into the list!
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What Smell Will Keep Mosquitoes Away? - 11 Things Mosquitos Hate
If you thought that there is only one type of mosquito, let me tell you that you are very wrong. There are many types of pesky mosquitoes that you can come across. The house, southern, and the Asian tiger mosquito are some of the most common.
Not all mosquitoes are that problematic. If you are dealing with female mosquitoes that can lay mosquito eggs somewhere in your camp or home, you will have more work to do to repel them. Also, dealing with mosquitoes that can transmit mosquito-borne diseases can be a huge problem. You should do your best to repel these bad guys before they do a lot of damage.
Having said that, you can deter mosquitoes in many ways. Some people choose to do with store-bought repellent sprays, but they can cause skin irritation to people who are sensitive to harsh chemicals. If you happen to fall into the category of people with sensitive skin, you can go with some of the natural repellents. Here are the 11 things that mosquitos hate and you can use to deter them:
1. Garlic
Garlic is one of the best mosquito repellents because of its strong smell. It can serve as mosquito protection not only because of its smell but also because of the sulfur it contains. The amount of sulfur in the garlic gives it its repelling properties.
But you do not need to eat the garlic to repel the insects. You can take several garlic cloves and blend them. Then, you can mix them with some water and put them in a spray bottle. You can use the spray bottle to spray some of the concoctions wherever you stay. That will keep the mosquitoes away from you.
2. Vinegar
Another great natural mosquito repellent is apple cider vinegar. You can get any type of apple cider vinegar from the store and use it as a repellent. But you should not use it by itself – you should mix it with some water!
As I mentioned, you can use a spray bottle and fill it with a mixture of vinegar and water with the garlic. You can then spray the concoction either in your surroundings or on yourself. Both are acceptable, so you can choose which one you want to go with. Remember that you should not spray too much of the concoction on your skin and around your eyes or mouth if you do not want to irritate them.
3. Basil
Basil is tasty and a great addition to any salad – but it is also great for deterring mosquitoes. It works great as a deterrent because of several of its compounds like citronella, limonene, estragole, and nerolidol.
You can use several freshly-picked basil leaves and mix them with some boiling water. Let the mixture sit for a few hours, transfer it into a spray bottle, and use it whenever needed. If you do not like the smell of basil, you can also consider using only the citronella candles or citronella oil.
A citronella candle will serve the same purpose as the other repellents. You can find such a candle in any store and use it whenever you need it.
4. Peppermint
When mosquitoes are in full swing is during summer when the weather is hot. Their sweat, another frequent phenomenon during the summer, makes them attracted to humans.
To cool yourself down and repel the mosquitoes, you can use peppermint! Peppermint plants are not that hard to grow, while they contain a lot of menthols that are great at both cooling and repelling. I propose that you turn to this plant when you need a good repellent.
Another thing that you can try out is peppermint oil. Instead of going with perfumed lotions and sweet-smelling deodorant, consider using natural scents like peppermint oil. It will be good for your skin and keep the mosquitoes away.
5. Lavender
Lavender plants look amazing, smell great, and are great repellents. It is not the plant that functions as a repellent but its flowers. Once they bloom, you can cut them and crush them. As you crush them, you will find that some oil comes out of them.
This lavender oil is super effective as a repellent and an anti-fungal natural scent. You can use a mixture of lavender oil and water to spray your surroundings or spray your body. The pungent aroma will deter mosquitoes and other insects in both cases!
6. Rosemary
No matter if it is used as a plant or essential oil, Rosemary has such a strong smell that it can deter all kinds of insects. If you want to keep mosquitoes and flies away from your campsite or your garden, make sure to put some rosemary around it.
You can use the plant to make some rosemary oil. You can make it by mixing the rosemary with olive oil and letting the mixture sit in the sun for about a month. If this seems too complicated or long for you, you can also buy a ready-made essential oil from any store and use it.
7. Neem
Neem is great for closed areas. If you want to stay protected in your tent or home, you can put a neem plant near you, and you will be good to go. Aside from the plant, you can also use some neem oil to protect yourself from mosquito bites.
If you plan to hike in an area with high grass, you can create a mixture of neem oil and coconut oil. You can rub this mixture on your skin to protect against insect bites to prevent tick bites or deter other annoying pests.
8. Aloe Vera
While it does have some repelling functions, Aloe Vera is not the strongest repellent on the list. The best way to use Aloe Vera is combined with some of the essential oils mentioned above, like the rosemary, peppermint, or lavender oils.
What Aloe Vera can do is calm the skin. Some people who have skin that easily gets irritated can use this repellent made of Aloe Vera and essential oils to both repel insects and protect their skin. Your skin will be protected, but it will also smell and feel amazing!
9. Lemon eucalyptus
Lemon eucalyptus oil is a long-lasting repellent as strong as some store-bought repellent sprays. You can rely on this mixture to deter mosquitoes for as long as six hours, making this a great solution to take on day hikes.
You can mix the eucalyptus oil with oils from lemon, rosemary, lemongrass, lavender, or even peppermint. While on the topic, you can also rely on the lemongrass plant to give you lemongrass oil that you can use as another effective repellent.
As you can see, most essential oils and natural scents work well as repellents. No matter which one you go with or which two you choose to mix, you will not make a mistake!
10. Vanilla
It is often said that mosquitoes like sweet things and sweet smells. While that is true, they are not quite that fond of vanilla. You can use some vanilla extract if you want to keep mosquitoes away from you.
The only problem with this repellent is that it does not last that long. Unlike the other deterrents that can last several hours, vanilla is effective as a repellent for only half an hour. After that, you will need to add more of the extracts to stay protected. So, keep that in mind.
11. Catnip
Last but not least, catnip is another plant that can be used as a repellent. It might be one of the most potent natural repellents. This is one of the components that the plant contains, called the Nepeta cataria.
Because of this component, mosquitoes and other insects will not want to come anywhere near the plant. You can mix some of the catnip with some water and some essential oils to get a great natural repellent. Using a spray bottle, spray some of the mixtures wherever needed.
In some stores, you can also find ready-made catnip essential oil that you can use as it is. Which one you go with depends on which you like best!
Wrap Up
Thank you for sticking with me through this guide. I hope you learned all about the best ways to keep mosquitoes away from you during camping trips and in everyday life. I recommend sticking to natural repellents instead of those harsh repellent sprays that can sometimes cause skin problems.
Let me know in the comments if you know any other great mosquito repellents that you would want me to include on the list. I would love to read all your suggestions, so do not hesitate to share them with me!
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