Garden experts have revealed the three best ways to keep mosquitoes out of a bird bath this summer.
As well as all the benefits summer brings, it is the emergence of mosquito season. Mosquitoes prefer to breed near water sources, so unfortunately, your bird bath is a mosquito hotspot. Even worse, birds are just as prone as humans to mosquito bites, so if you’ve gone to the effort of attracting birds, you should protect them now they’re here.
The key to keeping mosquitoes out of your bird bath is to make it an inhospitable place for these pests. Here are three ways you can get rid of mosquitoes and provide the best bird bath care this summer.
1. Drain your bird bath every 48 hours
Mosquitoes breed in stagnant water, so don’t make the bird bath mistake of not changing the water regularly.
‘One of the best and simplest ways to keep mosquitoes from breeding in your bird bath is to drain it every 48 hours. Mosquitoes need 7 to 10 days of still water in order to get to the end of their life cycle, so doing this by itself will keep larvae from ever having an opportunity to develop,’ explains Tony King, pest control expert, owner, and manager of The Pied Piper.
2. Add a fountain or water wiggler
Mosquitoes also prefer still water to lay their eggs, so you’ll want to try and keep the surface level of the water in your bird bath moving.
‘A simple way to prevent mosquitoes from feeding on your garden birds is by keeping the water moving. Installing a small fountain, bubbler, or solar-powered pump discourages mosquitoes from laying eggs,’ says Nick Barker, Founder of natural insect repellent company THEYE.
‘If you have a bigger source of water for birds, which would be suitable for fish, such as goldfish - these are excellent at feeding on larvae, as are frogs and dragonflies, which are great natural allies.’
Tony says he’s seen great success with the Solar Smart Fountain (£7.99 on Amazon) and the Allied Precision Water Wiggler (£33.54 at Amazon), which work to keep the water in your bird bath consistently moving - but not enough to deter your garden birds.
3. Use mosquito dunks
‘If mosquitoes are still an issue, I typically recommend adding a mosquito dunk. They are tiny doughnut-shaped tablets filled with Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti), which is a naturally occurring bacterium that will kill mosquito larvae but harm none to birds, pets, or wildlife. Simply drop a quarter of a dunk into one part, which typically treats a small bird bath for about 30 days,’ says Tony.
You can pick up a pack of six mosquito dunks on Amazon for £22.50, which should be enough to last you the rest of the summer.
What you need
Place in your bird bath and create a beautiful display whilst keeping mosquitoes away.
The creates a ripple effect to stop mosquitoes laying eggs in your bird bath.
These won't harm your garden wildlife but will kill mosquito larvae.
These three easy measures should make your garden a less hospitable place for mosquitoes and a happier place for your garden birds. What’s not to love?
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