Natural ways to protect your home & family from mosquitoes:

How can I protect my home from mosquitoes?

1. Cleaning: Since many mosquitoes breed in standing water, source reduction can be as simple as emptying water from containers around the home. We can eliminate mosquito breeding grounds at home by removing unused plastic pools, old tires, or buckets; by clearing clogged gutters and repairing leaks around faucets; by regularly (at most every 4 days) changing water in bird baths; and by filling or draining puddles, swampy areas, and tree stumps. Eliminating such mosquito breeding areas can be an extremely effective and permanent way to reduce mosquito populations without resorting to insecticides. E.g. A common mistake is leaving water inside an unused air cooler. Drain it immediately.

2. Keep the windows and Doors shut (during dawn and dusk hours) to prevent the entry of mosquitoes leaving sufficient amount of air to enter the house. Screens can be used. 

3. Change bedding if they are near a window as mosquitoes breed from tall trees.

4. Spray salt water in the area around your home

5. Spray mint flavored water around your home

6. Keep slices of lemon with cloves over them in the corners of your doorstep, mosquitoes won’t be seen in the vicinity. This mixture is extremely effective to keep away these insects.

7. ‘Ajwain’ seeds should be combined with mustard oil and applied on cardboard pieces which can be placed in strategic positions in your house to ward off mosquitoes. It also releases a wonderful aroma, unlike the fumes released from coils.

How can I protect myself and family from mosquitoes?

1. Use Mosquito nets while sleeping

2. Wear loose-fitting clothing, which forms an air barrier between you and the bugs, and use only herbal repellent, if required. Prefer, light coloured, full sleeves and pants covering most of your hands and legs.

3. Change, show it some sunlight or shuffle and spread your bedding regularly, especially if they are near a window.

4. Avoid using highly perfumed soaps and shampoos, they may attract mosquitoes.

5. Few other home remedies to keep mosquitoes away:

a. Use Neem Oil As A Mosquito Repellent: Mix Neem Oil with Coconut Oil in a 1:1 ratio and apply it all over your body (exposed parts).

b. Use Lemon oil and Eucalyptus oil: Mix them or apply them as each oil separately on your arms and legs.

c. Camphor: It can be rubbed on your hands as well as made into oil and applied. Light a camphor in a room leaving the doors and windows shut. Enter into mosquito –free environment after half hour.

d. Garlic: Crush a few pods of Garlic and boil them in water. Spray the water around your room. It can also be used on your body if you really want to avoid being bitten despite the smell.

e. Mint: You can use mint leaves and essence in various ways. Mint can be used as a scent by added to a vaporizer. You can apply the oil on your body and plant a shrub outside your window. 

f. Lilac Oil and Coconut Oil as a Remedy: Mix these two oils in the ratio 1:1 and apply it all over the body. For about eight hours you will be away from mosquito bites.

g. Lavender as a Remedy: Lavender oil can be used as a room freshener. It can be mixed with skin cream and applied on your skin.

h. Black Pepper Oil as a Remedy: This oil can be applied all over the body unless you are allergic to the smell.

i. Johnson’s baby cream oil: Many people claim that this keeps mosquitoes away.

  (Source: information consolidated from internet)

Green tips for protecting a neighbourhood from mosquito menace naturally

Main Causes for growth of mosquitoes: 
1. Standing water serves as a breeding site for mosquitoes. A Frisbee or a plastic bottle cap can hold enough water to support mosquito breeding. This is a major cause for their growing numbers.
2. Lack of cleanliness in the entire surrounding area:
a. In-spite of regular cleaning, if there is garbage collected and kept around, it will lead to growth of mosquitoes.
b. If there are clogged gutters or the drainage system is not robust, it will create an environment, favourable for mosquitoes.

Natural Solutions for preventing mosquito growth in a neighbourhood or housing society:

1. Removing ‘standing water’ and Cleaning the area:
a. Remove all standing water from the neighbourhood:
i. Collection & disposal of standing water, may be required multiple times, every day.
ii. In this regard, if the slopes are improper, then masonry work may be needed to allow water to flow to the drains, automatically.
iii. Water stored for different purposes should be closed properly and the tanks, containers or ponds must be cleaned very regularly.
b. Cleaning the area:
i. Cleaning & disposal of garbage needs to be very frequent to prevent mosquito breeding.
ii. If garbage needs to be kept around, garbage cans and compost bin lids should be fit securely to keep insects away.
c. The drainage system should be maintained well:
i. Regular cleaning of drains, gutters, STP system
ii. Repair of pipes, avoid leakages etc.
d. Keep the swimming pools cleaned and chlorinated even when not in use to avoid it from becoming a breeding ground for mosquitoes.
e. An oil drip can or oil drip barrel is a common and nontoxic anti-mosquito measure. The thin layer of oil on top of the water prevents mosquito breeding
f. Allow corporation or management people to spray chemicals inside your compound and wherever there is stagnant water, once in a while. This is a chemical method of light poisoning. It may kill other insects too and is harmful to some degree to all life including human beings, as well. This can be restored to (at a small frequency, only if required), along with natural processes, in cases where mosquito population is large.

2. Lighting:
a. Usage of LED lights, yellow bug lights, sodium lights are advisable as they are also mosquito- repellent lights. This is to keep mosquitoes away from light as they are easily attracted by light.

3. Plantations:
a. There are few plants which repel mosquitoes. Planting these in sufficient number (as required), in the neighbourhood or garden will be a wonderful, environment friendly method of getting rid of insects, naturally. These are following:
i. Citronella plant
ii. Lemon Balm
iii. Catnip
iv. Marigolds
v. Basil (‘Tulasi’)
vi. Rosemary
vii. Geranium
viii. Mint, Lemon Mint and Peppermint
ix. Garlic
x. Eucalyptus
xi. Clove
xii. Neem tree, Lemon tree
xiii. Lemon grass, Citronella grass

4. Animal predators:
a. Domestic animals which feed on mosquitoes and insects, and should not be killed in the neighbourhood. Few example are cited below:
i. Birds
ii. Fish e.g. Mosquito fish, Frogs
iii. Dragon fly, Ground beetles, Water striders
iv. Lizards, Spiders, Ants etc.

(Source of information: few websites on internet)