Garlic-based product said to help keep them away

6/23/2010 The Monroe Evening News - Monroe, MI

It's the mosquito-biting season and the Monroe Conservation District may have just what you need. The district is selling a mosquito barrier spray that repels mosquitoes from yards and homes. When first sprayed, the natural sulfurs in the mosquito barrier kill the mosquitoes touched by the spray, said Stacey Harper, an employee at the district. Afterward, any mosquitoes entering the area detect the garlic sulfurs and will avoid the area. The mosquitoes go elsewhere and avoid the sprayed area for two to four weeks or longer, Ms. Harper said in a press release.

"This product is safe for use around children, pets and fish," she said. "It is over 99 percent pure garlic extract. Used as directed, the product does not harm any vegetation, nor does it impart any garlic flavor or taste to food plants. This spray also works for keeping ticks and fleas from your yard. Mosquito Barrier is safe to spray on open water as well."

Ms. Harper joined the district in January, 2009. Last year, she sprayed it on five acres.

"I used this product on the two acres of our yard that we use for entertaining," she said. "We followed the suggestion to add vegetable oil to help suffocate mosquito larvae and to help adhere longer to the plants. We had no trouble with mosquitoes or ticks, which had been troubling us... for the rest of the summer. We never had to apply it again that year."

She recommends the product, which is environmentally safe. For more information and pricing, those interested may call the district office at 241-7755, ext. 3, or visit the office at 1137 S. Telegraph Rd.

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