Mosquito season: what's worth doing in March
Everything done before the mosquitoes arrive works many times better than anything done after.
March may seem too early for this topic, which is exactly why most preparatory measures are overlooked. Yet managing water — the only way to reduce mosquito numbers on a property rather than repel those already flying — is worthwhile only before the season begins.
Mosquitoes lay their eggs in standing water, and one life cycle in warm water takes roughly a week to a week and a half. This means that any container left holding water for a month can produce several generations. Remove it in March and those generations will never emerge.
The practical list is short: cover or turn over barrels and containers, clear drains and gutters, fill in or drain stagnant pools, and remove old tyres and anything else that collects rainwater. Pay particular attention to basements and crawl spaces: a flooded apartment-building basement can produce mosquitoes all year round and is most often the source in urban areas.
For retailers, March is the stocking deadline. Demand in the category starts with the first warm weather and without warning, so the range must already be on the shelves. The minimum selection is liquid refills and mats for fumigators, the devices themselves, outdoor coils, and repellent sprays. Different formats cover different situations and sell alongside, rather than instead of, one another.
