Neem oil is one of nature’s greatest natural remedies for a wide array of pests.
The natural Neem oil extract can be used in a wide range of applications, with even the solid wastes being a useful pesticidal compost.
Best of all, it’s safe for use around humans and pets and won’t harm beneficial bugs when applied correctly.
But there’s one common summer pest that loves feeding off of humans instead of plants.
As a malaria-carrying mosquito isn’t very likely to come in contact with your prized rose bushes, you may be wondering.
Will Neem Oil Get Rid Of Mosquitoes?
The answer might surprise you, but neem oil will easily protect against pests that aren’t interested in plants.
Neem has long been used in a number of health and beauty products and can provide the same protections on humans as it does for plants when applied properly.
How Neem Affects Mosquitoes
You’ve likely heard of the main chemical in raw neem oil, Azadirachtin, which is often extracted for use in commercial pesticides.
However, there are multiple components of neem that can affect insects, including the lesser-known Sallanin.
These two chemicals disrupt reproduction, interrupt development, and can suffocate on contact.
Mosquitoes are repelled by certain applications of the spray and will suffer a population decline when coming into contact or ingesting the oil.
Learn How Neem Oil Kills Plant Pests
Neem Lawn Spray
Those who’ve heard of or used neem oil before will be quite familiar with its use in foliar sprays.
Apply at dusk or dawn to minimize the risk of harming beneficial insects, and neem foliar sprays use clarified hydrophobic neem oil, which has only .5 to 3% percent Azadirachtin content.
Homemade sprays dissipate in an hour or less, leaving behind no residue unless additional ingredients, such as insecticidal soap, are used.
You can choose to use pure neem oil when working on larger lawn areas that lack flowers.
Follow the instructions on the container for lawn application, add it to your sprayer, and treat your entire lawn.
This will help keep mosquitoes from your yard. It can also combat fungus and harmful pests such as lawn grubs.
Neem Body Protection
Working in the garden during the warmer months can turn you into a walking meal for mosquitoes.
Thankfully, neem oil can be used as part of your daily protection routine.
Be sure to test neem on a small portion of your body before full application. Some individuals may experience skin irritation.
To use, add 10 to 20 teaspoons of 100% percent cold-pressed raw neem oil into your lotion or emulsified water.
Apply this to your skin to provide up to three hours of protection from mosquito bites without having to dip into long-term repellents such as Off!.
Note that neem oil, while effective, is estimated to only stop about 70% percent of bothersome mosquito bites, although the ones that bite you will ingest some of the neem as a result.
Protecting Flowering Plants
While mosquitoes aren’t interested in your garden, they do look for standing water.
This means there’s a good chance they’ll drop in for a visit to your ornamental plants or vegetable garden on watering day or after it rains.
A neem soil soak will be largely ineffective, although they may ingest or come in contact with some neem if you use neem cakes as organic compost.
In addition, the use of neem foliar sprays can catch a resting mosquito off-guard, killing it.
However, you should not rely on neem oil alone to keep mosquitoes away from your garden, as their efficacy is greatly reduced against this particular insect.
Instead, pair a regular neem routine with a variety of mosquito-repelling plants, such as basil or lemongrass.
These plants not only help keep mosquitoes away, but they’re also healthy herbs for use in the kitchen.
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