Outdoor Entertaining: 5 Affordable Ways to Keep Away Pesky Mosquitos and Flies
We know the scenario all too well: There you are, basking in summer’s warmth, about to dig into a delicious outdoor meal and bzzz… bzzz… You start swatting in the general direction of the unwelcome guest, but it always seems to return (each time, seemingly closer to your face, amirite?).
Yes, it’s a small price to pay to enjoy the season’s spoils, but there are certainly ways to minimize the presence of the pesky intruders. There’s only so much citronella candles can do, after all. We turned to our trusted Food52 Hotline and rounded up your favorite tried and true methods:
VIDEO: 5 Kitchen Gadgets that Cost $10 or Less
1. Sam1148: “While it's not most attractive solution… the tried and true fly-paper strips work well. They're cheap.
2. Summer of Eggplant: “I don't think anything is foolproof, but we use a fan on the patio with some mosquito sticks. They look like incense. We light them and stick them in the ground all around the patio and add in some citronella candles. Sometimes we spray the yard with anti-mosquito spray.”
3. Steven Hanna: “Shooaway - a battery operated tabletop device that KEEPS FLIES OFF YOUR FOOD AND DRINKS!! It works. It has holographic dots that refract light and scare flies from coming near your food.”
4. Droplet: “I also read an advice by an elderly lady who says to cut a lemon in quarters, stick a clove in each piece and place the pieces around. Apparently they hate the smell of cloves…”
RELATED: How to Deal with Pesky Mosquito Bites
5. Dana: “What is a good idea is instead of trying to repel the flies, attract them away from where you are eating. Say you were eating on your deck, get a bright light and move it around 50 yards away add some garlic cloves to the table and presto! Bug-free meal!”
