Kill Mosquito Larvae In Your Bird Bath With One Secret Ingredient

If there's one thing that will ruin your backyard, it's mosquitoes. Even the most gorgeous outdoor space is hard to enjoy with those pesky insects buzzing around, biting you, and making you itch. Unfortunately, some of your favorite garden features may be attracting mosquitoes to your yard, including your bird bath. But you can reduce the mosquito population by using a product called mosquito bits to kill the larvae.

Bird baths are a prime location for mosquitoes to lay their eggs. They prefer breeding in standing water in shady areas, and they only need a tiny bit of water to do so. Although birds eat mosquitoes and mosquito larvae, that might not be enough to control the issue altogether, and that's where mosquito bits can come in handy.

An effective microbial insecticide such as Mosquito Bits is made from small pellets that contain a bacterium called Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis, or Bti. This bacterium produces a mosquito larvae-killing toxin. Because Bti kills the larvae rather than the adults, it interrupts the mosquito life cycle and cuts down on the population in the long term. Here's how to use popular granular biological mosquito control in the bird bath in your yard for a bite-free summer.

The most popular brand that sells microbial insecticide is Summit, but all Bti pellets will work similarly. Simply add the pellets — or discs — to the water. As they dissolve, they'll release the Bti and toxin. Any larvae that hatch into that water die. Follow the directions on the package, but in general, a few pellets should be enough to cover a bird bath.

The pellets will need to be replaced every one to two weeks. Mosquito Bits can also kill fungus gnats and black flies, but don't affect other insects. They also don't pose any risks to people or animals, including birds, which is why they're a great solution for bird baths.

In addition to using granular biological mosquito control, there are other ways to keep pesky mosquitoes out of your bird bath. Dump and replace the water in your bird bath once a week (you can add a fresh scoop of Mosquito Bits with each refill). This lowers the likelihood that any eggs have time to hatch. It also helps to add some type of moving feature to the bird bath, like a fountain, dripper, or mister, to discourage mosquitoes.