Tulsa Co. Extension Center explains what you can do to limit mosquitoes at home right now

TULSA, Okla. — Experts at the Tulsa County Extension Center said there are some things you can do right now to limit the number of mosquitoes that show up in your yard.

All of the recent rainfall can unfortunately bring more mosquitoes.

FOX23 found out what you need to look for.

If you’re seeing a lot of mosquitoes already, experts said things like overwatering or leaving out old pet dishes could be to blame.

Brian Jervis with the Tulsa County Extension Center said the most important thing you can do right now to prevent mosquitoes is to get rid of any excess, standing water.

“Whether it’s bird baths that need to be cleaned out, or old tires in the backyard or old dishes, you know dog food dishes or dishes that may have gotten into the weeds that hold the water, that don’t let it drain, that’s where a lot of the mosquitoes are going to come from in our backyard,” Jervis said.

He said if you live near a river, stream, or pond, you can also consider treating that body of water.

“They have a mosquito dunk that’s in the garden centers, and you put it in, it’s an organic insecticide that affects the larvae from being able to reproduce or being able to continue their cycle,” Jervis said.

He said with all the recent rainfall we’ve seen, you really don’t need to be watering outdoor plants right now.

Overwatering your landscape can lead to an increase in mosquitoes.

Jervis said the City will fog the streets if trap numbers are high enough, and homeowners can consider spraying.

He said spraying can be difficult though, as it would need to be applied often to be most effective.

“That’s what’s hard about mosquitoes,” Jervis said. “They’re flying around, so you can’t point and spray, you kind of have to mist and hopefully they run through it.”

Jervis said anytime things dry out, that will help reduce the mosquito population as well.

“Hopefully, we’ll get a little less conducive for mosquitoes to grow and breed,” he said.

FOX23 also asked him about cicadas, as some fear this year could be deafening due to two different types of periodical cicadas emerging at the same time in the Midwest for the first time in more than two centuries.

However, Jervis said we are not expected to see as much of that here in Tulsa as other states.

“The big broods that we’re hearing about in the Midwest, that’s kind of interesting,” Jervis said. “We have a little bit of that around our eastern border of Oklahoma. I haven’t heard any reports of those coming out, but they’re on their way.”

He expects most cicadas to emerge later this month and in June.

It’s still unknown just how many we will see this year.

Jervis said they have not had many reports so far.