Bats to the Rescue!
We have a global health crisis: Mosquitos cause more sickness and death in people and animals than any other insect on the planet.
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The good news: Kentucky has some of the world's best mosquito eliminators: bats
​The bad news: tragically, Kentucky's bats are threatened and endangered.
To help bats help you, your pets, and livestock by keeping mosquitoes under control, consider including bats in your gardening plans by creating a bat-friendly environment on your property and planting trees (we can help you with that!).​
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You can also plant night-blooming flowers (we can help you with that, too) which will attract moths, which then attract bats.
"Bats eat night-flying insects, so you’ll want to plant flowers that either stay open through the night or bloom through the evening."
Bat Conservation International
While native plant species are ideal, there are non-native, cultivars, and tropical plant species that we can get for you, which can also be beneficial: Night-blooming Jasmine, Night-blooming Cereus, Moon Flower, Angel Trumpet, Four O'Clocks, Tuberose, Nicotiana, Stock, Yucca, Primrose, and others.
You can also install a bat house in your yard. Both are highly effective, organic ways to control mosquitos. Encourage others in your neighborhood to do the same. Do your homework to make certain you place your bat house properly to attract bats to your yard. ​
Use native plants that match your region and site conditions, as they have evolved to attract native insects.
Bat Conservation International
​Dragonflies, some bird species, frogs, fish, spiders, and other creatures also contribute to keeping mosquitoes under control, so install plenty of native plants (we'll help you with that, as well) to create natural habitat for these good guys, so whatever you do, don't use pesticides outdoors!​
Some people have success deterring mosquitoes with scented Geraniums (we'll also help you with that), but they are only effective in a radius of a few feet of the plants, and they they won't do anything to actually eliminate the mosquitoes.​​
"Trees are beneficial in so many ways. They don’t close their flowers at night and they are host plants to many kinds of native insects. Added plus, trees create roosting options for our solitary tree bats too!"
Bat Conservation International
According to the University of Kentucky there are 60 different species of mosquitoes in Kentucky