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...I didn't know about the gnats. Use to the skeeters here in Fl. .......... interested to see what else is posted to keep the gnats at bay...........
Compared to the FL bugs and critters, Donna, a small period of time with gnats here is simply a reason for some people to complain about a bug. I think I felt a gnat the other night while we were out on the lawn talking with a neighbors out for a twilight walk. It sure as heck wasn't a tree frog, flying palmetto, giant skeeters, no see-ums, fire ants, those tiny spiders that hang around window sills and crawl up your window screens! And I've never had a gator in my driveway greet me at my front door here. (Disclaimer: I don't go hiking in the forest and I don't wear perfume.)
Compared to many places we are very lucky. Lived in Louisiana many years ago OMG it was unbelievable! But..... the gnats up here are annoying when you are out working. They are usually in clusters of what seems like millions all vying for a chance to get in your eyes, ears, nose, down your throat if you dare open your mouth. Not much deters them. But weirdly you can move 10 feet in another direction and there are none, they don't seem to follow you like some insects. With all our rain 6.58 " on our gauge for May it is a bumper year for flying, crawling critters of all types
Thanks for the dryer sheet suggestion - I'm going to try that tomorrow when I take my hound out walking. Last year we had an infestation in the house - turns out the freezer in the garage, which we had emptied and turned power off to, was not empty at all. Very gross, not to mention very gross. We had bites for days and days, until we figured out the source.
The way gnats do the kamikazee dive bomb thing into one's eyeballs makes me of the opinion that they are a truly evil creation. What works for me is to wear wrap-around sunglasses (think Neo in the Matrix), and a hat. They still hang around, but don't attack the eyes. Sunglasses by themselves are sufficient. This area, btw, is worse than some other areas I've been. Here it is multiple dive bomb attacks at once.
You can keep insects off of you by wearing a Bug Baffler. Still, even with the bugs kept away from your face the buzz can be annoying. A little DEET, Citronella, or whatever works for you sprayed onto the hood will take care of that. The BB isn't for everyone, but you won't be bitten - with how bad the springtime black flies are up here, we've chosen to use it when working in the garden.
Gnats, gnats, everywhere, and all the boards did shrink...
Okay. I figured it out, thanks to an earlier poster who mentioned dryer sheets.
I now safety pin a dryer sheet to my tee shirt when I'm out walking my hound. I kind of gather it in the middle and pin it close to my face, so I pretty much look like an IHOP waitress, or something as silly, but I don't give a fig - it works! Besides, my neighbors already have labeled me an 'artistic' type.
Take it off when I'm done and reuse again the next day. Try it - it really works!
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Gnats drive me Nuts!
