Lisa and I are adventurous sea kayakers. We venture into swamps and bogs that most others would bypass. Of course, such waterways are infiltrated with insects that most people have never seen. Around our country home, back in Ontario, we planted hundreds of marigolds and were “free” from the bug world (as apparently insects hate the scent of marigolds).
Since coming to the Yukon and dealing with the Whitehorse Feed Store for dog and bird feed, we discovered a spray, specifically for horses, that is 100 per cent marigold juice. We began to wipe this marigold juice all over our dog, and she was free of flying insects. We also discovered that when having this juice on our hands, we, too, were free from the annoying, biting insects. You can wipe this right over your face, with no harmful results, as it does not have any added chemicals. Actually, the Feed Store is the only place we’ve found in the Yukon that has marigold juice spray. It is operated by a plunger, so there is no need for extra chemicals to be hidden in the container.
The marigold has a beautiful aroma, and this was one of the first flowers we planted around our back yard this spring, especially bordering our deck. When kayaking, we actually spray some of the juice on the kayaks, and we remain free of these pesky bugs while others are swatting away. Some other sprays on the market do have harmful chemicals, so caution should be taken when using these questionable sprays on children.
