Keep Pesky Mosquitoes At Bay When Camping With This Simple And Aromatic Trick
One thing that can quickly ruin the experience of grilling a delicious meal over a perfectly built campfire is a bunch of bloodthirsty mosquitoes. Not only can mosquitoes make the next day of your camping trip miserable by adding itchy welts all over your body, but they can also make it impossible to be in the moment and truly enjoy the evening by constantly buzzing around your head. While store-bought insect repellents are the most reliable way to repel mosquitoes, you may not want to apply any strong-smelling chemicals to your clothes and skin right before heading inside your tent or camper van and going to bed. So, in this situation, how can you repel the mosquitoes away without the unpleasant-smelling bug sprays? Put your campfire to good use and burn some sage.
Although sage is not scientifically proven to repel mosquitoes, we do know that it has some insect-repelling properties and, anecdotally, many believe that the smoke of dried sage is great at keeping biting insects away. This trick is said to work because campfire smoke is already a decent mosquito-repellent and the added sage helps infuse the air with an extra mosquito-deterring scent that buzzing bloodsuckers hate. Plus, burning sage smells amazing and can even add an extra layer of flavor to any food you are grilling over the fire.
How to use sage to keep mosquitoes away
There are two ways you can use sage in your campfire to help repel mosquitoes. If you have loose sage leaves, then it is best to simply toss a handful of sage directly onto the fire so that the herb burns down and slowly releases the aromatic smoke that sends mosquitoes on their way. Another option is to use sage bundles. These bundles are sometimes called smudge sticks and are used in spiritual practice to ward off negative energy. If you already have a sage bundle, then you can simply light the end of the bundle in the campfire and then set the burning sage on the edge of the fire pit.
However, before you get a bunch of sage to throw into your campfires, it's important to know that where you buy your sage matters. In fact, to keep up with the demand for sage, much of the white sage sold online and in big box stores was harvested illegally from public lands in California. To help protect the environment, it is important to always buy sage from reputable sellers. If you are unsure how to do this, you can always grow your own sage in your garden and, for now, add other natural scents that repel mosquitoes to your campfire like dried rosemary.