B.C. community turns to the power of garlic to fight pesky mosquitoes

TAYLOR, B.C. — Folklore says a bulb of garlic will repel a vampire, but a northwestern B.C. community believes the pungent vegetable is the answer to fighting a smaller, but equally blood-thirsty pest.

The District of Taylor has approved a pilot project to apply an environmentally friendly but potent garlic solution to several areas around town in hopes of wiping out mosquitoes.

The solution is 99 per cent garlic and Taylor councillors have been assured it can kill mosquito larvae while the leftover sulphers are undetectable by humans but deter adult mosquitoes for weeks.

Several baseball diamonds in Taylor will be sprayed first, and the concoction will also be applied around the downtown core.

Based on costs and results, Taylor council intends to expand the pilot project in 2017.

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Taylor joins a handful of Canadian communities, including Leduc, Alta., and Huntsville, Ont., in using garlic to eradicate pests, with Huntsville using the potion to control black flies in advance of the 2010 G8 meeting. (MooseFM)

The Canadian Press