Gardening in summer can be tough enough without having to deal with annoying insects, like mosquitoes.

While sitting on the patio one recent evening , I mark a horde of dragonflies swooping and dance about 15 foot above my head . I was enjoy this beautiful concert dance of refined insects when I pop to inquire what those dragonflies were after .

Then it hit me : they were chasing and catch the mosquito that were n’t bugging me .

It was the first clock time I used theThermacell Mosquito Repellentthe society sent me to review . Unlike mosquito repellents you have to spray on or candles you have to light with a match , Thermacell is an area repellent . The humble equipment uses a butane magazine to heat up a repellant pad and silently resign an odorless repellent that drive mosquito — fateful flies and other fast insect — off .

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The repellant is a synthetic transcript of the natural repellent discover in chrysanthemum flowers and it really knead . Once the Thermacell was snap on , it created a nice 15 - substructure by 15 - foot invisible bubble of protection around me .

It took about 10 minutes for Thermacell to warm up up and cater tribute without any unfastened fire or raging wax . Just outside the protective zone , the dragonflies were enjoying a yummy mosquito buffet .

The company says Thermacell provides up to 50 fourth dimension more protection than citronella taper . But what sold me on this production is that it ’s been test by the Environmental Protection Agency for safety and effectiveness . Plus , the U.S. Army uses it in Iraq , Kuwait and Afghanistan .

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Each modest blue flatness lasts up to four hr and turns white as a signal that it ’s clip to exchange it . The company illustration tell me the product is most effective when the altitude is lower that 5,000 foot because the power source for the distasteful subprogram is a butane cartridge . However , it act just fine in my mile - high-pitched Denver backyard .

The Thermacell is small enough to hold with me into the garden and place on a nearby flat surface while I ’m garden . It ’s a tremendous alternative to spraying myself with sticky mosquito repellant so I can garden in peace . Of course , it would be effective while grill on the patio , host backyard barbeques , or taking it along while bivouacking .

I ’ve written about way tokeep insect pestilence out of the veg garden , but that ’s before I essay this ingenious area repellent . Now I can add Thermacell to that list .

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( Thermacell Mosquito Repellent sent a free gimmick for me to retrospect ; opinions are always my own . )

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The Thermacell area mosquito repellent provides a 15-foot by 15-foot bubble of protection while working in the garden or sitting on the patio.Photo/Illustration: Jodi Torpey

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