April showers brought May flowers and lots of history too!  Brush up on your history trivia with these interesting dates in May history.

May 2, 2011, Osama bin Laden was killed by U.S. Special Operations Forces.

May 4, 1886, a confrontation between police and labor protesters would be called The Haymarket Square Riot. Seven policemen were killed and over 50 wounded.

May 4, 1970, National Guardsmen opened fire on a crowd of 1,000 students at Kent State University killing four. The students were protesting President Richard Nixon’s decision to invade Cambodia.

May 5, 1865, was declared Decoration Day by General John Logan. May 30th started the tradition of decorating soldiers’ graves from the Civil War with flowers. Congress moved Memorial Day to the last Monday in May in 1971.

May 5, 1961, Alan Shepard became the first American in space.

May 17, 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled on Brown v. Board of Education. It concluded that segregation of public schools “solely on the basis of race” denies black children “equal educational opportunity” even though “physical facilities and other ‘tangible’ factors may have been equal. Separate educational facilities are inherently unequal.”

May 18, 1980, Mount St. Helens volcano erupted.

Last Monday in May,  Memorial Day.

May 31, 1889, the South Fork Dam failed and over 2,200 people were killed in Johnstown Pennsylvania.

Around 50 or so years ago, in my carefree youth, I had a mosquito for a pet. One night after riding my bike through the fog of a mosquito truck, I checked on my pet and went to bed. I awoke the following morning to find that he chewed through the chain and got away.

This brings us to the current spring and the winter that never was. Usually, May is the official start of mosquito hunting season. This year the season has started a little earlier. Remember the good old days when we just had the mosquito bites, Malaria and encephalitis to worry about? Now we have West Nile and Zika!

The one thing that we all must remember is there is no magic bullet for controlling mosquitoes. The best battle plan is to eliminate the environment that mosquitoes need to live and breed. Stop the larva by having no standing water. I cannot emphasize the importance of keeping your gutters clean. Keep the grass cut short, beds maintained and don’t overwater your landscape. Do not forget to treat your bubblier and French drain lines along with rain barrels and saucers for the potted plants. You can treat these areas with products like Mosquito Bits or Mosquito Dunks. The active ingredient is BT (bacillus thuringiensis) with the subspecies israelensis, or just call it BTI.

Promote habitats for the purple martins, bats, and dragonflies. They don’t eat as much as you think but every little bit helps. Plant a variety of herbs including citronella and lemongrass, as most have a repellant effect. Change outside lighting from white to yellow light bulbs or lenses, as they tend not to attract these flying vampires. Don’t forget the citronella Tiki torches and candles. They have a small effect on mosquitoes but you will get that island feeling. Two of the relatively new kids on the block is the very effective Patio Egg.

Spartan Mosquito Eradicators are the most innovative mosquito control products to hit the market in a long time. They are sold in a two-pack that covers an acre. As always read and follow the label directions but here is the short course. Fill the eradicator to the proper level with warm water and place them in the shade no more than 180 feet apart. Because they attract mosquitoes, keep them away from the areas that you hang out in. Keep the water in the eradicator at the proper level and they will last about 90 days.

The use of sprays and granule repellents in the environment is an option. One of the best all-natural sprays is a cedar oil product called Yardsafe by the Cedarcide folks. Others include citronella, garlic and orange oil sprays. Synthetic sprays include permethrin, cypermethrin, and lambda-cyhalothrin (Cyonara). Granulated cedar and garlic work as repellents. Permethrin granules are used as broad-spectrum insecticides. The all-natural repellant sprays will last about a day but the granules will last substantially longer. Synthetics, both liquid and granulated will last from two days to a month. The length of effectiveness for all products will hinge on the weather.

The last resort is to hose yourself down with a repellant of some sort. Products that contain cedar and marigold oils are on the all-natural side. Synthetics include Deet, permethrin and believe or it not Avon’s Skin so Soft. For better or worse, products containing Deet are the most effective.