I just made that number up, but not the helpful garden tip!
Buy lots of Bounce Dryer Sheets.
The Garden Professors shared this nugget:
Entomologist Dr. Raymond Cloyd of Kansas State University and his group were intrigued by Master Gardener anecdotes of dryer sheets repelling mosquitoes, though no research had been done. Could your common Bounce sheet also repel other pests? And, to take it a step further, what, exactly, repels them? The answers are “yes” and “lots of volatile compounds.”
Their study [pdf file-Ilona’s note] was published last month in the journal HortScience. Honestly, I’ve never seen descriptors like “controls static cling” and “gives clothes a fresh scent” in a Horticulture journal. Hee! Plus the researchers made it clear this experiment specifically used Bounce Original Outdoor FreshTM. Still kind of humorous, but really good science and the part that’s usually overlooked in the translation to a News Story. Do NOT extrapolate results to include Bounce Spring Fresh, Fresh Linen, and certainly not Downy or Snuggle brands.
I might add that we use this tip around here for repelling rodents from taking up residence under the hot tub. Don’t want any wiring chewed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ // ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
© 2010 written for Ilona’s Garden Journal. Copyrights apply.
