Bugs begone

Besides Lemongrass being one of our favorite restaurants in Annapolis (serving delish Thai food in a cozy setting - we can't go there without devouring their crispy string beans appetizer), it turns out that lemongrass has alternate uses other than being a place to stuff our faces.

Now that summer has fully arrived, so too have the bugs. I know my legs are sporting a few bites from eating outside the past few days, so that means it's time to break out the bug repellents.

The ever-helpful boyfriend, B, was just telling me about how bad DEET is, so he suggested instead using lemongrass. Turns out you can plant it in your garden (ah, if only we had one), wear the oil on your skin (in a diluted form) or even burn lemongrass candles (they smell much better than citronella). The candle above is from a company called Hillhouse Naturals, and they sell two kinds of mosquito-repellent candles: eucalyptus, lemongrass & mint leaf or wild mint, juniper & tea tree. I like the simple, non-wasteful packaging and that the candles are made from all-natural soy wax. They're citronella and DEET free too and when the candle's burned down, you can reuse the concrete holder as a planter.



Also check out this link to a recent post from Danny Seo, environmental expert and "co-conspirator" of Method (a fab green product line), who recommends crumpling dried rosemary in old newspaper and throwing it on your charcoals next time you grill. The newspaper will help the charcoal ignite and the rosemary will emit essential oils that will not only flavor the food, but keep mosquitoes away too. Great tip for summertime grilling in a green way and keeping the bugs away.

All of these ideas sound much more appealing than sporting nasty red bumps all over or even reeking of DEET (marker high, anyone?).