Amateur Gardening – 24 August 2019

42 AMATEUR GARDENING24 AUGUST 2019

W

hat’snottolikeaboutthe
gardenin summer?Biting
orstinginginsects,and
sunburn!It’seasytoforget
whenyou’reat home,ratherthanon
somescorchingbeachontheCosta
Brava,thattoomuchsuncanburn
unprotectedskin– orworse.If youdon’t
usuallyspendmuchtimeoutdoors,
suddenexposureof face,neckand
handstostrongsunshinecaneasily
burn your skin after a couple of hours.

Qualitysunlotionis important
Seasonedgardenersoftenthinkthey’re
usedtothesun,sothey’reimmune,but
thetemptationtowearshorttrousers
andshort-sleevedoropen-neckedshirts
exposessensitiveskin.Soit makes
senseforeveryonewhois goingtobe
workingoutdoorsfora coupleof hours
ormoretoslosha good-quality,high-
factorsun-tanlotion(a minimumof factor
30)onallexposedskin.Thiswon’tstop
youfromtanning,butit willreducethe
likelihoodof burning,andtheriskof
melanoma– a typeof skincancer
causedbysunshine.Testsof sun-tan
lotionshavesuggestedthatyouget
whatyoupayfor,sobuyingthecheapest
couldbefalseeconomy.Lotionshould
beappliedgenerously,and reapplied
every couple of hours.

Remembertocreateshade
Abroad-brimmedhat,onewiththebrim
goingallthewayaround,is alsohelpful,
reducingeyestrainandprotectingthe
face,neckandearsfromsunshine.A
pairof sunglasseswillalsohelpto
reduceeyestrainandcutyourriskof
gettingcataracts.It’sjustasimportantto
protectyourskinwhenyou’rerelaxing,
andherea sunumbrellawillhelp.
Whetheryou’reeatingat thegarden
table or slumped in a sun lounger, a sun

Insect bite & sunburn protection

Best techniques to getthe job right with Tim Rumball

How to use tools

brollyofferswelcomeshade(andmakes

readingmucheasier).Chooseonethat’s

generouslyproportioned,witha strong,

heavybasetostopthewindblowingit

over.In thelongerterm,plantanarea

withtreesorshrubsto provide

shade in summer.

Insectrepellents

Onceyou’vestopped

thesunfromcausing

trouble,youalsoneed

todiscouragebiting

andstinginginsects.

Combinedsunlotion

andinsectrepellentsare

offeredbya widerange

of suppliers,butexpert

opinionfromtheSkin

CancerFoundationis that

suchproductsareless

efficientthanusingtwo

separateproductsapplied

accordingtomanufacturers’

instructions.Susceptibilityto

insectbitesandstingsis veryvariable–

somepeoplehardlyevergetbitten

whileothersgeteatenalive!Andthose

thataresusceptibleallhavetheir

favouriteinsectrepellent.DEETis the

mostcommon,andsaidtobethemost

effective.You’llfindit in Lifesystems

ExpeditionPlusInsectRepellent(£7.99

for100mllifesystems.co.uk),andBuzz

Off(£5.99for100mlsuperdrug.com).

Apply DEET every two to six hours,

Biting insects and sun can spoilthefunif you’renot careful, saysTim Rumball

dependingonstrength, but avoid using

it on your face.

Non-DEETrepellents

Incognitoanti-mosquitosprayfrom

nd& Barrettstores(£9.99

100mlhollandandbarrett.

om)containsnoDEETand

sesorganicoilsandextracts

wardoffinsects.Citronella

andlescontainplant-based

tronellaoil.It releasesa

apourwhenburnedthatcan

elptokeepflyinginsects

way– especiallyusefulat

ghtasthecandledoubles

s a light.Citronellacandles

rewidelyavailablefrom

ardencentresandDIY

tores,butthesmellis not

o everyone’s taste.

Hi-techsolution

helatesthi-techsolutionto

problemof bitinginsectsis

theThermacellHaloMiniPatioShield

(£35lakeland.co.uk).Thisdeviceuses

butanegastoheata matimpregnated

withallethrin,a naturalrepellentfoundin

chrysanthemumplants.It is claimedto

protectanareaof 15ft(5m)aroundthe

device.Mosquitoesbreedin standing

water,includingpondsandwaterbutts.

Keepingfishin a pondwillreduce

mosquitolarvae,andcoveringwater

butts tightly will keep them larvae-free.

Youmustremembertoprotectyourselffromthesun.

It’seasytothinkyou’lljustbeoutsidefora few

minutes, but it’s easy to lose track of time

MywifeswearsbyEuraxHcforinsect

bites. It is only available from pharmacies

IfDEETinsect-repellent

productsdon’tsuit

you,tryHolland&

Barrett’s Incognito

TheThermacell

HaloMiniPatio

Shieldusesplant

oilstokeep

insects at bay