A Wedding In The Great Outdoors Without Wildlife And Pests

In a previous post, we highlighted many ways of helping to keep pests and wildlife away from your big day, especially if your ceremony and/or reception will be held outdoors. Keeping these types of problematic pests at bay, including birds, insects and other nuisance animals can be challenging at best, especially in your own backyard.

But what if you’re holding your nuptials and reception in a more non-traditional location, away from the safety, security and comfort of a fenced property and other more friendlier environments? Beach weddings are still all the rage and a trip into the great outdoors for a ceremony and reception are becoming more popular with those of us who want our nuptials to be more natural.

Just because we’re going to be away from the bright lights of the city, having a ceremony outside a church or enjoying an after party at a reception hall without walls, doesn’t mean we can’t have a beautiful, pest-free environment for ourselves, our loved ones, friends and family. Depending upon your outdoor arena, here’s some tips on keeping this event friendly with Mother Nature without all of HER friends and family showing up to crash our party.

Keeping Pests Away From Food And Drink

Ants, flies, bees, wasps and other nuisance insects can wreak havoc around the ceremony and can continue with the preparation and distribution of food and beverages during an outdoor party regardless of the location. But here’s some other tips for keeping them further away outside:

• If you have the option of electricity or generators outdoors either after party or during the ceremony itself, consider bringing (or renting fans) that can gently blow flying pests into the breeze and away from your event and your guests.

• Flower selection can play an important role if you chose those scented with odors that are pleasant for humans, but despised by pests like lavender, marigolds and peppermint.

• Consider adding some wedding favors that may include small, travel-size accoutrements like insect repellent and sunscreen.

• Dryer sheets, taped underneath chairs or tables have been proven very effective for driving away insects and giving the immediate area a refreshing scent at the same time.

Even if your ceremony or after party is held outdoors, these powerful scents and repellents can offer a short term solution to keep everyone comfortable and happy during a long term event.

Unfamiliar Territory

If you’re planning on a location that’s a little less than conventional, somewhere in the great outdoors, be sure to do your homework on critters that are more familiar with this type of terrain. Do some research on animals that frequent these types of territories, when they migrate, times when they’re more active, places they frequent and those they ignore.

Consult local weather channels and other trusted authorities about patterns when it comes to storms, floods and other calamities that could be possible during the time of your event. While looking at these predictions long-term might not be 100% effective, it will still give you an idea of the type of temperatures and other atmospheric conditions you could be encountering.

Don’t let your big day be spoiled, or even slightly compromised by unwelcome guests in the form of pesky intruders. With a little bit of planning and forethought, you can have an amazing ceremony and party, even if it happens outside. And … CONGRATULATIONS!