The best/first line of defense against ticks is a weedeater & lawn mower.
A tick likes tall vegetation so it can climb up and wait for a warm blooded
animal to brush by so it can climb on.
I live in an area in Ky that is always full of ticks (at least 4 different
kinds) and I spend 80% of my time out doors. I remove ticks from myself
almost daily. If i stay in the short grass, I have no problem.  If I am going
into the woods or tall grass, I use Rainbow Jungle Formula
Repellant(N,N-diethyl-m-toluamide / N-Octylbicycloheptene dicarnboximide). I
works and I cannot see any difference in the bee's behavior.  I use it only
below the knees.
Lyme disease must not be prevalent here for I know of no cases in this area,
ever in 30 years of working on phone lines.
Just my opinion,
Richard