Pests always find a way of entering your home despite your best efforts to repel them. Some pest types are attracted to the plants and trees in your garden, while others sneak into the yard to search for food scraps and munch on your fruit-bearing plant life.
To keep your garden 100% pest-free, you’ll need to slip a few tricks up your sleeve and employ them accordingly. By devising a do-it-yourself pest control strategy, you can avert household pests before they become a nuisance.
If you’re looking to keep outdoor pests at bay, be sure to review this list of easy-to-implement DIY solutions, all with proven results. That said, you can’t always resolve infestations with a DIY approach. If the infestation has progressed beyond a certain level, don’t be afraid to request an expert opinion if things get out of hand.
For optimal results, look for a reputable pest control provider like Joshua’s Pest Control (https://joshuaspestcontrol.com/) that offers organic pest control options safe to use around the plants in your garden. If the infestation is in its early stages, all-natural, DIY strategies will suffice.
Borax with sugar
Take two tablespoons of borax powder, and mix it with five tablespoons of sugar. Add a cup of warm water to the mixture. Put the solution in a sprayer, and spray it on the entry points used by ant colonies nearby. The spray irritates these household pests, forcing them to vacate the premises and return to their nest. If the ants are still infesting your living spaces after spraying, recruit a team of experts from Joshua’s Pest Control to help destroy their colony.
Garlic spray
Toss about five garlic cloves into a blender, and add several mint leaves. Once combined, blend these ingredients until they form a uniform mixture. Then, add a spoonful of cayenne pepper and an ounce of dishwashing soap. Boil the concoction, and leave it to cool overnight. Strain it in the morning, and put the liquid in a one-quart spray bottle. Spray the mixture on all the plants in your garden and yard. The pungent garlic smell repels home invaders, such as mites and aphids.
Oil repellent
Mix lavender, rosemary, and eucalyptus oil, and put the mixture in a one-quart sprayer. Spray the solution on both plants and outdoor furniture located in your yard and garden. The oil acts as a repellent for mites and will stop them from attacking your plants.
If you own any chicken or any other bird species, fight fleas and lice by spraying them with a mixture of lemongrass and basil. The oil kills the insects by forming a coat that blocks the pores on their skin.
Pepper spray
Take three tablespoons of cayenne pepper, or chop ten fresh peppers. Then, put the cayenne pepper powder or fresh peppers into a gallon of water. Simmer the liquid for about 15 minutes, and leave it to cool for a day. Then, add an ounce of dishwashing soap so that the solution will adhere to plants. Spray the solution to ward off just about every pest known to attack plants. As an added benefit, pepper spray also removes the fungus that forms powdery mildew on plants.
Vinegar fly trap
Get a wine bottle or any other bottle with a thin neck and round bottom. Then purchase an apple or pluck one from your backyard apple tree. As a next step, fill the bottle halfway with vinegar or apple cider and add a few pieces of the apple.
The mixture attracts all the pesky fruit flies that irritate you by buzzing near your ears. Once they enter the bottle, these household pests are trapped and eradicated by the vinegar solution.
Soap spray
While soap is often mixed with other DIY pesticides to improve adhesion to plants, soap is a potent pesticide on its own. Take two spoons of any detergent or an ounce of liquid dishwashing soap, and mix it with a quart of water. Put the solution in a sprayer, and spray it on the surface of your plant’s leaves and stems. Focus on the plants in your yard and garden most susceptible to infestation.
The detergent blocks an insects’ pores, killing some and repelling others. Soap spray is effective on beetles, mites, whiteflies, and aphids. Note that soap spray is best suited to inedible plants such as flowers, trees, and shrubs, as the detergent’s chemicals can render your garden’s tomatoes inedible.
Neem oil
Mix two tablespoons of neem oil with a tablespoon of dishwashing soap. Add the mixture to a sprayer containing one quart of water, and mix thoroughly. Spray the solution on all plants in your yard and garden.
Neem oil is a potent natural insecticide that destroys bugs in all stages of their lifecycle. It kills insects by disrupting their hormonal balance and repelling them with its offensive smell. Neem oil is popular with organic gardeners because it’s biodegradable and harmless to fish and other wildlife.
The DIY mix
If all of the above DIY pesticides fail, try mixing garlic with onions, pepper, and soap. Take a whole bulb of garlic, and peel the cloves. Blend the cloves with a bulb of onion in a food processor. Remove the mixture, and add a tablespoon of cayenne pepper. Leave the solution for an hour, strain, then add a tablespoon of dishwashing soap. As a final step, add a quart of water and spray the solution on the plants’ surface to repel even the most stubborn pests.
Conclusion
Don’t surrender in your battle against household pests. If your DIY pest control methods are, ultimately, unsuccessful, call the professionals who can mitigate damage and prevent costly infestations.
