Natural Pest Control

IS NATURAL PEST CONTROL THE WAY TO GO?

Wherever I can, I use organic or natural ways to control pests because I value my health. For years, people have been using chemicals to control pests in homes and gardens.

The unfortunate part of using chemicals is that the chemical kills not only the pests but it also POLLUTES our air. Then we humans breathe in those chemicals through our skin and inhale it into our lungs thus ending up with a number of diseases and/or other illnesses. In addition, spraying chemicals outside in our garden not only kills the pests, the chemicals also kill the good bugs which keep our soil alive.

Perhaps natural and organic pest control is THE WAY to go. After all, how did the pioneers and other people in the pre-chemical days handle these critters? Here are a few ideas where you can introduce natural pest control methods.

Natural Pest Control For Mosquitoes:

If one is not careful, one can inadvertently be creating breeding places for mosquitoes. Mosquitoes are not only bothersome but they also harbor diseases that can kill you if left untreated or if you have a weak immune system. Therefore, natural pest control practices are necessary to repel these mosquitoes both on your person as well as to keep them from breeding near your home.

For breeding problems, mix some dishwashing detergent (one teaspoon or two) into a gallon of water and then pour it into any open pools of water in your yard such as old tires or buckets or empty flower pots.

Note: I have often used Murphy’s Pure Vegetable Oil soap ( a household cleaner especially good for wood cleaning) as one of the ingredients when preparing a concoction to protect my fruit trees from bugs. Murphy’s Oil soap is very environmentally friendly.

Another idea is to pour a little vinegar into the water, especially if you plan to use the water to water your plants. I mention vinegar because it is more environment friendly than the chemicals in your dish soap. These methods will kill any mosquito larvae and keep them from turning into the biting critters everyone hates.

However, if you are using barrels to gather rain water, it is best to get those with a cover which can be opened when needed. The cover further deters mosquitoes from using your barrel of water as a breeding ground.

To keep mosquitoes from biting, rub a fresh clothes dryer sheet on exposed skin and even tuck a few in your belt loops. You can also apply mouthwash directly onto your skin before you head outdoors. Mosquitoes hate the smell of the dryer sheets and mouthwash because of the ingredients in them.

Natural Pest Control For Ants

If you have been invaded by ants, you know that ants are perhaps one of the most aggravating pests on the planet and are definitely a thorn in every homeowner’s side. Ants get into everything and it seems as soon as you kill one mound or bar one entrance into your home, another access point or mound crops up — and this is while using pesticides! With natural pest control for ants, there are a number of simple solutions that can really make those ants sick so they will die.

Baking soda is a versatile substance which is also very environment friendly, but no one really thinks about it in terms of natural pest control for ants. However, baking soda is poisonous to ants, so dusting soda in your garden and trouble areas of your home like the cracks and crevices will go a long way.

Salt is another natural pest control ingredient that ants don’t like, and you can easily spread it around mounds and anywhere that ants may be entering your home. One word of caution: Too much salt will kill your plants, so you may want to used salt on walk ways or or other areas where you have no vegetation growing.

Finally cream of wheat type cereal or instant rice sprinkled around ant mounds will attract ants and they will eat it, causing their bellies to bloat and explode.

Natural Pest Control For Roaches

One of the most effective natural pest control options for eradicating roaches could already be in your cupboard. The scent of soap repels roaches and when you put soap on these disgusting creatures, they die.

Soaps with peppermint oil are the most effective natural pest control for roaches, especially the granddaddy cockroach. Just mix two or three capfuls of liquid peppermint soap into a quart of warm water, mix, and then spray on the roaches and along their normal traveling paths.

I hope you have found one or more of these natural pest control options to be of value.