Unwanted pesky critters and pests can put a damper on the joy you get from your home and garden. Try combining some of your household products and get your own homemade pest solution. Check out the ideas and helpful homemade remedies below, to keep your house and garden free of unwanted guests.
1. Garlic-Mint Insect Spray
For outdoor pest-control, try cooking up this Hometalker's mixture of Garlic-Mint spray. Just take some mint leaves and garlic cloves and blend them in a food processor, then add a bit of cayenne pepper and a drop of dishwashing liquid. Bring the whole concoction to a boil and let sit overnight. Strain it into a spray bottle and voila! - keep your greens growing strong and pest free!
DIY Organic Insect Spray via Hometalker An Oregon Cottage
2. Coffee grounds
Critters and pests don't love your coffee like you do -- in fact, they hate it. For ants, coffee grounds are fatal. Try getting rid of bugs by utilizing recycled coffee grounds around your home in the area from which you think the bugs are emerging.
Deal With Ants in Your House via Hometalker Home Spot HQ
3. Borax and Sugar Ant Killer
Another trick for dealing with ants is this Hometalk-favorite, Borax and sugar trick. This mixture, placed right in the line of the ants' march, will turn your pest problem into a veritable picnic. Just try this solution of 1/2 cup sugar, 1 cup very warm water and 2 tablespoons Borax.
Homemade Ant Bait via Hometalker Clover and Thyme
4. Dust Mite Oil Repellent
For your own dust mite repellent spray, try mixing either Clove, Eucalyptus, Lavender, Peppermint or Rosemary oil into a spray bottle of water and use it to mist your bed lightly. Allow the spray to air dry. Mites detest these scents and will stay away from them. For additional pest control, try a mixture of Basil and Lemongrass to not only repel dust mites, but also fleas and lice.
Dust Mite Remedies for the Home via Hometalker Pretty Handy Girl
5. Hot Pepper Spray
For a hotter kind of pest control in the garden, try mixing 1 gallon of water and 3 tablespoons of hot pepper flakes or 10 peppers chopped up finely if you're using fresh peppers (cayenne works the best but other varieties work as well). Simmer ingredients in a pan for 15 minutes and then let it sit for 24 hours before straining. Add a couple drops of dish soap to help the solution adhere to your plants.
Battle Pests With Hot Pepper via Hometalker Old World Garden Farms
6. Apple Cider Vinegar Fruit Fly Trap
For this fruit fly trap, you will need a bottle or other kind of container with a shaker or funnel shaped top, so that flies can get in but not out. Fill the bottom of the bottle with apple cider vinegar or vinegar and chopped apple pieces and get rid of that buzzing in your ear.
Shaker Bottle Fruit Fly Trap via Hometalker Carolyn's Homework
7. Egg Deer Repellent
For a clever way to keep deer like the one below out of your garden, try using this recipe for homemade egg spray: Mix a solution of 20% fresh eggs and 80% water in a blender and apply with a spray bottle to your plants and the leaves of your trees. You may need to clean the tip a few times during application because the egg mixture can clog the sprayer.
Deer "Trimming" a Tree via Hometalker Teri
8. Bananas and Tin Foil
To rid your garden of aphids, place chopped up banana peel under the soil line around the stems of your plants. This deters the nasty critters and adds some nutrients to the soil. As an additional trick, to chase aphids from the underside of leaves, place foil around the base of your plant. The light from the sun will reflect off of the foil and onto the underside of the leaves. Be careful though -- too much light might scorch the plant.
Control Aphids in Vegetable Garden via Hometalker Clover and Thyme
It's important to feel comfortable in your home and not feel invaded by outside pests. Try the tricks above to ensure your ease, or check out Hometalk's pest control topic page for more ideas and hacks to get rid of unwanted visitors.