Orange Peel & Pepper? Tell Ants To Move On

Did you know that ants hate orange peel? They are also not that keen on red peppers. There are many simply methods you can use at home to deter, and even get rid of pests in your home and garden, simply by using regular household items. The best part is, it’s generally safe and really environmental friendly.

Citrus Deters Ants

According to HomeTipsWorld and their article here, ants really do hate orange peel.

 

Source: http://www.hometipsworld.com/ants-hate-orange-peel.html

Specifically:

Did you know, mix orange peels and water, spray the solution outside your home, will prevent ants from coming in.

Similar thing goes for using orange peels to keep flies away. Hang up orange peel around your patio and it will keep them away. Find more natural ant remedies in this read about how to get rid of ants.

So it got us thinking, what out home remedies and in particular those that involve legumes or citrus can deter common home and garden pets.

Red Peppers

These days you can find all manner of red pepper sprays in hardware and garden stores, and the reason is becuase they work so well. But in reality, you don’t need to purchase the expensive products. For years, those in the know, have made their own red pepper sprays.

Homeguides.sfgate.com says:

While bewildering numbers of organic products and home remedies exist to repel garden predators, a few “old reliables” are continually mentioned as insect and animal pests deterrents. Among them are red pepper sprays and powders, made from extracts of the hotter members of the Capsaicin family. Organic sprays and powders that use red pepper extracts are available at garden centers, but simple home methods may also deliver the power of red pepper to your organic garden.”

They even provide a recipe:

Combine 1/2 cup chopped red chili peppers with 2 cups water in a blender. Process briefly, then strain the plant matter from the liquid. Pour the red pepper liquid into a spray bottle. Some gardeners add 1 tbsp. liquid dish soap to help the spray adhere to the plants. Along with this basic red pepper repellent, the Rodale encyclopedia recommends a combination red pepper-garlic spray, in which several cloves of garlic are added to the blender along with the red peppers and water. If you are dusting the soil to deter crawling pests, look for red pepper in the spice aisle of your grocery store. It may also be labeled as cayenne pepper or chili powder.

 

Garlic

Now this is an oldie, but a goodie. Most of us have garlic in our home, and also soap. As it turns out, if you add these two together with a bit of vegetable oil, you’ve got a knock out brew. An article by GardenKnowHow.com had some handy recipes:

  • 1 head of garlic
  • 1 tablespoon dish soap (Note: do not use a dish soap that contains bleach)
  • 2 tablespoons mineral or vegetable oil
  • 2 cups water
  • Peel the garlic cloves and puree the cloves along with the oil and water. Allow to sit over night and then strain the mixture. Add the soap and mix toughly. Pour into a spray bottle and use on pest infected plants.

Another interesting recipe, this time with baking soda:

  • 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
  • 2 tablespoons baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon dish soap or Murphy Oil (Note: do not use a dish soap that contains bleach)
  • 2 quart of water

Combine ingredients and pour into a spray bottle. Use this organic bug spray for plants on your affected plants.

Botanical Pesticides

Both orange oil and neem oil have historically proven to be effective for controlling a wide range of pests both in the home and garden. Both have different methods of dealing with them. Orange oil will actually eradicate many pests on contact, where as neem oil requires the pest to ingest the infected wood to get results.

Video On How To Make Your Own Neem Oil

 

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