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Homemade Pest Control Solutions for Garden Pests

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There are different kinds of insects and bugs that can destroy your precious garden. Some of these insects and bugs can even be hazardous to your family’s health. Whether you find mosquitoes and flies in your backyard, or leaf-eating caterpillar and aphids in your garden, pest infestation is always a nuisance. For this reason, a lot of homeowners are taking into consideration different pest control solutions to address the problem.

If you are bothered and alarmed by the presence of harmful insects and bugs in your home and garden, you probably have considered using chemical pesticides to immediately take care of the problem, but before you apply that chemical bug spray, you must first consider that chemical pesticide toxicity can endanger your and your family’s health. Long-term exposure to the toxicity of such pesticides can increase the risk of developing liver and nerve damage, reproductive disorders, and tumors. Fortunately, there are natural pest control solutions that you can take advantage of. Organic method of eliminating pest is an excellent alternative to poisonous pesticides because natural products are safe to use around people, pets, and plants.

Homemade Concoctions For Pests In The Garden

Natural pest control solutions are very beneficial for many homeowners since it is less expensive as compared to buying and applying chemical pesticides. It is also safer for your garden, family, pets, and the environment. To promote a greener environment at home that is free from harmful insects and bugs, you can consider making some of these homemade concoctions for the following insects:

Soft-bodied Insects: Mites, Aphids, Mealy bugs, and Earwigs

If you have these insects in your garden, you can drive them away by mixing one tablespoon of canola oil and a few drops of ivory soap into a quart of water. Mix them well and pour it into a spray bottle. Use the mixture on plants since the oil will smother the insects. Another natural pest control solution is to sprinkle diatomaceous earth over the plants and around the edges of your garden beds. The diatoms have particles that are very small and sharp, but it is only harmful to soft-bodied insects and small exoskeletons of insects. The insects won’t develop immunity to such natural pest control solution since it is not a chemical pesticide.

Slugs and Deer

To drive slugs and deer out of your garden using natural remedies, you can use coffee grounds. Coffee grounds add nitrogen to the soil; thus, it promotes the acidity for acid loving plants. You can make caffeine spray which consists of different natural herbs including: yarrow, thyme, lavender, tansy, pennyroyal, rue, catnip and Artemisia. Get a cup of the herbal mixture and mix it with two tablespoons of used coffee grounds and two cups of water. Marinate the mixture for at least a day before straining and pouring it into a spray bottle.

Grubs

For this type of insect, you can use the natural pest control known as milky spore. The granules of this pest control are spread on the soil which will then infect the grubs with a disease that will kill them. This natural pest control will only affect grubs; thus, it is safe for beneficial insects and pets.

Leaf-eating caterpillars

This type of insect can eat away your garden’s healthy leaves. You can easily remove caterpillars manually from your garden. You can pluck them straight off the vine and put them in another area of the yard- away from your garden. You can also eliminate them through insecticidal soap or caffeine spray. To make an insecticidal soap, you have to mix one tablespoon of biodegradable, plant-based liquid soap, and a quart of water. Pour the mixture into a spray bottle and spray insects and bugs as needed. The soap can lead to the dehydration and extermination of soft-bodied insects.

Before using any of the solutions, you must be aware that some of the natural pest control solutions mentioned above may also kill beneficial insects. For this reason, you have to use these homemade concoctions selectively, and only spray on infected plants.

Kris Lim is a writer for home and garden websites where she offers tips and advice on how to improve gardens. She also occasionally writes Rove Pest Control reviews for the professional pest control company.






My rose buds are covered in aphids! Ugh

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I was outside in my garden today, wandering around looking at the four Clematis that are currently blooming and checking to see if any of my roses or if the peonies had begun to bloom yet and I noticed that almost all of my rose plants had tons of aphids all clustered around the rose buds.

It’s been cooler than normal here in Toronto. They say our average temperature at this time of year is about 23 C (74 F), but it’s only been about 18 C (64 F) or cooler most of the month so far. I guess the aphids and slugs love these kind of temperatures, but so far it doesn’t seem like the Lady bugs do! I only saw on lonely Lady Bug feasting on aphids as I did my garden rounds.

Since the Lady Bugs aren’t going to eat all the aphids before they destroy my lovely roses I decided I’d have to go out there and fight them. So earlier this evening I went outside armed with a spray bottle full of water and a squirt of dish detergent and I sprayed all my rose plants and rose bugs with the mixture.

Die Aphids! Die!

I fully expect to go outside tomorrow and see dessicated aphid bodies stuck to my rose buds. Victory!

I’m glad it’s so easy to kill them!

As for my roses, so of the first flowers came out earlier this week. As usually Morden Sunrise was the first rose to bloom. It was quickly followed by Stanwell Perpetual and Charles Albanel. All of these rose are at the front of my house – surprisingly, since the majority of my roses are in the south facing back yard. You’d think the roses in the back would bloom first, but I guess not.

In the backyard, William Baffin has one rose open and so does Parade … all the rest of my many roses have buds that are in various stages – from just forming to just about to bloom. I’m sure that by the weekend most of my roses will have a few to many many blooms. It will be lovely.

Now we just need it to start getting warmer! Oh well … at least we don’t have to have the air-conditioning on so we’re saving money!

How’s your garden doing? Have you noticed a lot of aphids or other garden pests on your plants? How do you get rid or them.

I just remembered, we have one other major garden pest – the Lily Beetle. My lilies look awful this year. Their foliage is all raggy and they aren’t growing as well as they normally do. Anyone know of a non-toxic (no pesticide) way to get rid of lily beetles?

Insects on bearded iris leaves

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A visitor to As the garden grows told me that they’d seen some tiny red bugs on their bearded Iris leaves. Blasting the plant with water didn’t help because the bugs came back out again once the leaves dried off.

Spraying the plants with a blast of water was actually a good move and it can be helpful with many types of insect infestations. The insects that she saw were probably aphids. They love new growth on plants and you’ll often find them on tender young leaves or flower buds. They suck the plants juices and can get unsightly if they aren’t controlled.

Aphids breed quite quickly. If you have plants that are infested by aphids you should give them a blast of water daily. You might also add a drop or two of dishwashing liquid to a spray bottle and spray the areas of the plant that are heavily infested. The soap will smother the aphids.

Whatever you do you do not want to kill any ladybugs. Ladybugs love eating aphids and they are beneficial insects in your garden. So, if you use the soapy water method try to watch where you are spraying and avoid hitting any ladybugs.

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