Natural Insects Repellent

Natural Insects Repellent – Herbs and Plants

How hateful it can be whenever those little pesky things come around intruding our lovely home sweet home. Let us just take a look at some wonderful herbs and plants that can help keep them at bay or at least see much less of them around.

Keep out:

Mosquitoes   – Plant some Rosemary around your garden. You might also like to crush the dried leaves, put it in an organza bag and hang it around your bedroom. If you are hardworking enough, try plant some Marigolds in your garden and the mosquitoes would jolly well shy away from your perimeter. In Asian countries, the Malays would plant lots of lemongrass, also known as citronella at their backyard to keep the mosquitoes away. The usage of Eucalyptus oil is kind of effective too but if you apply it too often, the mosquitoes tends to develop some type of resistance. They would still come hovering around you legs and bite you if you are well covered!

Ants   – Grow small pots of Mint or Lavender and decorate it around the house. Or you would rather crush the dried mint leaves and scattered around the interior of the house. Watch out for the wind if you contemplate to scatter it around the exterior of your house! One better solution is to place mint tea bags at the corners.   

Cockroaches   – If you have some pandan leaves (Pandanus) in your kitchen, the cockroaches will run away. Others have used the traditional method such as bay leaves as substitutes. You may also plant some catnip in pots to deter them. Get a real-tight rubbish chute if you live in an apartment. Their young often climb out from there. 

Flies  – Place potted basil plants in infested areas and hang whole or ground cloves in a small muslin teabag, that would be enough to keep them out of your home. Make sure that the hygiene of your home is not neglected. They can also breed at the floor trap in the toilets. Never leave food remains in your kitchen for too long. 

Bees   – They hate strong smelling Mint and Basil. Never plant Geranium, the bees like them!

Lizards   – If you would hang some dried lemongrass stems in an organza bag, leave it where the lizards always come in, like at the window and door knob, you will see much less of them. Others have tried using vinegar to wipe around their window frames. You can try that too.

Snakes   – Try to plant lots of lemongrass on the soil instead of pots to keep them away. Snakes hate the smell of mint too, so plant lots of mint on the ground. They also hate cinnamon. However, the best way to keep snakes away is through preventive measure. Keep shrubs and bushes trimmed up off the ground, keep grasses mowed and make sure any compost or woodpiles are kept at a safe distance. Snakes like cover in which to move around and they feed on insects and rodents. Keeping these at bay and there is no interest for the snakes to come here.