Are there any good organic pest repellents?

Question

I hate using pesticides.

Answer 1

What type of pests?  Bay leaf oil with water (2-1 ratio) is good to be rid of ants, while salt on the and hills and around the house repels them.  Eucalyptus oil is great to help rid you of fleas and mosquitoes.  These have worked for me.  Others may have other ideas too.  If you use the oils get the pure essential oils, not those that are just a percentage, or that contain alcohol.

Answer 2

there is something all natural called diatanious(misp?) earth sold in alot of health coops great for flea control...since ya did not say what kinda pest, I  am offering a couple of home remedies:...some from a herbal book and some of my own...

If you plant garlic with tomatoes, it will keep away red spider mites.. If you plant garlic around fruit trees, it will repel borers. Spray garlic pesticide on sweet potatoes to repel rabbits.Spray ponds with garlic-based oil to kill mosquitoes

Spider mites steer clear of oil of geranium. Plant it near grapes and corn to repel cabbage worm too

Lavender helps deter mice, ticks and moths. on the other hand, it attracts butterflies.

Mints are great for  fleas, ants, mice and cabbage butterfly. Don't plant it near parsley.

Tansy really works to repel ants, flies, fleas and moths, especially good near fruit trees. You can crush the leaves and rub it on an animal’s fur to repel fleas.

I hope this helps a bit....blessed be

Answer 3

one way to combat bad pests is with good bugs like ladybugs and preying mantis (can be found at nurseries and home depot, lowes).  i usually buy a bag of ladybugs and they have a Field day eating up aphids :)

you can have plants that are repellents like lemongrass, marigolds, etc (great for gardens)

Neem oil (all natural) is also great for repelling and killing pests like spider mites, whiteflies, japanese beetles, spiders, and aphids (can purchase at nurseries, home depot/lowes).

lastly you can always spray plants that are strong enough to handle it with a strong stream of water to knock off any mites, spiders, pests whenever you water your plants.  and (this maybe off the wall) but you can always take a hand held vaccuum to strong plants and suck up bugs that like to hang out in groups (like whiteflies, aphids, etc).

hope that helps :) and remember the stronger your plant, the better it can handle a few pests.  good luck!

Answer 4

Believe it or not a strong coffee kils most insects on out side plants. The caffiene messes with their reproductive cycle and they just sort of dissappear. Also Citronella works on flying insects that will bite you, as will Neem, Tea tree oil, and Garlic if you can stand the odors of those things. It's much easier to eliminate sources of dead standing water in old tires and buckets and other containers. Most of these insects require water for their larvae and if there's no stagnant water there will be no adults to emerge from it. Planting marigold and chrysanthemums will produce natural rotenones which serve as natural insecticides so planting these strageicallly throughout your garden will reduce the concentration of garden insect pests. Also a strong solution of detergent with a bit of tobacco tea in it wil eliminate most insects on the more fragile plants. Cups half full of stale beer (Yeah, I know, WHO has stale beer?) will trap and drown slugs and snails if yo bury them in a shady spot and cover it with a flat piece of wood. Keeping a dark moist shady spot under dense bushes will encourage frogs and toads to take up residence there, They eat half their weight in insects every day. Build a bat box for bats will eat their own weight in insects everyday. Encourage dragonflies and lady beetles they eat tons of insects every day. the list is vitualy endless when it comes to natural ways to eliminate insect pests around the yard and property. Heck just raise a small flock of chickens, they'll eat every insect that they can catch and as a by product you get to eat the eggs and the birds when fall comes along.

Brightest Blessings,

Raji the Green Witch

Answer 5

i heard from someone Ceyenne pepper works... but I haven't tried it. Definitely though, Citronella should work.

Answer 6

Spiders, frogs, birds, etc.

Answer 7

blue mantis is right ...Mother nature has predators for most things, but since few of us walk around with frogs or spiders on our shoulders, you may try southernwood for the fliers and biters...I just pull some of the soft, ferny leaves and rub them on my skin.  It smells great like other artimisias, and helps a lot keeping the bugs off.  Lavender, mugwort, and citronella help.  If you need a good bug killer, grow the pyrethrum daisy.  just be careful, if you grind it for powder...it is the same pyrethrin they put in lice shampoo...it'll kill the bugs, just try to keep this one off your skin....and don't use it close to harvest time on your plants.  Also, remember, organic doesn't necessarily mean safe.