If insects make you buggy, brace yourself before you read the next sentence: According to the Smithsonian Institute, at any given moment there are some 10 quintillion bugs on Earth. That's the number 10 followed by 19 zeros or roughly 1.66 billion insects for every person alive. And if your abode is typical, it might seem like a good number of them have come in and made themselves at home.
On a planet filled with creepy crawlies, it's no surprise that we'll do almost anything to prevent home invasions. For the last few generations, that's meant deploying an arsenal of pesticides. These chemical concoctions provide cheap, easy, and effective pest control. But at what cost?
A very high one, as it turns out. Pesticides are among the most toxic products sold today. They are, after all, intentionally designed to kill, and their effects aren't limited to their targets. Entire books have been written about what happens when we're exposed to these poisons, and suffice it to say, it's not a desirable outcome. That's why pesticides have no place in a healthy home.
Fortunately, there are many safe and effective alternatives for banishing bugs. Using these methods instead of chemical pesticides keeps our families and our world healthier. Removing pests the natural way protects beneficial insects like bees and lady bugs, and innocent bystanders like tadpoles and other amphibians, which are especially vulnerable to pesticides.
Practicing pollution-free pest control starts with a healthy dose of prevention:
- Keep living areas free of food waste. To make your home less inviting to hungry insects, clean up crumbs and spills, do the dishes right after mealtime, store food in tightly sealed containers, and take the trash out before it accumulates.
- Bugs are also thirsty, so remove water sources by fixing dripping faucets, clearing clogged drains, and repairing leaky pipes.
- Keep your house clear of clutter. Insects seek hiding places, and if your home doesn't have any, they'll go elsewhere.
- Don't make it easy to get in. Repair broken screens, holes and cracks in foundations and eaves, and poorly sealed doors and windows.
- If these methods aren't enough, try our suggestions for safe natural solutions:
- For ants, sprinkle boric acid or ground cloves along baseboards, in the back of cabinets, and other "edge" areas. Or spray a solution of two teaspoons of peppermint oil in two cups of water in the same areas.
- Cockroaches can be kept away by a powder of one part natural pyrethrins (made from chrysanthemums) and two parts diatomaceous earth, which is algae. (Note: keep pyrethrins away from cats.)
- Flies will avoid areas scented with basil, tansy, pine oil, or cloves. You can also make fly strips of kraft paper coated with a gooey mix of corn syrup and sugar. Fruit flies will avoid areas sprayed with a solution of basil oil and water.
- Fight moths with oils of lavender, cloves, rosemary, camphor, or cedar. Make scented sachets with whole herbs or spray solutions of two teaspoons of oil in two cups of water in problem areas.
- Termites can be chased away with boric acid, diatomaceous earth, and/or pyrethrin powder sprinkled in problem areas.
- Ticks are repelled by essential oils of rose geranium or palmerosa. Make a solution of two teaspoons oil in two cups of water and spray. A half-and-half mix of rosemary and myrrh oils can also be used.
- Fleas are repelled by herbs like lavender, rosemary, catmint, eucalyptus, and camphor. Citrus oils will also help. (Don't use citrus oils and products around cats.) For dog and cat infestations combine one to two drops each of eucalyptus, citronella, tea tree and pennyroyal oils in 2 cups of witch hazel extract (omit citronella for cat use). Test on the animal first. If it's tolerated, rub a teaspoon on the collar and a half teaspoon or so into the fur. Store the remainder.
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Use traps for bees and wasps. Buy commercial traps and bait them with a protein (dog food, ham, fish and meat scraps, etc.) in the spring and sugars (corn syrup, spoiled fruit, jelly, etc.) in the summer and fall. Get rid of ground nests by covering their entrance with an upside down bowl.
