Garlic Repellent Spray: Despite all you've read, garlic acts as more of a repellent than a killer.Don't use it on other nightshades like eggplants, peppers, or potatoes because it could spread disease from plant to plant. It kills aphids and many types of chewing insects, but also attracts beneficials. Soak 2 cups of fresh leaves in 1 quart of water overnight. Tomato Leaves Insecticide: The leaves of tomatoes contain solanine and tomatine and can be used as an insecticide.The oil in this spray smothers the insects so it is effective on aphids, thrips, mites, and scale. Add 2-8 teaspoons of this mixture to 1 quart of water and spray your plants as above. Oil Spray: Mix 1 cup of vegetable oil with 1 tablespoon of mild liquid soap.After a few applications, if rain hasn't done this for you, spray the plants with plain water to rinse off any soapy residue. Soap sprays only work when wet, so they will need to be reapplied every 4-7 days or until you notice that populations have decreased. Be sure to cover the whole plant-both sides of the leaves and on the stems. Insecticidal soaps are good for killing soft-bodied insects. Bronner's soap may be expensive, but it uses no animal fats, which makes it a good choice for vegans. Dish Soap Spray: Dissolve 1 tablespoon of a mild liquid soap such as a pure dish soap (no bleach, degreaser, or detergents added) or castile soap in 1 quart of water.Spray in the evening, when bees and other pollinators are not active. Be sure never to spray them on your plants during the sunny, hot part of the day or they will definitely cause foliar damage. Test them on a few leaves before you go all in to make sure they won't injure your plants.
Bear in mind that although they are less toxic they are not totally harmless. Try a more natural approach by making one of these homemade insecticidal sprays. They will do more harm than good by polluting the watershed, killing good and bad bugs alike, and eventually the insects you are trying to kill may grow resistant to those chemicals requiring you to use even stronger ones! They can also harm birds, animals, you, and your children! If you have exhausted all these methods and feel you must resort to using a spray, don't reach for harsh chemicals. He will do the dirty work for you by eating up to 50 aphids a day! 5 Organic Pesticide Sprays for Insects These aphids have done some damage, but don't spray if you see the black and orange alligator-like ladybug larvae attacking them. Learn what their larvae and eggs look like to head them off before they become adults. You can't beat them if you don't know who is friend and who is foe.
Use barriers like row covers to block pests from attacking your plants, especially tender transplants. (Remove the covers when plants are established and in bloom to allow for insect pollination.) Additionally, "collars" (paper towel or toilet paper cardboard rolls) inserted around the small transplants (1 to 2 inches into the soil) will prevent insects such as cutworms from eating the young stems.Use companion planting to repel insects naturally.Over-fertilized plants will attract pests to eat their lush new growth. Strong plants don't attract as many insects and can withstand their assault better than weak ones. If you're using fertilizer, follow instructions closely. Nourish your plants with organic amendments such as aged compost.Advertisement Pay Attention to Your Plantsīefore resorting to using pesticides (even organic ones), consider the following techniques to discourage insect pests from attacking your plants: