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I didn't know that. I have plants in my house and would really like a better solution for dealing with bugs. I'll try these oils and see how they work. Order Checks Online

plant sweet basil with your tomato plants, it will keep the horn worms away. Last year i had the worms everywhere, this year nothing. Seems to work and saves me work.

You might be surprised to know that one of the more common pesticides comes from plants, specifically a type of chrysanthemum.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pyrethrin

I'm not a proponent of pesticide use in general. That a pesticide comes from an organic (and I'm using this in the older, chemical sense of the word) source, doesn't mean much.

Chrysanthemums are a stunningly effective natural control.
You can just grow them around things that get munched or get various diseases and VOILA, no problem. I swear these plants suck the bad stuff out of the soil! Roses that had to be constantly sprayed for black spot are blemish free this year after being inter-planted with mums.


I have read many recipes for making sprays from them but I just skip that step and grow chrysanthemums around my flower and veggie beds. I was not all that fond of mums until I discovered how good they are FOR your garden, now they look better to me every day.
Mums are cheap too.
For the cost of one bottle of bug spray I have an apparently effortless lifetime supply of what my expanding garden needs. Mums spread easily and I just yank some out by the roots and throw some into new beds or new plantings.

I read (from a garden/chef) that planting lavender, rosemary, or sage around the perimeter of your veggie bed will repell snails. I planted lavendar around my green beens and the snails, that chowed down on the leaves before, haven't returned since.

i control insects in my garden by planting basil and marigolds around my tomatoes. the basil is very close (touching) the tomatoes. the marigolds are all around my little garden. so far, i've been aphid free for two summers!

rosemary will repel mosquitos too, I think! next year I'm putting marigolds in my veggie garden, b/c I lost some good lettuce leaves to some pesky earwigs =(.

i have some tiny black bugs, like microscopic flies, crawling around in some of my planters, any idea what they could be? or what will help get rid of them?

hla21, could they be fungus gnats?
http://www.entomology.wisc.edu/insectid/insect_info.php?380

If so, you may be overwatering. Give the plants and soil surfaces a good spray with insecticidal soap, and try to let the soil dry out between watering if the plants can tolerate it.

that sounds about right!! thanks!

I just recently bought something called "Poison-Free Ant & Roach Killer" on Amazon because I'd seen it recommended on an animal blog as pet friendly. It's just mint oil (no nasty chemicals at all), and it's the best stuff I've ever used! I live in Florida and, because there are three animals in the house who leave food droppings everywhere, we regularly have a problem with all kinds of ants, from tiny sugar ants to bigger biting ones. We've tried a number of different poisons over the years which always take DAYS to have any kind of effect, plus it means we have to leave serious poison around where the animals might get to it. You just shake this stuff up, spray it on the ants and it kills them within seconds, no exaggeration. It kills every single one of them within seconds! I coat the area where the ants were and they don’t come back for a long time (at least weeks), if at all. It leaves a minty smell which dissipates within minutes and then you can’t even tell it’s been used, and the bottle says it doesn’t stain carpets or hard wood floors. I seriously recommend this for anyone who has an ant or roach problem because it works better than any of the poisons we’ve tried and it’s pet and human friendly!!! It’s my new favorite thing.