DIY Pest Control
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A couple weeks ago, my 21 month old son was playing in the yard and got swarmed by fire ants. It was awful and I was angry. I was so mad at those fire ants. We don't treat our yard or our home for pests with a pest control company because of our kids and dogs and the toxins involved, but I have discovered ways to treat as issues have come up by using things that I have at home.
I didn't know what to use for the ants but a quick google search informed me that placing chopped up orange peels on the ant mounds would work quickly and it did. We have an orange tree in our yard so all we had to do was eat a few oranges and then lay the peels down. I wish I had known and done it sooner!
I have used salt, cinnamon and vaseline for other issues that have come up with critters around our home.
I have come to learn it's all a part of living in the South. I'm curious if you have tried and true DIY pest control remedies to share. I would love to hear other ideas.
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10 Responses to “DIY Pest Control”
November 15th, 2008 at 6:20 am
Used coffee grounds in the flower beds are good to keep out slugs. They do not like the feel on their bellies. Also good for ground/dirt/plants. Can do same with tea leaves, just tear open the bag and dump them out. We gather this in an old coffee can and then sprinkle it out once a week on our beds.
November 15th, 2008 at 9:08 am
I’ll be tryin’ it this week.
November 15th, 2008 at 10:09 am
We were swarmed by fruit flies after a bad banana episode, once. We couldn’t get rid of them! Someone gave me this recipe-
1 inch of water
2 drops dish soap
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
Cover with plastic wrap with small holes poked in top.
I put this in several shallow containers around the kitchen and changed it every day for 3 days and they were gone!
November 15th, 2008 at 11:27 am
We’ve never heard of orange peels for fire ants, but we have used grits. Just sprinkle some dry grits where the ants can get them (works in your house, too) and they’ll take them back to the nest. The theory is that the grits expand when the ants eat them, causing death in the nest. Maybe it’s just the queen; I don’t know. But it really seems to work!
November 15th, 2008 at 12:52 pm
In our last house we had squirrels and rabbits eating our flowers. Someone told me to sprinkle red pepper flakes in the flowerbeds to drive them away, and it worked! (I always wondered if those poor critters had to experience a mouth full of fire or if it was just the smell that kept them away!)
November 15th, 2008 at 4:56 pm
We had lots of gnats on our houseplants. A google search told me the most likely cause was over watering. The roots were rotting and attracting the gnats. We didn’t water the plants for 3 weeks and the gnats were gone and the plants survived.
November 16th, 2008 at 1:32 am
We lived in SC for 12 years, I being from NC had no idea what a Fire ant was, but quickly became well aquainted. Now at that time they used some sort of granuals down there and my husband took care of it. A couple of months ago, guess what moved to my yard, you got it! So glad to know there are other options to use.
November 17th, 2008 at 10:28 am
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January 3rd, 2009 at 12:04 am
I just found your blog and have been reading the older posts, and had to comment on this one. A couple of months ago we had a horrible problem with ants getting into our kitchen. The thing I found that worked the best was boric acid, yep, good old Borax. I just sprinkled a little on the counters each night for a few nights and pretty soon they were gone and haven’t been back.
June 17th, 2009 at 12:39 pm
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