Ask a Prepper
  • DIY |
  • Terms of Use |
  • Privacy Policy |
  • Contact
ask a prepper survival every day
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • All Articles
  • Editor’s Pick
  • Survival Knowledge
  • How To’s
  • Store
  • About Claude Davis
  • Home
  • All Articles
  • Editor’s Pick
  • Survival Knowledge
  • How To’s
  • Store
  • About Claude Davis
No Result
View All Result
Menu
Ask a Prepper
Search
No Result
View All Result
Print Friendly, PDF & Email
Home All Articles
Plants You Should Grow Around Your House To Repel Insects And Bugs (Including Termites)

Plants You Should Grow Around Your House To Repel Insects And Bugs (Including Termites)

Plants You Should Grow Around Your House To Repel Insects And Bugs (Including Termites)

Rich M. by Rich M.
February 11, 2019
31

Nobody likes to be bugged; at least, nobody I know likes to be. Yet we live in a world where we are surrounded by bugs; billions of insects who are just trying to live their lives and in the process manage to bug us. They probably aren’t bothered in the least by having us around, but we can sure be bothered by them.

In fact, we are so bugged by bugs, that one billion pounds of pesticides are used in the United States each year. While a lot of that is used on farms and for other commercial uses, there’s still a fair amount used around people’s homes; either to keep pests out of the garden, to kill them in the home or to just keep them from pestering us.

This constant exposure to chemical pesticides is clearly not good for us. There seem to be a steady stream of news stories coming out, from all parts of the political spectrum, talking about the health risks of pesticides, both to us humans and to our friends in the animal kingdom. There has even been a considerable amount of evidence to connect declining bee populations with chemicals that aren’t even supposed to affect them.

While you and I can’t do a thing about the pesticides and other chemicals used in modern industrialized farming, we can do something about the chemicals used around our homes. There really is no reason why we should continue to add to what is poisoning us on a daily basis, if there are natural alternatives available, which are not harmful.

Protecting Yourself and Your Garden from Bugs

A number of plants are useful in this regard; 55 of them that I’ve been able to find. These plants, most of which are aromatic, have the ability to keep bug away, so that they are not bugging us. Not all of the plants work for all types of bugs, but planting an assortment of these plants around our homes can do a lot towards ensuring that we live as bug free a life as possible.

  • Alliums – There are a number of onion-like plants which fall into this category, including: chives, leeks, onions, garlic, scallions and shallots. These are an excellent addition to any vegetable garden, not only because you can eat them, but because they will help protect your garden against slugs, flies and worms. However, there is a risk that they can attract moths, so don’t use them if that’s a concern. They can also be extremely toxic to dogs and cats.
  • Basil – Basil is one of the main ingredients in Italian Seasoning, as well as being a herb used widely in cooking. It is also useful for keeping mosquitoes away.
  • Catnip – You might want to be careful about this one if you have cats; but catnip repels mosquitoes even better than DEET, the chemical most commonly used in insect repellants. You can crush a few leaves and rub it on your skin to keep mosquitoes away; although you may attract every cat in the neighborhood. Be careful planting catnip, as it spreads; you’re better off potting it and placing the pots in your garden, rather than having it take over from other plants.
  • Chrysanthemums – The chrysanthemum flower produces a compound called pyrerthrins, used in many commercially manufactured insect repellents. It is good for keeping away mosquitoes, roaches, beetles, ticks and silverfish.
  • Garlic – Garlic is an amazing plant, usable as an antibiotic, antiviral and antifungal. It’s also a pretty good repellant for blood-sucking vampires… I mean mosquitoes.
  • Lavender – Almost all bugs will avoid lavender, with the exception of bees. It is also useful to keep moths away from your clothing. Just hang some dried lavender in the closet or put it in the dresser to keep moths from eating sweaters and other clothing. A drought-resistant perennial, lavender is great in areas which are rationing water for gardening.
  • Lemon Grass – Lemon grass produces citronella, commonly used as a mosquito repellant. The plant itself does an even better job of repelling these pests than burning candles or torches. It doesn’t stand the cold well though, so should be planted in pots, so that it can be moved indoors in the wintertime. Lemon grass is also useful as an herb for cooking.
  • Marigolds – These colorful flowers have a distinctive smell that is actually used in many insect repellants. This smell repels mosquitoes, squash bugs and tomato worms. Marigolds can be planted among your vegetable garden as a protection against insects. It’s also edible. Here are 78 more flowers that grow across the US you can eat.
  • Mint – The strong odor of mint works incredibly well for keeping ants and mice away. In the garden, it will help to ward off other insects, including mosquitoes.
  • Petunias – These annual flowers grow best in cooler climates. They produce a licorice-like scent that repels many insects, including aphids, tomato hornworms and squash bugs. However, slugs and caterpillars are attracted to them.
  • Rosemary – Another useful herb, rosemary’s pungent odor repels flies and mosquitoes, as well as other bugs. If you have cabbage planted in your garden, plant some rosemary nearby, as it will help protect the cabbage from cabbage moths. This plant thrives in hot, dry weather.

Keep in mind that these plants can only repel insects as far as their odor reaches. So planting one mint plant in your garden isn’t going to keep all bugs off of your patio or deck. Rather, you need to have them all around the areas that you want protected, preferably as close to the seating areas as you can. Using planters on your patio or deck, in addition to that which you have planted in the ground, will help considerably.

In the case of your garden, you’ll want to scatter these plants between the others you are growing, ensuring that there is no area that is farther than three or four feet from an insect-repelling plant. If you still find bugs there, bugging your vegetables, then you should probably plant a few more or move some of what you already have.

In summary, here are the best plants to use, sorted by the type of insects they repel:

  • To repel mosquitoes: basil, lavender, mint, rosemary, lemon grass, marigolds
  • To repel flies: lavender, basil, rosemary
  • To repel moths: lavender
  • To repel vegetable bugs: rosemary, alliums, marigolds, chrysanthemums, petunias, alliums

Related: Mosquito-Repelling Weeds That You Can Plant This Spring In Your Backyard

But What About Termites?

Perhaps one of the biggest concerns, as far as dangerous pests is concerned, is termites. While termites don’t bug us in the classic sense, like flies and mosquitoes do, they can cause great damage to our homes, even destroying them. Yet these dangerous insects don’t get anywhere near the attention that some of the peskier bugs do, simply because they are not usually seen.

There has been less scientific study about using plants to repel termites and even less anecdotal information to go by. Even so, there are a few plants which have shown great promise in use for repelling termites and keeping them away from your home.

  • Catnip – The oil of the catnip is a natural termiticide. However, it breaks down in soil more quickly than the chemicals used in commercial termiticides. The other potential problem with using catnip is that it spreads and may try to take over your lawn.
  • Hot Chili Peppers – Hot chilis act as a repellent for many kinds of crawling insects, such as ants and termites. The acid in the chili pepper is dangerous to these insects. However, it can be dangerous to children as well, so you want to be careful where you plant them. You can also make an easy cream for arthritis and joint pain.
  • Mint – While not as commonly used for repelling termites, mint repels a wide variety of insects, including those wood-eating pests.
  • Vetiver Grass – Vetiver is probably the best natural defense against termites. Although a grass, the vetiver grows more like a shrub, forming clumps. It is related to lemon grass and has a pleasant smell. Its deep root system is commonly used for controlling erosion, especially in reclamation projects. But that same root system is a great deterrent for termites, as well as ticks and cockroaches. The plant contains chemicals which are toxic to these insects.

When using plants as a deterrent for termites, there are two strategies you can use. If you already have them on your property, then what you want to do is keep them from getting into the wood structure of your home. Termites in the middle of your yard aren’t a problem; termites in the home are.

To keep them out of the home, plant the above mentioned plants around the foundation, forming a barrier against the termites. Remember that termites are extremely small, so they don’t need much of a space to get though. Therefore, it is important to make as much of a continuous barrier as possible.

It is also important to make sure there is nothing that the termites can use as a hidden pathway from the ground to the wood structure of your home. Stacks of potting soil, bricks or lumber, up against the side of your house are likely to become pathways, where the termites build mud tunnels to use in gaining access to your home’s structure. Simply moving those items a few inches away from the home will do a lot to protect your home from termite infestations.

You may also like:

Make Your Own Peppermint Oil – The Best Insect Repellent

Easy to Build Root Cellar in Your Own Back Yard (Video)

10 Reasons Why You Need To Have Petroleum Jelly In Your Stockpile

Survival Uses for Calcium Chloride

24 Prepping Items I Don’t Spend Money On

Tags: preparedness
Print Friendly, PDF & Email
ShareTweetPin65

Comments 31

  1. Hoosier Homesteader says:
    4 years ago

    Interesting post with a lot of useful information. One thing that caught my eye though about the Alliums; I wondered what sort of worms are being referred to. I’m not aware of any plant that would repel earth worms, but I wouldn’t want to repel them anyway.
    And regarding the mint: to the readers that don’t know, although mint is great to have around, be VERY CAREFUL where and how you plant it. It can get spread quickly. Make sure you have a good root barrier in place around it so its space can be restricted.

    Did you like this comment? 2
    Reply
  2. BT says:
    4 years ago

    Lemongrass does not produce citronella. It is a relative of citronella. Neither will survive outside in colder climates. Vetiver also does not survive colder climates. All of these can be grown in a pot as a houseplant and moved outside after danger of frost is past and then back inside before the temperatures drop.

    Did you like this comment? 3
    Reply
  3. olive says:
    4 years ago

    how about ants of all types please?

    Did you like this comment?
    Reply
    • Pam says:
      4 years ago

      I don’t know of a plant, but I do have a safe, simple, effective solution. Grits. Cheap instant grits. I had lots of ants marching across the cement patio. I sprinkled a little pile of grits in two areas. I could see the ants picking up a small flake, which I assume they took back to their nest. Since they happily eat it but cannot digest it, soon there were no more ants. Ditto to a couple of ant hills outside in a dry area. Grits did the job.

      Did you like this comment? 7
      Reply
      • Hoosier Homesteader says:
        4 years ago

        Thanks Pam, I didn’t know that! Ants have been a problem for me, so I’ll give it a try.

        Did you like this comment? 1
  4. Carol says:
    4 years ago

    Got a plant that repels stink bugs!!! I am in Pennsylvania..where it all started.

    Did you like this comment? 1
    Reply
    • ELAINE says:
      4 years ago

      wish I knew we have them bad in SC too

      Did you like this comment? 1
      Reply
    • kt says:
      2 years ago

      and what is this plant? we had them in WV, we packed to move to FL, and guess what? found some in boxes!!! didnt turn them loose though,

      Did you like this comment?
      Reply
  5. Bea says:
    4 years ago

    Please identify the plants pictured (other than lavender).

    Did you like this comment?
    1
    Reply
  6. chickenpatti13 says:
    4 years ago

    Thyme repels flies.I hang dried thyme in my chicken coop every year.Works wonders.

    Did you like this comment? 1
    Reply
    • mariowen says:
      4 years ago

      I fight flies in the chicken coop/chicken yard. I will definitely try this and all the above plants, too. Thanks for the advise. My chickie babies thank you, too.

      Did you like this comment? 2
      Reply
      • wawa says:
        4 years ago

        sprinkle some diatimaciac(sp) earth in your chicken coop.

        Did you like this comment? 3
  7. Clergylady says:
    4 years ago

    Good article. Around the house everything is in raised bed so spreading inst a real concern.mint I grow in 5 gal plastic buckets. Some freestanding and some set into the beds. It survives our -20 winter nights because it goes dormant once it starts getting cold.
    I sprinkle dried mint around the chicken/duck pen and on the floor of the rabbit room. Mice are drawn to the feed. Mint discourages their presence.

    Did you like this comment? 2
    Reply
  8. Sandy says:
    4 years ago

    What about spiders? What’s the best plant or oil to keep spiders away and/or kill them?

    Did you like this comment?
    Reply
  9. road runner says:
    4 years ago

    very informative. how about repelling earwigs from tomato plants? — the last 2 years my tomatoes have been eaten from the inside out by them

    Did you like this comment? 1
    Reply
  10. Steve says:
    4 years ago

    Are there any plants that will repel scorpions? Or any other means of repelling them?

    Did you like this comment? 1
    Reply
    • Val says:
      4 years ago

      Do you have an outdoor dog? We have lived several places that had scorpions when we moved in and we had a dog. Within a few months we didn’t have any scorpions. Not sure if that is why but I did notice one dog we had that was getting stung and she would dig them up. Might be why they left out. Just a thought.

      Did you like this comment? 1
      Reply
  11. Random5499 says:
    4 years ago

    We built a house in the country 15 years ago and managed to move in without introducing cockroaches or fleas. As a result we decided to never use any pesticide at all in the house or outdoors.Our kitties have never been sick since (neither have we) and the vet marvels at their health. Our vegetable and butterfly gardens rarely get pests, I try to plant a couple extra tomato plants for the hornworms, I hate to kill them cause they make beautiful moths. Current poor agricultural stewardship in this country may yet be the death of us all.

    Did you like this comment? 3
    Reply
  12. Industriousbee says:
    4 years ago

    If you use petroleum jelly to shave in a crisis, rather than wiping it off with a cloth, use a napkin or paper then use that for fuel

    Did you like this comment? 4
    Reply
    • Stumpy1 says:
      4 years ago

      I have only shaved in the last 5 years because of heart bypass surgery and to have a cancerous thyroid removed.

      Did you like this comment? 1
      Reply
  13. Stephanie Jane (Literary Flits) says:
    4 years ago

    We suffer from unwanted mosquitoes along the river bank during the summer months. I planted a lavender bush last year, but didn’t know about the other useful herbs too. I love that these plants are so versatile – bug repellent and foid too! Thank you for this advice 🙂

    Did you like this comment? 2
    Reply
    • TheGreenMan81 says:
      3 years ago

      Peppermint is a great plant, which can be used to repel mosquitoes. You can even manually crush the leaves with your fingers and rub the oils it releases onto your skin as a natural bug repellent. And, if you are stung, rub a peppermint leaf directly on the bite to relieve itching.

      Did you like this comment? 1
      Reply
  14. N W says:
    4 years ago

    Farmers in the Old South ( before pesticides ) kept dogs .
    They would have a Chinaberry tree somewhere in the yard, usually where the dogs lounged.
    One Chinaberry = no fleas.
    A small branch of Chinaberry in each room would keep any hitchhiking fleas away.
    I’m told that Penny royal or it’s oil also works, but I KNOW Chinaberry works because I’ve seen it work .
    You can sometimes find old overgrown farm sites by finding the Chinaberry tree that they had growing in the yard.

    Did you like this comment? 2
    Reply
  15. Winnie says:
    3 years ago

    How do I rid my home of stink bugs and box elder bugs

    Did you like this comment? 2
    Reply
  16. Deb says:
    3 years ago

    You indicated different repellents are good to get rid of termites. Is there a natural way to get rid of them once they invade your home?

    Did you like this comment? 1
    1
    Reply
    • kt says:
      2 years ago

      YES PLEASE!@!! we have termite protection, but guess what? we had a termite colony in the crawspace. they came back out, sprayed, then checked weeks later, said none showing…got me to thinking though…how far have they spread that we dont see? ugh! there are “bait traps” about 2 ft from the foundation, supposed to keep them away….well how did they get under the house??? someone said they can fly, and will attach somewhere wood to get in…so traps dont work do they?…..need other ideas, thanks!

      Did you like this comment?
      Reply
  17. Daniel says:
    1 year ago

    Thank you for the Insect Repellent information, and I was wondering if the repellent can be ingested for people that have Parasites???
    I would appreciate if anyone can answer that may have tried it in small quantities for human
    cleansing. Thank you for all this valuable information 🙂

    Did you like this comment?
    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I agree to the Terms & Conditions Terms & Conditions.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

FOLLOW US ON:

PREPPER RECOMMENDS

YOU WILL NOT SURVIVE AN EMP STRIKE WITHOUT THIS

IF YOU SEE THIS PLANT IN YOUR BACKYARD BURN IT IMMEDIATELY

HOW TO GET 295 POUNDS OF EXTRA FOOD FOR JUST $5 A WEEK

THE AWESOME DIY DEVICE THAT TURNS AIR INTO FRESH WATER

5 INGENIOUS WAYS TO REFRIGERATE YOUR FOOD WITHOUT ELECTRICITY

HOW TO MAKE YOUR HOUSE INVISIBLE TO LOOTERS

Banner Generator

LATEST ARTICLES

If You Have This On Your Property, Hide It Immediately

This Is How The Government Is Stopping You From Living Independently

DIY Poor Man’s Greenhouse

Why You Should Put A Silver Coin In Water

7 Stores Where You Can Buy Cheap Survival Food

Essential Survival Know-Hows Modern People Have Forgotten

What Happens If China Becomes The Ruling Economic Power Of The World

How To Treat And Heal Wounds With Sugar

5 Ways To Actually Use FEMA To Your Advantage

Long-Lasting Amish Burgers

How To Get Back Home After An EMP Strike

Why You Should Bury A Trash Can In Your Backyard

6 Signs Your Neighbor Will Become A Looter As Soon As SHTF

Ancient Types Of Homes You Can Build For Cheap

5 Unexpected Events Following An Economic Crisis That No One Talks About

How To Recondition Old Gasoline

Veggies You Only Plant Once And Harvest Forever

20 Prepping Items That Will Skyrocket In Price This Year

How To Use An Old Refrigerator For Survival

6 Places You Can Go Dumpster Diving For Your Prepper Stockpile

Great Depression Foods We Will All Be Eating Again Soon

Prepping Projects From The Bible

When The World Runs Out Of Food, This Is All You Need

Banner Bor

Banner TLW2

The Lost Ways Claude Davis

HOW TO

How To Recondition Old Gasoline

How To Remove Radioactive Particles From Water In Case Of A Nuclear Fallout

How To Make Bread Last For Up To 5 Years

How To Prepare Your Car For SHTF

How To Cook Steak On A Stone In The Wilderness

How To Craft A Deadly Slingshot

How To Make Your Chickens Lay More Eggs

How To Make And Can Evaporated Milk

How To Prepare For The Rising Energy Prices

How To Protect Your Garden From Looting Intruders

Vote for ask a Prepper

YOU CAN ALSO FIND US ON:

Survial Websites Prepper

Banner LSF Hamburger

Copyright © 2014-2023 Ask a Prepper

  • Home
  • All Articles
  • Ask a Prepper
  • About Claude Davis
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2014-2023 Ask a Prepper

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.