5 Simple Pest Remedies for the Garden

So often the home garden pest control remedies work as well or better than the chemical counterparts, and with the added bonus that with these formulas made of kitchen cupboard ingredients, you don’t need to worry about poisoning yourself, your pets, or your garden!

Print out these five standby remedies for yard and garden, including a natural fungicide for mildew and black spot:

Simple Soap Solution
2 Tbs. soap flakes
2 litre warm water
Dissolve soap flakes in water and apply directly to infested areas every 5-7 days. Note: Too much soap can cause burning on plants.
Pests affected: aphids, spider mites, and whiteflies.

Garlic Oil Spray
10-15 cloves of minced garlic
2 tsp. mineral oil
600 ml water
1 tsp. liquid dish soap
Soak garlic in mineral oil for 24 hours. Strain garlic out and add 600 ml water and 1 tsp. liquid dish soap. Mix thoroughly. Spray plants with this solution.
Pests affected: Aphids, spider ites, and whiteflies

Fungicide for Mildew and Black Spot
1 tsp. baking soda
1 litre water
1 tsp. soap flakes
Dissolve baking soda in 1 litre of warm water.

Add soap flakes to help solution cling to leaves. Remove infected leaves from plant, then spray top and bottom of remaining leaf surfaces to control spread of the disease.

Sticky Traps
1-2 Tbsp. Vaseline or preferably, Unpetroleum Jelly
4”x8” plastic cards or cardboard
Waterproof yellow paint
Apply paint onto both sides of the card and let it dry. Once the paint is dry, apply
Unpetroleum Jelly liberally over both sides of the card. Place the card just above the plant canopy.
Pests controlled:Flying pests, such as fungus gnats, and whiteflies.

Sowbug Traps
1 small plastic container with lid
2 Tbsp. cornmeal
Cut a small hole at the base of the container, large enough and close enough to the bottom to allow sowbugs to climb in. Place cornmeal in container. Place container into area infested with sowbugs. After feeding on the cornmeal, the bugs will drink and then explode! (Replace cornmeal frequently.)

Adapted from A Year on The Garden Path, by Carolyn Herriot (Earthfuture/Lantern, 2005). Copyright (c) 2005 by Carolyn Herriot. Reprinted by permission of Lantern Books.
Adapted from A Year on The Garden Path, by Carolyn Herriot (Earthfuture/Lantern, 2005).

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Lori M.

4:36PM PDT on Mar 29, 2012

Whats a sowbug?

send a green star

Krystal W.

1:32PM PDT on Mar 28, 2012

Thanks so much!

6:53AM PDT on Mar 28, 2012

For weeds, I use industrial vinegar. Very strong and not like the stuff you eat, but it kills grass and weeks that grow in the cracks in your driveway or patio, without being toxic.

Jennifer C.

6:45PM PDT on Mar 27, 2012

Thanks for sharing.

Melissa H.

2:38PM PDT on Sep 8, 2011

I use a natural product called diatomaceous earth in my garden and find that it works very well for pest control.

Wanda M.

1:06PM PDT on Jun 27, 2011

I have ahuge Ant problem.....any suggestions?

Howard C.

4:11PM PDT on May 27, 2011

I'm not that keen on killing other living beings just because they don't fit in with me, not least because killing one thing that I don't like ends up also killing something that I would prefer to keep around. Instead of doing this I try sowing plants that attract bugs that will prey on those I don't want. The US is a huge place (and in any case I live in the UK) so I will not go in to much detail but here is an example. Lots of our shrubs are affected by a bug we call 'woolly aphid'. These can easily be cotrolled by planting marigolds (or other 'simple' flowers) these attract hoverflies which will eat any number of bugs. It's free and green.

Philippa P.

12:50PM PDT on Jul 26, 2010

Great article! Thanks for the tips!

Becky C.

6:36AM PDT on Jun 3, 2010

I'm looking for a fast-acting natural pesticide recipe to get rid of leafminers on my spinach