Natural Non-Toxic Pest Control in the Home and Garden

Did you know?

Cockroaches like high places. If you put the natural non-toxic substance on TOP of your kitchen cabinets (not inside), if space allows between ceiling and cabinets, the roaches will take it to their nests, killing all of them.

Where humans domicile, there are insect pests. This has been the case for thousands of years. From the fossil records, we know that all major taxa of biting flies and external parasites already existed by the time Homo sapiens first appeared on earth. Phthirus and Pediculus, the two genera of lice that feed on humans, have a host range that is limited to primates. It is probable that human fleas (Pulex irritans) and bed bugs (Cimex lectularius) treated cave-dwellers as hosts, because these insects are most closely related to other species that live on bats.

Did you know?
Mosquitoes are most active in early morning and early evening, and they like still air.
The active ingredient in most chemical-based mosquito repellents is DEET (N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide), which is a powerful chemical that is absorbed readily into our skin and should be used with caution.

We know from the writings of the ancient Chinese, Sumerian and Egyptian scholars that pest control measures were used thousands of years ago. Predatory ants were used in China as early as 1200 BC to protect citrus groves from caterpillars and wood boring beetles. Pythagorus, a Greek philosopher and mathematician, is said to have instructed residents of a Sicilian town in the 6^th century BC to drain the marshes, as a way of eradicating malaria.

Today, insect pests are an intimate part of every home. They are in the air, carpet, benchtop, cupboard, bathroom, curtains and floors. Insect pests in our home can spread germs, destroy our possessions, and can cause allergic reactions eg asthma, hay fever, skin rash, or they can cause bites eg from mosquitos, fleas, sandflies. Why are some people more prone to insect bites than others? There is a nutritional explanation. A strong immune system and high nutrient levels help repel insects. If our immune system is not functioning well and if we are low on vitamin B complex, zinc, selenium and antioxidants in our body and bloodstream we are more attractive to biting insects.

Entomologists and chemists have made outstanding progress in the technology of pest control since the late 1800s. Today's arsenal of weapons is large and diverse. In general the weapons work in at least one of the following ways:

They kill the pest directly – usually by exposing it to lethal substances or unsuitable environmental conditions.
They reduce the reproductive potential of a pest population – often by modifying its environment or by restricting its movement.
They modify the pest's behaviour to make it less troublesome (attract it, repel it, confuse it, exclude it, mislead it).

Invariably we rid our homes of these insect pest invaders with chemical pesticides. Most of them carry one or more of the following messages on their labels:

'Avoid contact with skin.'
'Harmful or fatal if swallowed.'
'This product is toxic to fish, birds and other wildlife.'
'Harmful if absorbed through skin.'
'Harmful if inhaled.'
'Avoid contact with eyes, skin or clothing.'
'Keep out of reach from children.'

These pesticides are usually effective but the potent chemical compounds may be more harmful to you and your family, and the environment, than they are to the pests. There are natural, non-toxic ways to control household insect pests.

In the battle against pests in the home, the best offence is a good defence.

The first action to take is to make the house as unattractive to insects as we can. This is especially relevant in the kitchen. Clean up food spills immediately, keeping hard-to-reach areas reasonably clean and removing clutter that can hide pests. Fix leaking taps and don't leave water in cups etc. Doors and windows should be well screened.

When we have taken these measures we can then trap insects and relocate them, or use natural non-toxic insect repellents or pesticides. There is a range of non-toxic substances that can be used to repel insects– these are generally highly fragrant or volatile herbs or spices such as powdered red chilli pepper, peppermint, bay leaves, cloves, citrus oil, lavender, rosemary, tobacco, peppercorns, and cedar oil.

Natural non-toxic pesticides generally comprise a poison that is non-toxic to humans, that is mixed with a food that insects find attractive, and spread in the infected area. Examples of such combinations include: oatmeal (attractive) and plaster-of-Paris (poisonous), and cocoa powder and flour (attractive) and borax (poisonous).