Homemade Organic Insecticides

7 Organic Homemade Insecticides

    Commercial insecticides kill much more than the insects you are wanting to remove from your plants. They kill good and bad alike, without prejudice. We need the good insects to pollinate our flowers. In some instances good insects will actually kill some bad ones. But that is another article.

    In order to kill only the insects that are bothering your particular plants, we have listed 7 Organic Homemade Insecticides for your gardening needs. There are many organic sprays and tonics on the market today as well as chemical insecticides, but why spend your hard earned cash on a commercial blend when our 7 Organic Homemade Insecticides will cost you about a dollar for the spray bottle and pennies per pint of the finished product?

    If you grow tomatoes, then you have a perfect insecticide at your fingertips.
Tomatoes belong to the nightshade family and are poisonous to most insects. Gather the leaves off the bottom third of your tomato plants. You have to remove them anyway, so why not put them to good use. Crush them or chop them or put them in your blender with some water and pulverize them. Let them sit for at least two hours. Strain the mixture through cheesecloth into a glass jar. Spray your plants whenever you see any insect activity such as chewed leaves, larva etc. Be sure to inspect them daily. Spray the foliage until it is soaked. Repeat spraying after it rains, for continued effectiveness.

    The following are other forms of organic homemade insecticides that are effective and easy to make with ingredients from your pantry and bathroom. If you use a blender you may want to dedicate a blender to making these 7 Organic Homemade Insecticides in case any oils or odors remain in the blender container itself.

Organic Insecticidal Soap:

1 Quart of water
1-1/2 tsp dishwashing liquid
1/4 C Rubbing Alcohol
Clean spray bottle

Mix all the ingredients together and load into a spray bottle.
This will be effective on soft-bodied insects and larvae such as aphids, white flies, thrips, mites etc. When spraying be sure to have the nozzle on your spray bottle adjusted to the widest spray coverage. The liquid must come into direct contact with the insect. You will have to spray the underside of the foliage also. Re-apply after it rains. Keep an eye out since it may take more than one application to completely remove the insects. This spray penetrates the outer shells of the insects and kills them.

Garlic Spray:

4 cloves of garlic minced.
Enough canola or mineral oil to cover the garlic
2 cups water
Clean spray bottle

Put the garlic and oil in a glass jar with lid. Shake well to mix. Let it sit for at least two hours. Alternatively you can put this mixture in a blender to pulverize the garlic. Place mixture in your glass jar and let it sit for at least two hours. Add water and shake well. Strain through cheesecloth before putting it in your spray bottle. Garlic is a very effective Organic Homemade Insecticide since it will repel most insects, and actually kills some on contact, such as aphids, mites and slugs. Adjust your spray bottle to the widest spray coverage and be sure to spray the underside of the leaves. Do not apply this mixture while the sun is on your plants as it can burn the foliage. Keep unused mixture in a covered jar in the refrigerator for two weeks.

Homemade Organic Insecticide for groundcovers:

1 cup liquid dishwashing soap
1 cup tobacco juice (made from chewing tobacco, or cigarette butts)
1 cup mouthwash such as Listerine or a generic substitute
Hose end sprayer

Put the above ingredients in a hose end sprayer and fill the balance of the jar with warm water. Spray once a month to keep most insects away.

    Dry Homemade Organic Insecticides must be re-applied after rain or strong winds but are very effective. You should mix one part herb or spice to three parts cornmeal or tea leaves. Cornmeal is inexpensive and scatters easily.

Cloves - Repels flying insects
Lavender - Repels mice
Oregano - Repels cucumber beetles and cabbage worms
Mint - Repels mice, fleas, ants and rats

Hot Pepper Insecticide:

4-5 Hot Peppers, chopped  (I would suggest wearing rubber gloves for this recipe and perhaps safety glasses too!)
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 small onion, diced
Water to cover
1 spray bottle


In a well ventilated room or outside if you prefer, place ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Place mixture in your glass jar and let it sit for at least two hours. Pour through cheesecloth into another glass container. To use, put two tablespoons of pepper liquid in a spray bottle. Add 1 teaspoon liquid dishwashing soap, and fill the sprayer with water. This solution will repel rabbits, groundhogs and squirrels as well as most insects and people too. You can adjust the strength by adding more or less of the concentrate.
KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN!

The unused concentrate will keep for about two weeks in the refrigerator in a tightly sealed jar.

Slug deterrent:

    Put eggshells in your food processor. Pulse until you have tiny pieces. Sprinkle around your plants where you have found slugs. When the slugs crawl across the shells is cuts their skin and kills them. This is almost as effective as diatomaceous earth but less expensive.

This is by far my favorite of the 7 Organic Homemade Insecticides because it is the simplest and the very least expensive.

Fire Ant Killer:

Cornmeal

Yup, that's the only ingredient. Sprinkle cornmeal around the outside of the fire ant nest. Do not sprinkle in the hole as it will clog and cause the entire nest to move to another location. The ants will ingest the cornmeal and carry it to their queen who will ingest it as well. The corn meal swells up and the insects explode! No more fire ants.

Enjoy your garden and its rewards!