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Squash Bugs - 27 Solutions to Get Rid of Bugs on Plants Naturally

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29 Natural Ways to Get Rid of Bugs on Plants

Whether you are a professional farmer or a backyard gardener, you will come across destructive bugs on your plants.

However, many solutions exist to get rid of common plant pests. They range from organic store-bought pesticides to things you have at home.

How to Get Rid of Bugs on Plants Naturally

Below are some of the best home remedies and organic methods to stop bugs and other pests from eating your plants.

1. Beneficial Insects

While many insects fall under the pest category, some are helpers, feeding on harmful insects and related pests.

Ladybugs, braconid wasps, and other beneficial insects will help. They will reduce harmful insects in your garden.

These other beneficial insects include praying mantises, dragonflies, and minute pirate bugs.

Moreover, you can buy most of these insects and release them into your garden.

2. Companion Planting

Companion planting is an organic method that you can use to help control certain pests.

Plant marigolds and petunias along your garden edges. They will help keep away many insect pests.

And it isn’t just limited to flowers, either. You can also plant pest-repellent vegetables and herbs such as onions, garlic, and sage as companion plants in your garden.

3. Diatomaceous Earth

Diatomaceous earth is a great home remedy for pest control. Use it to get rid of crawling, leaf-eating insects. When the powder gets inside the exoskeleton of the critters, it sucks the moisture out of them.

Sprinkle DE powder on and around your plants. It kills many pests. You can also apply it to potting or vegetable garden soil before planting.

Or, mix five tablespoons of DE in a gallon of water. Use it as a homemade pesticide spray for plants.

Shake well, and use it to spray your outdoor and indoor plants.

4. Soap and Water 

You can also combine soap and water for a simple home remedy to stop insects from eating plant leaves. Soapy water works against a wide range of insect pests.

Mix five tablespoons of organic liquid soap with a gallon of water. This creates a bug spray that is safe for indoor and outdoor plants.

It will kill most bugs.

5. Neem Oil

Neem oil is a superb natural insect repellent for plants. It is also one of the most popular go-to pest control remedies for organic gardeners.

It is a repellent for squash bugs, cucumber beetles, Japanese beetles, aphids, and other insects.

Mix four teaspoons of neem oil, two teaspoons of liquid soap, and a gallon of water. This is a basic neem oil insecticide recipe.

Shake well and spray the insecticidal solution on plants.

You can also buy the ready-to-use concentrate. Apply it per the bottle’s instructions.

6. Beneficial Nematodes

This is an excellent method to get rid of root-eating bugs and insects. Beneficial nematodes seek out soil-dwelling pests and larvae and devour them.

Buy online and apply according to the package instructions. They will devour Japanese beetle grubs, cutworms, flea beetles, ants, vine weevils, and other soil pests.

Traps

There are many traps for garden pests, some of which do not harm them.

7. Sticky Trap

Using sticky traps is an effective way to control flies and other pesky flying insects. You can also make a DIY trap from any yellow or blue paper covered in a sticky substance.

8. Empty Grapefruit Halves

You can use grapefruit as a trap for slugs. Once you’ve eaten the fruit, use the empty peel as bait to attract slugs and watch them slowly march by.

Cut the grapefruit in half and scoop out the inside. Next, place the empty peel near the affected plants in the late afternoon.

Slugs will crawl right in to take cover. Finally, scoop out the pests the following day and squish or feed them to the birds.

9. Beer Container

To prevent snails and slugs from eating your plants, set out a little dish of beer to attract them.

The yeasty aroma of beer attracts slugs. The smell coming from the dish will lure them in, leading to their eventual drowning.

Afterward, scoop them out and dispose of them.

Essential Oils for Pest Control

You can also use essential oils to make a homemade spray to keep bugs away from your plants. Yes, some essential oils are effective at repelling certain garden pests.

The basic application is 10–15 drops of oil in a cup of water. Place the solution in a spray bottle and apply it to the affected areas.

However, be careful when using essential oils, as some can also repel insects useful to a garden.

10. Peppermint

This essential oil is popular for its pleasant aroma. It also can keep away certain critters, such as the mealybug [1], beetles, flies, chiggers, caterpillars, and ants.

You can even use it to repel wasps, gnats, and rodents.

11. Chrysanthemum 

Some chrysanthemum flowers contain pyrethrins, which can be used as a natural bug killer and repellent.

Chrysanthemum oil is beneficial against leafhoppers, harlequin bugs, aphids, ticks, pickle worms, and spider mites.

12. Pine 

Pine oil is very effective against mosquitoes [2]. They find the smell repulsive.

As a result, they will avoid your house and garden when the oil diffuses.

13. Tea Tree

Mix tea tree oil with water for protection against mosquitoes and ants. Use a sprayer to apply it.

Bed bugs, ticks, dust mites, and lice also seem to hate the smell of it.

14. Thyme 

The smell of thyme helps control earworms, maggots, and whiteflies. It can kill other plant pests, too.

Thyme oil also possesses antifungal properties.

15. Lavender 

Among the home remedies for plant insects, lavender is also very effective.

Flying insects like flies, fungus gnats, and certain beetles seem to hate lavender oil. Moreover, you can use it to relieve itching from bug bites.

16. Lemongrass

Lemongrass oil is an excellent repellent for fruit flies, mosquitoes, bugs, and fleas. This makes it handy to have around the house.

17. Orange 

You can also use orange oil to keep pests out of your vegetable garden and house naturally.

It is an excellent natural repellent for cockroaches and spiders. It can also kill termites, mosquito larvae, and aphids.

18. Cinnamon 

This is also an effective oil used in the garden and around the home.

Cinnamon oil is an excellent deterrent for aphids (greenfly or blackfly), earwigs, thrips, leafminers, and silverfish.

19. Basil 

Basil oil is another excellent product that helps keep insects away from plants. It repels asparagus beetles and flies, moths, and carrot flies.

20. Mugwort 

Mugwort oil is a potent toxicant against the red flour beetle [3].

Household Items

You may already have many items in your house that can eliminate or repel pests. For example, hot peppers, eggshells, and used coffee grounds reduce pests.

21. Garlic

Garlic’s strong smell will help keep moles, gophers, and voles away from your yard and garden. Place the cloves in their tunnels. However, be sure to replace them periodically.

Alternatively, make a DIY pest control spray for your plants by blending two garlic bulbs in a cup of water. Next, strain and mix the solution into a gallon of water and two teaspoons of liquid soap.

Shake well, and use this as a natural pesticide for your vegetable garden. Garlic spray also helps to keep fungal issues at bay.

22. Egg Shells

Eggshells are great for garden soil. They add calcium and help deter slugs and snails.

The sharp edges of the crushed shells will scrape their soft bodies, causing them pain.

23. Pepper Spray

You can use fresh hot peppers to make a DIY garden bug spray. It kills or repels caterpillars, cabbage worms, spider mites, maggots, mayflies, and bugs.

For the recipe, puree five hot peppers in two cups of water. Next, add a teaspoon of liquid soap. Finally, strain and use this spray on harmful insects and related pests.

24. Coffee Grounds

Coffee grounds also make a great natural pesticide for plants. Squirrels, rabbits, slugs, snails, and many insects hate it.

Therefore, coffee grounds should be placed in areas with bugs in the garden soil and rodents causing problems. It will also keep away ants.

25. Vinegar

A mild vinegar solution can help control garden pests. Mix 1 cup of vinegar, 1 tsp of liquid soap, and 3 cups of water to make a natural bug-repellent for plants.

Next, add it to a spray bottle and use it on houseplants and outdoor plants.

This homemade spray kills or repels mites, aphids, stink bugs, mosquitoes, and caterpillars. It also works on other plant pests.

Physical Action

This is an effective way to get rid of bugs in the vegetable garden naturally and requires little to no money.

If you see a plant with a minor pest infestation, you may want to take one or more of these steps:

26. Pull Out Weak Plants

By removing weak plants that may get infected, you help maintain healthy soil. Your garden will also be less appealing to pests.

If you do pull up an infected plant, be sure to wash your hands. Also, disinfect the tools so that possible diseases don’t spread the next time you use them.

27. Barriers

Use nets, fences, and anything else to protect your crops from munching animals. You can even use floating row covers that block pests but allow sunlight.

28. Handpicking

A simple DIY home remedy to kill bugs without killing plants is to pick them off.

Go through your garden and manually pluck off anything you don’t want on your plants. Pick off insect eggs, adult insects, and larvae. Squish them or drop them in soapy water to suffocate them.

29. Water Pressure Sprays

Use a high-pressure water hose to blast insect pests from your plants. However, ensure the plants are resilient enough to withstand the pressure.

A powerful blast of water can dislodge anything eating your crops.

Other Ways to Get Rid of Pests Naturally

  • The best way to get rid of little bugs on plants is never to have them in the first place. Keeping your garden clean makes it less desirable for them to live in.
  • Additionally, avoid planting the same crop repeatedly in the same bed. This will help decrease soil-dwelling pests.
  • Build up your soil. Healthy soil produces healthy plants, which are better able to withstand pest attacks.
  • There are also flowers you can use to control bugs outside. Growing these plants on the edge of your garden helps keep certain critters away.
  • And remember horticultural oils. These can control adelgids and scale insects with great success.

Many methods can get rid of bugs and pests in your garden. This list highlights some organic and eco-friendly options.

Above all, these remedies should help you create a pest-free garden. You will also be happy with the methods used.

Andre Campbell

Andre is an organic farmer and co-founder of Dre Campbell Farm. He appreciates everything in nature—sunshine, plants, animals, and human life.

4 comments

  • Hello ,i recently purchased this home ,it was late in the season to do any garden work,as i wondered around the yard i noticed in the garden ,beetles!!!!!not just a few but all over the flowers that were left in the garden.It was an infestation, Im assuming they are grubs also ..My question is weather permitting in time for planting as the season approaches i want to make an herb garden ,how do i get rid of the beetles im sure they are dormant over the winter .

    • Bernice, please identify before you nullify! Many beneficial insects look like bad guys. Take clear photos, or get a sample and ask a Master Gardener or local Agriculture Department to identify. Then, if it is a pest, use least toxic methods.

  • Can you please make this useful article copiable and printable …

  • Hello, I am currently growing squash in our garden this year and one of the plants seems to be wilting but not turning yellow in color. Is there something I can do to revive the plant?

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