Dre Campbell Farm
23 Plants That Repel Garden Pests

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23 Plants That Repel Pests From Garden & Home

One natural way to keep certain pests away from your garden and house is to grow plants that repel them.

These pest-repelling plants can help get rid of bugs, ants, mosquitoes, flies, aphids, and other pests.

Below is a list of plants that repel insects and related pests from your vegetable garden and home.

1. Basil

Basil is among the pest-deterrent plants that keep away mosquitoes and house flies. It also works well at controlling thrips, gnats, whiteflies, spiders, and aphids.

Another perk is that it grows easily in a pot, so you can have some in your kitchen as well as outside in your garden.

Purchase basil seeds online.

2. Lavender

Considered one of the best flowers for garden pests, lavender keeps away all kinds of bad insects and related pests. It repels flies, rodents, fleas, mosquitoes, no-see-ums, caterpillars, scorpions, and moths.

Furthermore, if you are searching for plants that repel spiders, lavender makes a great spider-repelling plant. The critters don’t like its strong scent.

Additionally, it adds a splash of color to your garden. Lavender can also add a sweet and relaxing fragrance to your home.

In addition to growing it in your garden bed or pot, you can also tie small bundles of the herb over doorways and near windows to help keep pests out of the house.

Order lavender seeds online.

3. Lemongrass

Among the plants that repel mosquitoes, lemongrass is a key ingredient in many mosquito-repellent candles and oils.

This perennial grass grows well in warm climates. Crush the leaves to release the oil, and use it to rub on your skin to keep away mosquitoes.

Purchase lemongrass seeds online.

4. Peppermint

Peppermint is one of the best mosquito-repellent plants. It also repels bed bugs, ants, flies, mice, earwigs, and roaches.

However, the peppermint plant tends to grow aggressively, so the best bet is to plant it in a container.

Not only will growing it in a container keep it where you want it, but it will also make it easier to move it to a different location.

Purchase mint seeds online.

5. Rosemary

If your veggies are being endlessly harassed by bad bugs, you may want to plant some rosemary nearby.

Rosemary will repel pests such as fruit flies, cabbage moths, lizards, mosquitoes, and carrot flies. Besides, you can also use it to make a natural repellent spray for pests.

To make a homemade spray, simply add some dried rosemary to boiling water for half an hour. Next, strain into a container that contains equal parts of cool water. Finally, store the mixture in the fridge in a spray bottle and use it as needed.

Purchase rosemary seeds online.

6. Bay Leaves

Bay leaves are great at keeping away flies, weevils, rats, cockroaches, and moths.

They also repel earwig insects. Therefore, place the leaves in areas where these critters might show up.

7. Dill

Dill is among the herbs that repel bugs.

It is very successful against garden pests such as aphids, spider mites, cabbage loopers, tomato hornworms, and squash bugs. Therefore, plant it in your vegetable garden as a companion to other crops.

Order the seeds online.

8. Petunias

Among the plants that repel flies, petunias are just as productive as they are pretty. Moreover, they are easy growers [1].

Companion planting with petunias can also help rid your garden of squash bugs, tomato hornworms, asparagus beetles, aphids, and leafhoppers.

9. Fennel

If you have a problem with slugs and snails attacking your garden, plant fennel in or around your garden. The plant also repels aphids.

Purchase fennel seeds online.

10. Thyme

This herb discourages whiteflies, ants, maggots, stink bugs, corn earworms, cabbage loopers, cutworms, and tomato hornworms.

Moreover, it can easily be incorporated throughout your garden to protect your cabbages, tomatoes, and other vegetables.

Buy thyme seeds online.

11. Chives

Plants belonging to the Allium family are great for driving away slugs, flies, aphids, and cabbage worms.

Chives keep away rabbits, carrot flies, Japanese beetles, and mites. Other examples of these natural bug-repellent plants include garlic, leeks, and shallots.

12. Chrysanthemums (Mums)

These are excellent flowers to plant around vegetable gardens to help control harlequin bugs, nematodes, spider mites, ticks, Japanese beetles, and even lice and fleas.

Some chrysanthemum flowers contain pyrethrins, which have strong pesticidal properties. Besides, these flowers add a nice pop of color to your yard.

Purchase chrysanthemum seeds online.

13. Marigolds

Great for organic pest control, marigolds help keep away a lot of garden pests. The flowers give off a scent that repels gnats, mosquitoes, thrips, flies, whiteflies, and sometimes even snakes!

Purchase marigold seeds online.

14. Nasturtium

If your garden seems to be loved by squash bugs, beetles, flies, whiteflies, or cabbage loopers, you can plant some nasturtiums nearby.

Nasturtiums release a scent that naturally keeps off many pests.

Purchase nasturtium seeds online.

15. Onions

Onions are also great for getting rid of certain harmful insects.

They’re not a total bug deterrent like some of the other plants, but they are great at deterring cucumber beetles, cabbage worms, flea beetles, and carrot rust flies.

Some farmers also plant onions near tomatoes and kale to help keep aphids at bay.

16. Calamint

Calamint is great for keeping away cabbage worms and cabbage loopers, as well as some moth larvae. However, it spreads very easily, so be careful where you plant it.

17. Garlic

Garlic protects your blueberries, roses, and raspberries from Japanese beetles, as well as from aphids on your lettuce. It may also repel stink bugs, spider mites, ants, earwigs, and caterpillars.

18. Catnip

Catnip protects eggplants, radishes, and other plants that are susceptible to flea beetles and potato bugs. It also repels aphids and cucumber beetles.

Buy catnip seeds online.

19. Tansy

Many gardeners will plant tansy near their roses to keep away Japanese beetles and cucumber beetles. It also gets rid of Colorado potato beetles.

It’s believed that it gives off a scent that confuses these pests, making it difficult for them to find target plants.

Purchase tansy seeds online.

20. Borage

This herb works best on garden pests such as tomato hornworms and cabbage worms.

It also makes a nice-looking addition to your garden and will support your local honey bee population.

Purchase borage seeds online.

21. Castor Bean Plant

Castor oil, which comes from castor beans, is excellent for getting rid of moles, voles, and possibly armadillos.

However, grow the castor bean plant with caution. The seeds can be poisonous to humans and animals if ingested [2].

22. Tomatoes

That’s right, planting tomatoes can help protect other plants in your garden. However, be sure to plant at least one companion plant nearby that will, in turn, protect your tomatoes from pests.

In particular, tomatoes will help protect your asparagus, as the scent of the plant helps get rid of asparagus beetles.

Since many gardeners plan to have tomatoes anyway, it’s helpful to know that they can perform double duty.

Find a variety of high-quality tomatoes here.

23. Citronella Plant

Mosquitoes hate the smell of the citronella plant. However, simply planting it in your garden is not enough to keep mosquitoes away.

Crushing or touching the leaf will release its oils. The scent of the oil is what they hate, preventing them from coming near.

Citronella also deters cats.

Takeaway

This is an extensive list of natural pest-repellent plants to consider growing to protect your vegetable garden and home. Moreover, many of these plants attract beneficial insects.

Sasha Brown

Sasha Brown is a blogger and lover of all things natural.

4 comments

  • Great job for publishing such a beneficial web site. Your blog isn’t only useful but it is additionally really creative too.

  • what about some plant to repeal fruit flies ?

  • Thank you!! That was very informative!! I wrote a few down which I will purchase soon! Thank you for Posting!!!

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