Homemade Insecticides for Gardening
Today, we are into the discussion of homemade insecticides. The insecticide is nothing but a pesticide. However, insects are pests that attack or feed on crop plants or any plants or bushes that are grown at home. The pesticide is a chemical that kills pests. An insecticide is a chemical that kills insect pests which are harmful to plants. The insecticide may be either synthetic or organic. Synthetic insecticides are bit costlier than organic insecticides. Sometimes, organic insecticides are also costlier. When we come to Kitchen gardening or Urban gardening, we can prepare those organic insecticides ourselves at home at low cost which are organic.
In an urban garden or kitchen garden, the plants are mostly attacked by insect pests than any other microbes. Insects are the common pests that attack or feed on the Kitchen garden plants. Many people are unaware of these insect pests that commonly attack kitchen garden plants. Therefore, in this post, we have come up with this article on common insect pests that attack urban garden plants and how to control them with homemade insecticides or natural bug repellents at a cheap price. If you are a gardener, you must be aware of Homemade Insecticides to control any kind of insects and pests naturally.
Common insects that attack urban garden plants
Whiteflies: Whiteflies are the small and tiny white colored flies. The feed on the Kitchen garden plants by sucking the cell sap of the leaves. As it feeds on the cell sap, the plants losses their chlorophyll content which leads to a decrease in the yield of the kitchen garden plants.
Tiny moths: Moths are similar to butterflies and belong to the family of butterflies. They are light grey to yellowish in color. Moths are however not harmful to the plants. But, when the moths undergo metamorphosis, the larval stage of those moths are harmful to plants. The larvae feed on the leaves of the garden plants. Sometimes they may completely damage the plant leaves that completely defoliates the plant leaves which damages the whole plants. They are nocturnal and feed the leaves during night and hides behind the leaves during day time.
Beetles: Beetles are the insects that belong to coleopteran order of class Insecta. They are colorful with a hard surface of exoskeleton. They eat the leaves during the night times. They form the symptoms like shot holes. By seeing those shot hole symptoms, we can get to know that the damage is caused by the Beetles.
Mealybugs: They are white colored with woolly surface and can be easily identified on the stem and leaves of the plants. When we touch them, they are spongy in sense. They can be easily controlled by wrapping the base of the stem with plaster or plastic cover as they crawl up on the plant from the soil and they are wingless.
Grasshoppers and crickets: They are almost known for most of us. They are nocturnal and feed on the leaves of the plants during night times mostly. They make some nasty sound during night times.
These are the common insect pests or common bugs that attack the urban garden or kitchen garden plants. It is easy to control those bugs at cheap cost at our own home which we will let you know about natural insecticides for plants and best insecticide for vegetable garden below.
In addition, it is also good to rear or domesticate sparrows or birds that commonly feed on the insects. They act as a natural predator for those insects.
Read: Design of Herb Garden.
Natural Insecticides or Bug Repellents for Urban Garden Plants
They are the natural bug or insect repellents to control the insect pest at home or urban gardens. We can prepare those bug repellents at home at a cheaper price. However, we prepare them at very fewer quantities based on the size of the Urban or kitchen Garden. There are important and effective Effective5 natural insect repellents for Kitchen Gardening at home.
- Neem Oil Spray: It is the oil that is extracted from the seeds of the neem. The neem seeds are also known as kernels. The neem seed oil acts as a powerful insecticide that kills almost all the stages of serious insect pests. It is a good and effective insecticide for an urban farmer or urban gardener. It acts as an antifeedant for the insects. When this neem oil extract is sprayed on the plants and when the insects feed on them, the neem seed extracted oil enters into the insects and leads to the death of the insect pests. The neem seed oil is non-phytotoxic and even not toxic to other organisms in the urban garden. It is easy to prepare natural neem seed oil at home. It is prepared by heating the neem seed juice extract in a certain instrument called condenser. However, we can also get the natural neem seed oil in the market at a low price. In a 5 lt spray can, add 5 ml of neem oil and 50 ml of foamy soap water and remaining with domestic warm water. Spray the prepared liquid on to the plants either in the morning at 9 AM or in the evening between 4 PM to 6 PM.
- Homemade Garlic Insecticide sprays: Garlic has various antimicrobial as well as anti-insect properties. For insect, it acts as a repellent in the way that the aroma of this Garlic spray acts as a repellent to the insects. The pungent aroma of the ginger spray acts as a natural insect repellent. It is easy to prepare the garlic spray at home. Collect two cloves or 100 gm of garlic and grind into a paste and mix it in 100 ml soap water and mix this mixture of 200 ml in 2 liters of water and spray on the garden plants. Spray this prepared mixture on to the plants whenever necessary.
- Chilli-Pepper Insecticide sprays: Blend 100 gm of pepper in 100 ml of water and mix this mixture in 1 kt water and spray on to the plants which kill the tiny leaf-feeding insects. Make sure that the spray doesn’t come in contact with our body or eyes.
- Pyrethrum Insecticide spray: This pyrethrum spray can be prepared from the dried florets and leaves of the marigold or chrysanthemum plants. Dry the florets and leaves of the marigold plants and mix well in a mortar until it becomes a paste and dilute it to 40 to 50 % and then go for spraying on to the plants whenever necessary. This Pyrethrum spray acts as a very good homemade insecticide spray. Almost all the insects can be killed by using this homemade pyrethrum insecticide spray.
- Nicotine spray: This is prepared by mixing the tobacco leaves and making into a paste in a blender. Add this Nicotine paste into a container and mix with half proportion with soapy water to make it foamy in order to adhere to plants for longer period of times. Then, further, add warm water and dilute into 50 % and then spray on the kitchen garden plants.
In addition, you can also spray, 40 to 50 % of the Cow urine. Cow urine acts as an effective insecticidal spray. However, it also acts as a natural organic fungicide for kitchen or urban gardens.
Read: How To Make Hydroponic Solutions At Home.
Precautions or safety measures to be taken care during spraying of homemade insecticides
- Wear hand gloves always while spraying of the organic or natural insecticides even though they are less harmful.
- Wear eyewear or spectacles while spraying.
- Ensure spraying at less concentration as high concentrations of insecticide may lead to the death of plants or sometimes harmful for plants or phytotoxic.
That’s all folks about homemade insecticides or natural control of pests in the home garden.
Read: Organic Farming Practices.