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Garlic Water For Plants: Easy DIY organic pesticide:
82Garlic is an Excellent Pesticide:
The natural repellent nature of garlic makes this bulb plant a perfect tool for keeping pests off plants. Garlic water is simple to make and easy to administer. It can be used on vegetables or on flowering plants. The simple to make garlic tonic works well for pests such as aphids, but gardeners who are concerned about harmful chemicals can kick up the benefits of garlic water for plants by simply adjusting the ingredient list. Below are several recipes that can help dispel the vermin and pests from your garden. The heavy garlic smell dissipates quickly but is active enough to keep bugs away. Even organic vegetables should be washed before eating, so make that a habit.
Garlic: Peeled Cloves:
Moles, Voles and Nibblers:
Moles and voles leave a shallow tunnel near the surface of the ground because they are looking for roots to nibble on. Often the sign of a mole of vole in the garden is a wilted plant that when pulled has significant root damage. Using garlic to combat mole, voles and gophers is a positive and non-toxic way to keep nibbling pests out of the garden.
To Prepare: Use whole or crushed garlic and place directly into their tunnels. The odor of garlic is very strong to their sensitive nose and this will encourage them abandon the area. Garlic plants also work as a great deterrent So planting garlic as a companion plant is helpful to eliminate a mole or vole problem before it even begins. Using garlic water for plants can also work as a tonic that seeps into the soil and disrupts the harmful denizens that may abide there. Gophers, moles and voles will avoid digging in dirt that is treated with garlic water. The recipe for garlic water is located at the bottom of the page.
Freshly Harvested Garlic
Garlic Water for Pests:
Aphids, stink bugs and harlequin cabbage bugs can really destroy crops around the garden. To help keep pests off plants use a spritzer bottle and garlic water to douse plants before or during an infestation. Garlic has many positive properties that bugs (and some people) do not like. Garlic water is an easy and simple way to rid your plants of pests without using harmful chemicals that may be toxic or may leech into the ground water.
Organic gardening is about using natural products to produce food that is chemical free. Using garlic water is a great way to maximize crop production without relying on chemicals.
Standard Garlic Water Recipe:
6-cloves of garlic peeled and sliced fine.
2-quarts of tap water or purified water.
1 TBLS natural soap (castile is a good brand)
1 Spritzer bottle.
1 Mason Jar with lid ( recycled jar works fine too)
In a sauce pot, warm water until it begins to steam. Add sliced garlic and maintain temperature for 20 minutes. Allow water to cool, Remove garlic from water and discard (compost.) Add soap to spritzer bottle. Using a funnel add enough water to fill the spritzer bottle almost full but leave at least 1/2 inch of room. Put the lid on the spritzer bottle and shake slightly when ready to use. Spray plants early in the morning or in the evening time after the hottest part of the day has past. Several applications may be needed. Avoid using the spray on hot days as the liquid and sunlight may burn the plants. Extra liquid can be stored in the jar in the fridge for up to two weeks.
Improved Garlic Water For Plants:
Improved Garlic Water Recipe:
6-cloves of garlic peeled and sliced fine.
2- Hot Peppers Chopped fine.
2-quarts of tap water or purified water.
1 TBLS natural soap (castile is a good brand)
1 Spritzer bottle.
1 Mason Jar with lid ( recycled jar works fine too)
In a sauce pot, warm water until it begins to steam. Add sliced garlic and hot peppers and maintain temperature for 20 minutes. Allow water to cool, Remove garlic and peppers from water (strain if needed) and discard (compost.) Add soap to spritzer bottle. Using a funnel add enough water to fill the spritzer bottle almost full but leave at least 1/2 inch of room. Put the lid on the spritzer bottle and shake slightly when ready to use. Spray plants early in the morning or in the evening time after the hottest part of the day has past. Several applications may be needed. Avoid using the spray on hot days as the liquid and sunlight may burn the plants. Store excess liquid in the mason jar with a lid on it. Water can be stored in the fridge for up to two weeks. Wear gloves and goggles when using this spray it can cause blister on sensitive skin and cause significant eye damage if you should get it in your eyes. Wash hands thoroughly when finished. KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN:
Aphids- Up Close and Personal.
Using Natural Insecticides:
Using natural insecticides is a positive and beneficial way to grow a healthy garden and take care of the environment. In 1950 (ish) DDT was very popular as an insecticide and was sold over the counter. The result was cancer and DDT was removed from the market. Chemicals that are safe today may not be safe tomorrow. Do yourself the favor and avoid them when you can. These natural insecticides work well and help to alleviate many garden pests. Enjoy your garden and please feel free to leave a comment or ask a question.
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I really like this idea. I planted garlic for the first time a year ago because the Japanese beetles were so bad. It seemed to work and I cook with garlic every day anyway. Thanks for a great tip.
Dave,
Thank you for the awesome information! I agree that while avoiding chemicals altogether is almost impossible, avoiding them as much as possible will go a long way towards better health. There are natural pesticides for just about everything. For moles and voles I have heard using garlic however I have also heard about the castor bean being a great companion plant to deter moles. Also geraniol is another natural pest control. Geraniol is a component found in of course Geraniums and I use this for spraying on my skin to deter summer bugs. Thank you for this Hub Dave! Most people are more comfortable with chemicals simply due to lack of information so thank you for your efforts in raising the awareness!
Kelsie
Yes! This is great. I use garlic to keep tomato bugs from destroying my plants. Highly recommend!
Say what??? Never heard of this. Thank you for sharing, voted up, marked useful, interesting and book marked.
cclitgirl: Garlic answers many questions!
Esmeowl12 Garlic really works well as a companion plant and it goes in just about everything...
KelsieGriggs: Castor Beans are good too... though not always readily available! Geraniums also help attract pollinators. I like to use companion plants to help stop infestations before they begin.
Alipuckett: Tomatoes, basil and garlic grow well together as companion plants to help defend each other from pest invasions.
pmccray: Keep me posted on how this works for you!
Dave do you think it might deter deer? And do you just plant regular cloves of garlic to grow more or do you get it at a garden store?
thanks
Gerry
I am not sure about deer... I know they do not like blood-meal nor are they fond of most of the traditional herbs such as rosemary, oregano, etc. Not sure about garlic. I buy organic garlic at the health-food store and I plant that... it is the same stuff you get at the nursery. It has been so long that I have not seen a deer... I will ask my brother... he should remember what our grandfather used.
Thanks Dave, I will try the bloodmeal; I've been thinking about transplanting oregano from my big herb tub to act as ground cover,maybe that will work. Now that I recall I think they ate my wild garlic to the ground recently; they're eating the rosebushes thorns and all even with netting over it, I'm next to a county park and we have large herds of deer, not as many people hunting them any more either.
Gerry
A great Hub as I'm also keen on organic gardening and the use of garlic spray. Great to eat, too, but I do prefer it cooked. In some restaurants in Taiwan it is served raw to nibble while people wait for their orders.
Gerry: When I was young there was something called zoo-do which was fertilizer that contained lion poop... it caused the deer to stay away... you might check and see if that is still available.
BlossomSB: I think garlic is the perfect food... and it has so many uses. What do you garden?
Thanks Dave that was very informative. Voted you up and useful.
Good mojo here. I eat quite a bit of garlic and it repels mosquitoes for me.
The Frog
Kevin: Thank you for reading and voting! When do you start your spring garden?
The Frog Prince: Garlic is a good mosquito repellent too!
My garden is quite small, but I grow both flowers and vegetables - and herbs; many of them are in pots. I even have bush beans and zucchini in pots and they have been doing quite well. I'm now leaving some of the beans on, so I can have the seeds as they are not what the packet said - they are green with lots of red streaks, but cook to a pale yellow and are good cooked or raw in salads (when young).
BlossomSB... It is always good to collect your own seeds... Especially since they began to modify seeds genetically.... My zuchhini did not do well this past summer... the weather here was very odd though.
I got so many sweet-pea seeds that I've been giving some away! Today someone at church gave me a zucchini that was round like a melon - I've never seen one like that before.
I have grown 8 ball zucchini... they are round and dark green... not bad.. good for stuffing.
Glad to read your recipes and tips. Will have to share your garlic remedy for moles...
frogyfish! Let me know how it works for you...or rather ... the moles!
The only bug I've had any real issues with is the tomato hornworm, and I try to keep those picked off. To control aphids I try to leave some thistle plants around before the other flowering plants plants grow in the spring, The ladybugs love the thistle plants and hang around to eat the aphids when they arrive. Iv'e never sprayed garlic because I've not had that much trouble with the six-legged pests. It's the four legged ones that get me. Unfortunately, my garlic bulbs I planted were all eaten by the gophers. As my husband said, the gophers and deer haven't read the books that tell them what they are and aren't supposed to like. Fortunately, the deer really don't like my herbs, and even the gophers have left my oregano and rosemary alone. They've been too busy eating my chard. Sometimes I think gophers have individual likes and dislikes. I used to be afraid to keep lambs ears in the ground because the gophers ate them. Now they have let them alone. Same with gazanias. One year the gophers took out the entire gazania border of my herb garden on one side of the house, but the gophers on the other side by the pump house left the border of gazanias there intact. I've read that gophers are territorial and won't let other gophers intrude on their territory, so it's not surprising the different gophers prefer different plants.
Gohpers are odd like that... Some would eat my moms bulbs and others would not.They seem to develop different tolerances for plants too. Deer will eat whatever they want to when they are hungry or about to have their babies.
Dave you might be interested in my latest hub: A small Unit Garden. In it I discuss the use of tubs and pots and also give some hints about worm farms.
Just when I thought I could not love garlic anymore.... This is so neat!
hello Simone! It can be worn as perfume... too... NOT! well maybe... Thanks for reading and for commenting.
Hello himanshu Lal! Thank you for reading and all the votes. I have been enjoying your hubs!
This is amazing advice! I found this hub because you posted an answer to my call for help getting rid of the aphids on my indoor herb garden. I'm going to try the garlic water. It makes sense now that I think about it, I always call the aphids "vampires of the garden" so of course garlic would repel them! Haha! Thanks so much for this advice, you just might be saving my precious plants.
Some years I have a terrible time with aphids, and have tried spritzing them with soapy water. I like the idea of adding garlic to the mix - it sounds like it would be much more effective! Might even try mixing some garlic plants in my flower beds. Thanks for the suggestions!
Just wondering if anyone has written about planting garlic near roses. That's a good way of helping to keep the aphids away, too.
I'm all for natural methods of deterring pests rather than chemical pesticides. I don't use any type of lawn or garden chemicals. Did you know that Roundup is one of the most toxic substances on the planet, and so many people use it as a weedkiller? It's been proven to cause cancer in pets that walk in grass treated with it because the poison enters their bodies through the foot pads. Natural is always better! Thanks for this tip.
Hello JayeWisdome... When I was a baby... my parents used DDT... My dad was a logger and the logging companies would fly over the area while the loggers worked and spray DDT and other toxins to kill the underbrush... My dad, My mom, all of their friends... they all died from the same cancer... many of the first born children have died of that cancer too....
What a brilliant idea. I had no clue that we could use garlic water as a repelant. Great advice and such a simple method too.
Voted up useful and interesting. sharing
Hello molometer! Always great to hear from the mother land... How goes the ladybird beetle expansion?
What a great idea, and just in time for our vegetable garden, which is showing signs of being attacked already! I hope it works on things like tomato cutworms, as well.
Voted up across the board, and shared both here on on FaceBook!
Incredible. I never heard of garlic water as a pesticide before. But I know if I was a garden pest I would stay away! By the way, do you have to spray the plants daily or does it last awhile?
What a great idea and a great Hub. I think I will try it for my tomatoes this year. The squirrels got them last year! Bookmarked and shared!
DzyMsLizzy! keep me posted on the results!
Hey ktrapp: Aphids have piercing sucking mouths just like vampires... Neither like garlic!!! When you boil the garlic it release oil and the oil sticks to the plant for a bit... Repeat applications as needed.
hello rebeccamealey! Squirrels are horrible to get rid of... especially the ground squirrels.
This is really something new to me especially the garlic water for plants and pests. Interesting!
Hello coffeegginmyrice! I think this concept is really an extension of the relationship that plants have with each other and how plants and insects use naturally produced chemicals for many purposes...
What an excellent idea! I had a vegetable garden a few years back, and the aphids were awful. I used the toxic insectacide, and it didn't work! Next time I will try this.
so helpful! Just getting in to backyard gardening and I am bookmarking this for future reference!
Ladybugs work well too Jenna Pope!
Nice! BethDW... gardening is an awesome way to save money on groceries and have total control over what we eat.
Love this hub on garlic water to repel insects! Great advice to go natural. You really can't trust commercial products.
Hello Melis Ann... This works really well on Aphids...
I believe that nature holds the secrets to most of our needs--disease cures or remedies, healthful herbs, natural pest controls, and many others. Man has gotten so far from nature and into chemicals. A lot has been lost.
I noticed that many garden plants become insect damaged if insecticides are not used, but our garlic always thrives perfectly without a blemish. My mom used garlic water when she was functional, but I have not used it.
Someone told me that eating garlic before spending time outdoors--fishing, camping, etc., would ward off mosquitos. I have not tried it yet.
I tried this: sprinkle cayenne pepper around your mailbox to keep the neighbor's dog from pooping there. The circle around should be at least a diameter of four feet or wider. Dogs usually sniff wherever they stop. One whiff of cayenne will send them on their way. A new sprinkling needs to be repeated after each rain if it is needed. In most cases the same dog will not return.
davenmidtown Hi. Thank you so much for all this information and garlic recipes,some of which is new to me.
We do have aphids,green caterpillars and white butterfly that love to feast on our vege and flowers,so your recipes should solve this problem.
I can,t imagine what damage a Deer,Gophers or a Mole(not sure what type of animal that is) would do to your garden. We do not have that problem over here in(Australia).
Thanks again, will be trying your recipes for sure. Voted up and very,very useful. :):)
Hello oliversmum! A good day to Oliver too! A mole is similar to a gopher but instead of mostly eating plants they eat ground dwelling grubs...but they tunnel close to the surface and disrupt plant roots, etc. What kinds of pests do you guys have in Australia that bother gardens?
Hello Levertis Steele: I think you are correct in that nature holds a great deal of cures and secrets, etc. Most of which we have not even discovered. I think we approach the search through a drive towards corporate profits instead of a pure desire to learn. So many species not yet discovered.
This is a great Hub with a great idea of using organic and natural pesticide. Thank you for sharing the detailed information.
Thank you jainismus!
davenmidtown Hi. Thank you for your reply to my comment.
Over here we have Thrip and Caterpillars that chew on the leaves of plants,also a smallish white grub that burrows under the plants and destroys the root system,and the plants usually do not survive. It seems like we may need one of these moles to get rid of these horrible little grubs.
We do have many more small pests, but right or wrong we learn to live with a lot of them.
Oliver say,s Hi to you,he is wagging his tail.Thank you again. :):)
Thrips like to live in the flowers of plants, and if you have any flowers that are dying pick them and throw them in the compost. It will remove a great many thrips and eggs from your garden. Do you have a lot of white cabbage butterfly? They can be a pain in the garden. their larva are green. Those white grubs are probably beetle larva. If you look at them they should have six legs. If they have no legs then they probably belong to a fly and not a beetle. The green fruit beetle, june bugs, Rose chaffers, and stag beetles (all pretty awesome when in beetle form) have white larva that have either a dark blue/black head or a brown head and a blackish spot on their hind end that looks like you can see their guts... You can kill off some of those using nematoads (spelling) which are tiny little microbes that you soak into the soil.
I have used soapy water to treat for aphids but never mixed in the garlic. I have tomatoes and basil growing together but might have room to stick in some cloves of garlic as well. Thanks for the suggestions! Voted up, useful and will SHARE.
I have used garlic many times in my garden. I also mix it with basil and marigolds for the "nasty" buggers. Great article. Nice to see someone pushing for natural bug management. Vote up +
Hello Peggy W! Tomato and basil to a good job of helping each other out. Thank you for reading, voting and sharing.
Hello cloverleaffarm! They use chrysanthemums extract in outdoor clothing as a natural bug repellent. I can see how Marigolds would be useful too.
Very cool, so much better than petroleum based pesticides!
Ben
Thank you Ben! Very true... plus it doesn't kill off the bees.
Excellent hub! We shall definitely use this info in our garden! Thanks!
Well put Dave and with the bees, it also has no affect on all the food those bees pollinate that other creatures eat (namely, us!) Glad to see more of this type of philosophy entering the mainstream :o)
tnderhrt23: Let me know how this works for you! thank you for reading.
We could lose the bees and lose obesity... hmmmmm
davenmidtown Hi. Thank you again for all your help and information in dealing with these pests.
We do have a lot of white cabbage butterfly at present due to having cabbage,cauliflower,brussel sprouts,silver beet,in the garden.
The white grubs do have 6 legs.
Thanks again I can now fix this problem without harming the enviroment.:):)
Can we use just the garlic alone without the soap?
You could try but I would put in about 5X more garlic. That idea is to extract the oil from the garlic which then wards off the pests. The soap is the vehicle that ensures some oil gets on the plants and then does not stick to the sides of the spritzer.
cclitgirl Level 7 Commenter 4 months ago
This is a great hub! I love gardening but can always use some extra tips. I love garlic, too, so this works out great!! Voted up and some other things. :)