How To Use Irish Spring Soap To Naturally Keep Pests Out Of Your Garden

Gardening is a smart and budget-friendly way to provide you and your family with healthy fruits and veggies. No need to worry about what's going in or on your produce, because you are the captain of these crops. The best greengrocer is just outside your window. Gardening is also a great way to stay active and get outdoors. Who needs the gym when you have hundreds of radishes and turnips to pluck from the Earth?

Sadly, the garden sometimes goes from a veggie nursery to a bitter battlefield. Pests, such as deer and slugs, can wreak havoc on a garden. These rude intruders swoop in and steal our precious food and flowers. If gardening has become more of a chore than a labor of love, follow these simple tips to scare off obnoxious pests:

1. Incorporate "companion plants."

Harvest to Table

Certain plants give off an aroma that pests find unpleasant. Even the color of a plant can deter unwanted visitors. Putting a few companion plants in your garden, such as planting basil next to tomatoes, can deflect flies, mosquitoes, and other insects. Harvest to Table has a handy guide on companion plants.

2. Garlic is your garden's friend.

If you have some garlic in your fridge, try throwing that in your garden. The strong odor of garlic will chase away beetles and potato bugs.

3. Hang up reflective CDs.

Purple Chocolat Home

The reflective surface of CDs will keep the hungry birds away from your fruits. Just hang a few from your spare branches to create a shiny weapon.

4. Deter deer with soap.

Curbly

Deer do not like the smell or taste of soap – and who can blame them? Curbly came up with this great idea to cut up Irish Spring Soap and sprinkle it into the soil to keep deer at bay.

5. Fend off pests with cornmeal.

Gardening & More

This works great both inside and outside your home. If you're finding an army of ants swarming your veggie patch, sprinkle some cornmeal around. This will kill the ants, as well as any ugly weeds.

6. Embrace ladybugs.

They say ladybugs bring good luck, and they can definitely bring some good fortune to your garden. Lure some ladybugs into your veggie patch with raisins and sticks. Besides dried-up grapes, ladybugs like to feast on nasty pests such as aphids.

7. Get rid of slugs using milk.

The Cottage Smallholder

Where there's one slug, there's 50. These slimy little bugs are not your friends. Place a small container of milk in the soil to trap and kill any annoying slugs hanging around. They'll crawl into the container – but they won't come out.

8. Let there be eggshells!

The Thrifty Couple

You know that phrase, "walking on eggshells?" Well, snails and slugs don't like stepping on these sharp shells either. Crumble some leftover shells and toss them around your plants. Now, you've installed a sort of organic tire spike.

The Thrifty Couple

As a lovely bonus, the calcium in eggshells will enrich your tomatoes, peppers, and eggplants, which will help them grow!

9. Plant DIY sticky traps.

Jim Long's Garden

A lot of creepy crawlers like sticky, sweet substances. Jim Long's Garden blog has come up with a nifty, sticky trap to catch and kill your garden insects using a plastic cup.

10. Feed your garden coffee.

Steve Snodgrass

Coffee grounds are rich in nitrogen. Spreading some coffee around your soil increases the acidity, which is perfect for acid-loving plants. Unlike Starbucks-obsessed humans, slugs and deer are not fans of this perky drink.

By implementing these quick and easy gardening tips, you can ensure that the only one getting to eat your produce is you!

The Tiffany Window

Be sure to SHARE these green tips with your friends and family.

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