Get rid of bugs naturally

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Peppermint Oil

Mosquito Repellent Plants

Mosquito Repelling Creeping Lemon Thyme

Fake Wasp Nest

Sage Smudge Sticks

Murphy's Mosquito Sticks

Bed Bug, Dust Mite and Fluid Protection

EcoRaider Bed Bug Spray

Diatomaceous Earth

Mosquito Repellent Lantern

Insect Shield Synergy.

Bugs be gone

Prepper Deal Alerts Check
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gear and food storage.

Organic peppermint oil

Boric acid is a non-toxic pest
control and works great on
cockroaches

If ants are bothersome around your homestead, read our article
about the natural and non-toxic ways to get rid of ants.

How to get rid of bed bugs naturally...
Banishing the bed bugs can be done naturally. Among the most
difficult of pest problems, b ed bugs are making a comeback.
Here's what to do about them:

Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth & Calcium Bentonite
will give you a thorough elimination of bed bugs, fleas,
cockroaches, slugs, ants, garden insects, silverfish & other
crawling pests.

Don't let the bed bugs bite! Non-toxic protection for your
bed from bedbugs is as simple as a cover, like the one
pictured immediate left from SafeRest. Independently lab
tested and certified, Safe Rest surrounds and protects the
mattress on all 6-sides against allergens, dust mites, bed
bugs, bacteria, fluids, perspiration and urine.

Already have bed bugs? Here is a list of do-it-yourself
tips from Texas A&M for getting rid of bed bugs without
hiring an exterminator.

How to get of cockroaches naturally...
Kicking out the cockroaches can be done naturally, but here's
something interesting to know: believe it or not cockroaches are
edible! While Cock roaches are a viable edible, perhaps you
don't really want them on your menu.

If cock roaches aren't on your apocalyptic menu, here's how to
naturally get rid of these vile little critters:

Sprinkle Borax (sodium borate). To get rid of
cockroaches naturally sprinkle B orax on the top shelves and
roaches won't bother you. Roaches love the high spots of
shelves of your kitchen cabinet. Both cockroaches and ants
will eat Borax and carry it back to their colony and "Voila!"
problem solved!

WARNING: Keep Borax away from meat storerooms.
Sodium borate is a poison!

Boric acid. Naturally occurring boric acid is one of the
safest and least toxic methods of pest control. It's your
secret weapon against cockroaches, ants, silverfish, fleas
and more.

Cinnamon essential oil. It may be an old wive's tale, but a
kid's science project studying cinnamon as an insect
repellent also concluded that cinnamon essential oil is a
valid cockroach deterrent. One of the "hot" oils, you
shouldn't use cinnamon essential oil around your
homestead if you have cats or dogs, though it is effective
at getting rid of cockroaches.

Plant Catnip. Catnip makes cockroaches cower.

Fix water leaks. You may not realize it, but if you have
cockroaches, you may have leaky pipes! Fix them.
Cockroaches can live only a week without a water source,
but they can live a month without food. Get rid of that next.

Clean the crumbs, grease and residue. With nothing to
nibble, there's no reason for a cockroach to nibble around
your kitchen. That's just the start because cockroaches
love grease and the residue of food.

Be quick to sweep up the tiniest bread crumbs.
Rinse your plates if you aren't putting them directly
into the dishwasher.
Mop the floor frequently to get rid of the residue.

Get rid of paper bags. Roaches love hiding out in your
stash of brown paper bags. Recycle them or use them for
composting.

Keep your woodpile away from the house. Cockroaches
love wood piles. Preppers love woodpiles too, as do spiders
and snakes. Get to it chop-chop!

Look for critter crawlspace. Almost getting a cockroach is
frustrating when you know where it went and you can't get
at it. Seal the cracks and crawl spaces of your pantry,
baseboards and cupboards with caulk, so they can't hide.
Another option is to use s teel wool to get critters at
entrances where there are pipes.

Suffocate them with soap. A good clean cockroach kill is a
soapy suffocation (they breathe through their skin). You'll
clean and kill at the same time without the chemicals. Try
citrus liquids because cockroaches hate citrus.

Recipe for cockroach abatement. A mixture of boric acid,
flour and cocoa powder is enough to kill your cockroach
problem! Use one part boric acid to one part of the flour
and cocoa mixture. (Please don't use this natural cockroach
poison if you have children around who may be attracted to
the food-like plate.) Read more about Boric Acid u ses
around the homestead.

How to get rid of crickets and grasshoppers
naturally...
Did you know you can eat crickets and grasshoppers? Eat them!
Not that you'd really want to "eat your grubs," it is something
to consider if food is in short supply, and eating them is one
way to get rid of them!

According to Mykel Hawke in his book "Hawke's Special Survival
Forces," pictured at the top right hand corner of the page, "... It
would be foolish to ignore insects as a food source and a good
supplement to any diet out in the wild." His argument is
cogent: 100 grams of grasshoppers top in his chart, provide 20
grams of protein and 6 grams of fat. The list includes beetles,
termites, ants, crickets, worms and caterpillars as excellent
food sources. If you decide to eat buts, make sure you get rid
of the hard parts, such as the shells and legs. Skip the wings
and tails which sting!

If you don't plan on eating them for your survival, then learn
how to get them out of your garden:

Cucumber peels. While cucumber peels are loaded with
vitamins, you may find yourself with scraps from time to
time. Cucumber peels will drive out both ants and crickets.
Why not compost the peels where you don't want the
grasshoppers hopping? While it's not the total solution, it
certainly will help.

How to get rid of fleas naturally...
Flicking the fleas is pretty easy to do naturally. Here's how to
naturally get rid of fleas:

Cinnamon essential oil. C innamon essential oil is great for
getting rid of fleas. Unfortunately, it's most often
overlooked because the hot oil isn't compatible for use
with cats and dogs, and usually you don't have fleas if you
don't have cats and dogs.

Garlic isn't just for vampires: it gets rid of fleas. Put
garlic powder on your pets food. Some preppers argue that
garlic will repel fleas by working its way to their coat via oil
glands. The oil repels the fleas.

Lavender essential oil. Lavender essential oil is not only
soothing, but it's particularly effective natural pest control
for dogs and cats, which is why you will sometimes find
lavender included in dog shampoos.

Orange essential oil. You also may find a natural dog
shampoo with orange essential oil. Orange oil is a natural
for repelling all sorts of bugs.

How to get rid of fruit flies naturally...
Flipping the fruit flies is most often done with vinegar.

Make a fruit fly away with these natural concoctions:

bay leaves
lavender
rosemary
spearmint (other insects don't like spearmint either,
including ants, mosquitoes, and moths).

How to get rid of houseflies naturally
While you can always swat the common housefly, sometimes
their numbers are so pesky and they are evasive on a hot
afternoon that you let them slide.

Fly paper strips is a sticky substance that attracts flies and
when they land on the strips, they are stuck (and
subsequently die).

Preppers have more reason than ever to get rid of the common
housefly. Houseflies carry a host of diseases from Salmonella
and E. Coli -- to something you may not have heard about
Shigella (an intestinal pathogen that causes dysentery).

How to get rid of mosquitoes naturally...
Mosquitoes are a pesky problem...

Curb those pesky mosquitoes! If you're lucky enough to catch
the first batch of larvae, you'll cut the chance they breed and
this minimizes your problem later in the season. Who knew
mosquitoes would be such a picky bunch? There are dozens of
ways to keep mosquitoes from buzzing near your ears:

Basil. An herb that makes mosquitoes skedaddle, basil will
make a delicious addition to your herb garden.
Catnip. Treat your kitty and combat mosquitoes
simultaneously. Try rubbing catnip on your skin: it's purr-
fect and catnip is 10 times more effective than Deet (as
reported by Scientific Daily)! The essential oil in catnip is
Catnip makes the cockroaches cower, too.
Citronella geranium. Citronella geranium Bugging out or
camping in bear country? A citronella candle is wonderful
for repelling mosquitoes, but when you are in bear country,
you'll need to avoid citronella!
Frankincense. Frankincense is an excellent mosquito
repellent, but also a flee, tick and house fly repellent!
Garlic. Rubbing garlic on your body apparently will repel
two kinds of blood suckers vampires and mosquitoes.
Rosemary. Packed with antioxidants, rosemary is great for
repelling mosquitoes and it's a natural disinfectant. Best of
all, it's easy to grow and doesn't require much water
making it a drought tolerant plant for your garden.
Sage. Burn sage and smoke out mosquitoes and any bad
spirits.
Spearmint. You'll be minty fresh and mosquito free with
spearmint. Mosquitoes dislike spearmint, and other insects
too, including ants, flies, and moths. Rub spearmint on
your skin directly as a natural mosquito repellent or plant
spearmint in pots and move wherever you find them.
Lemon thyme. Lemon thyme is loathed by mosquitoes.
Pictured right is the Mosquito Repelling Creeping Lemon
Thyme plant. Lemon Thyme is the ultimate no-spray
mosquito repellent! This plant combats mosquito problems
safely and effectively. A relative of the thyme family,
creeping lemon thyme has a pleasant lemony fragrance
that scents the air with a perfume mosquitoes won't
tolerate! The high citronella oil content of this hardy, easy-
to-grow perennial plant is more potent than any other
mosquito repellent plant tested, and more potent than
citronella candles or sprays, especially when the leaves are
rubbed onto exposed areas of bare skin. Reported by plant
scientists at a major university, and published in major
national magazine media, the mosquito repellent thyme is
up to three times more effective at repelling mosquitoes
than other mosquito-repellent plants. Mosquito repellent
thyme is used as a garnish or cooking herb. The plants are
easily grown and spread fast making an attractive low
growing 4 tall ground cover with a mass of light violet
flowers.
Lemon Grass. Popular in Thai cooking, lemon grass is not
easy to grow by seed. If you're serious about getting
lemon grass to deter mosquitoes naturally, then purchase
a bundle at an Asian market or online.
Lemon Verbena.
Marigold. You're golden with Marigold if you don't like
mosquitoes, because mosquitoes will buzz away at the
smell of it. Marigolds produce a sap that is a bug repellent.
Plant them plentifully in your garden though most of your
garden is food, this will look lovely and help your veggies
grow.
Mums. Get some help from a mum. Chrysanthemums are
the plant that produces the very toxic pyrethrin, which
replaces DEET in several types of bug repellent and is also
a contact insecticide. This is another flower that does the
trick to repel and will help your food grow.
Parasitic Nematodes. These little killers infect fleas and
lay eggs inside their bodies, which hatch. In turn, the larva
eat the insides of the flea as it develops and finally leaves
the empty husk to find a new living host to perpetuate the
cycle.

More natural ways to deter mosquitoes:

Insect shield: Insect Shiled Synergy blend by Plant
Therapy, pictured at the top of the page, is made of 100%
pure essential oils. It's a blend of: Citronella, Eucalyptus,
Cedarwood, Lemongrass, Lavender, Litsea, Tea Tree,
Patchouli & Catnip, Insect shield Essential oil will keep the
mosquitoes at bay naturally!

Have a Mosquito Smokeout! Mosquitoes don't like smoke,
including smoke from coconut shells and sage. In French
Polynesia, people burn fires, and the smoke from coconut
shell temporarily repels mosquitoes from the area. The
solution of burning coconut shell may be an option if you
live in Hawaii, If not, try Murphys Mosquito sticks, pictured
below:

How to get rid of moths naturally...

Spearmint. Moths don't like spearmint, and either do
mosquitoes, ants and flies.

lemon. Spray lemon juice at door ways and window sills to
prevent moths from entering your home. Place lemon rinds
in the closet to repel moths in case the natural scent of
lemon at the entry points of your home fade. There

Here's a moth repellent recipe: Combine equal portions of
ground cloves, nutmeg, and caraway seeds . Hang the
mixture in a sachet bag or tea strainer will make moths fly
away.

How to get rid of ticks naturally...
Fleas and ticks dislike lavender essential, among many natural
substances. Here's how to avoid ticks while camping.

For repelling ticks try:

How to get rid of spiders naturally...
How to naturally get rid of spiders: peppermint essential oil.

Peppermint Oil. Spiders don't like peppermint oil. Dab
some oil where you find spider webs and they won't return.
They abhor the smell.

How to get rid of wasps naturally...

Wondering how to get rid of wasps naturally? First
things first: make sure you know the difference between a
honey bee and a wasp before you set out to destroy what
you think is a wasp's nest. We must preserve the
beneficial honey bee for its pollinating miracles! Rethink
your wasp "problem"! Are the wasps really a problem?
Wasps aren't really a garden pest, they are pollinators!
Beneficial to your garden, they prey on aphids. They
become a pest only when you eat meats and sweet drinks
outdoors. Once you're sure you have a decided you have a
wasp problem, take heed of these natural tips for getting
rid of wasps:

Get rid of humming bird feeders. The same sugars that
attract humming birds to your feeders will also attract the
wasps.

Feed your pets indoors. If you leave dog or cat food
outside, you're inviting wasps with the scent of meat.

Act when they are dormant. If you find a wasp nest
within reach that you'd like to remove because it poses a
threat to young children, for example, do the nasty work in
their dormant state early in the morning when the weather
is cooler. Wasps are naturally more active at night and
when it's warmer. Even if your time your attack and remove
the nest, know they will return to rebuild often in the same
place.

Hang a fake wasp nest! Wasps hate competition. A wasp
nest simulator will ensure wasps don't build near what they
think is another colony. The bonus is that they look pretty!
Pictured right, the Beee Free Wasp Deterrent is a natural,
non-chemical solution to your wasp problems. Just hang
your Beee Free in an area that is frequented by wasps,
yellow jackets, or hornets and the territorial insects will
detect an existing nest and go elsewhere. Wasps are very
territorial and will not usually build their nests within 200
feet of another nest. Keep your Beee Free up throughout
the year, and you will discourage wasps from building
nests in your backyard. Each package comes with 2
simulated wasp nests.

Hang a shiny penny in a bag of water? Maybe! A myth
has been circulating the Internet that when you hang a bag
of water in a zip lock bag, the reflection is too much for
flies and wasps to bear and they won't buzz your table.
The idea is that refracted light in water confuse s compound
eyes, but is it not true!? Myth Busters busted this idea, but
others swear by this simple and effective method. The
thing is the Myth Buster guys didn't use a shiny penny (and
they were targeting flies not wasps). So why not give it a
try?

Make cloves and Lemon Potpourri: Wasps and bees keep
away from lemons and cloves, so if you're feasting
outdoors, why not make a decorative potpourri? Stick
cloves into a fresh lemon!

If you happen to have some toxic wasp spray around, no
worries! You can use it like Mace! It's on our list of weird
survival tools.

Fleas and the Plague
The bubonic plague, appears about two to five days after
exposure. Symptoms include high fever (107), gangrene,
seizure, muscle cramps, and bleeding from the ears, along with
the telltale swollen rings on the skins. Swollen lymph glands,
called buboes, are often found on the neck, armpit and groin of
the victim. Once the symptoms start, without treatment, the
plague could kill approximately two thirds of infected humans
within four days.

It's good to know that fleas don't reproduce well in low
humidity; however that won't save you. So how does a prepper
guard against the plague? Sadly, the only cure is prevention. If
many rodents die in your area, there's a good indication of a
plague outbreak, and it's time start preventative action,
including isolating pets. A flea collar will do little to prevent the
problem.

The cure for the bubonic plagues is antibiotic gentamicin;
however, in a pandemic situation there likely won't be enough
to go around. Alchornea cordifolia is a shrub or small tree found
in tropical Africa, which has herbal medicinal properties of
gentamicin. Good luck if you don't live in near that shrub.

Happy endings...
Every bug has it's place and purpose in the environment, though
as preppers we may not always see this clarity. It's true that
some bugs are beneficial!

Ladybugs, for example, will eat your aphids. Ladybugs
prefer to eat aphids (around 50 a day), but they will also
attack scale, mealy bugs, boil worm, leaf hopper, and corn
ear worm. Attract ladybugs.

Caterpillars and butterflies. Hang oranges to attract
butterflies.

In case you're wondering...

entomologists (studies all bugs and insects)
lepidopterists (studies specifically butterflies)
apiologists (studies specifically honeybees)
preppers and survivalists (eats ants, beetles, crickets,
termites, grasshoppers and worms)