LifestyleCombatting ticks naturally. Home remedies and protective plants

Combatting ticks naturally. Home remedies and protective plants

How to make a homemade tick spray?
How to make a homemade tick spray?
Images source: © Adobe Stock

12 April 2024 10:34

Thanks to the warm winter and moist spring, ticks thrive in ideal conditions. It's not surprising that they can now be found in forests, home gardens, and even in cities. So, how can we eliminate them from our areas?

Despite their small size, ticks can wreak havoc on our bodies because of the diseases they carry. Unfortunately, a tick bite can have tragic consequences, so we try to minimize the risk of encountering them at all costs. Home remedies can help.

Homemade tick spray

Special chemical agents designed to protect us against ticks can easily be found in stores. Unfortunately, their use may also remove many beneficial creatures, such as bees or ants, from our gardens. Fortunately, there are also home, less invasive methods.

In this case, we will need a decoction of a typical bird cherry. This plant is trendy in the UK, so we should be able to find it easily, even in the local park. All we need are its twigs and bark, which, upon returning home, should be placed in a pot, filled with water, and brought to a boil. Don't turn off the burner when the water starts to boil. Lower the flame and keep the decoction on it for about half an hour.

Blooming common bird cherry
Blooming common bird cherry© Adobe Stock | ToKa

If the water has turned red, we can ensure our preparation is ready. We still have to wait for it to cool down, pour it into a bottle with an atomizer or a manual sprayer, and then spray the plants in our garden.

Plants that repel ticks

It turns out that not only sprays can help repel ticks. For this purpose, it is worth planting specific plants in our garden whose scents irritate these arachnids. These include tansy and catnip. Onions and horseradish, which we will also use in the kitchen, are extremely popular.