Home remedies and tips that help against pests

Aphids suddenly appear on plants. There they suck the valuable juice from the plants and thus cause lasting damage to them. What can you do?

Aphids are annoying and persistent. The pests appear seemingly out of nowhere on bedding, balcony and house plants. There they then suck the valuable juice from the plants and thus cause lasting damage to them. Young leaves and fresh shoots are particularly often affected by louse infestation. You can quickly combat the small plant pests with simple home remedies.

If crop plants such as fruit trees, vegetable plants, lettuce and herbs are infested with aphids, it is not advisable to use chemical insecticides. The ingredients settle on the harvest and make the vegetables and fruits inedible. Furthermore, some of them are also toxic to humans. For example, the active ingredient pyrethroids is suspected of having hormonal effects and thus reducing men’s fertility. In addition, certain active ingredients contained in insecticides could trigger asthma or skin rashes.

Aphids can be controlled with simple home remedies. In order for these to work, they have to be applied several times – unlike insecticides. Depending on the severity of the infestation, various containment measures are possible:

If your house and ornamental plants are only slightly infested with aphids, you can wash the pests off the leaves, flowers and stems with a strong jet of water, for example in the shower.

1. Place the pot in a large plastic bag.
2. Close them tightly just above the ground around the trunk. The soil should not be washed out by the water.
3. Now direct the strong jet of water at the affected plant. Do this thoroughly and then check whether all aphids have been removed.
4. Repeat the process several times until an infestation is no longer noticeable.

Info: For potted plants in the garden, you can use the water jet from the garden hose instead. Beforehand, you should also protect the soil in the pot from being washed out using a large plastic bag.

Another effective home remedy is coffee. Dilute cold coffee infusion with water (1:1 ratio) and spray this tincture with an atomizer onto the parts of the plant affected by aphids.

If your plant has a moderate infestation of aphids, nettle broth can help.

1. Place two handfuls of nettles in a large bowl.
2. Pour two liters of cold water over the leaves.
3. Let everything steep for at least twelve hours.
4. Fill a spray bottle with the nettle broth and use it to sufficiently wet the affected plants.
5. Repeat the process several times a day for a few days.

The broth made from field horsetail is also used in a similar way to the nettle broth. However, you need several ingredients for this:

• 150 grams of field horsetail
• a garlic bulb
• an onion
• cooking oil

1. Chop the stalks, garlic cloves and onion.
2. Put everything in a medium pot with a little water.
3. Add about two tablespoons of cooking oil.
4. Bring everything to a boil and simmer over medium heat for 15 minutes.
5. Pour the broth into a spray bottle in a ratio of 1:5 and use it to wet the affected plants.

Soapy water is also a well-known remedy against aphids. However, as little as possible should get into the soil so as not to harm the plant. It also makes sense to cover the soil when you spray your plant with the soapy water.

How to make the soapy water:

1. Put 50 grams of curd soap, 75 milliliters of spirit together with one liter of water in a spray bottle.
2. Shake everything well.
3. Cover the potting soil.
4. Mist the plant regularly over several days.

The disadvantage of this method is that the alcohol in particular can damage the plant.

Neem or neem is particularly suitable for larger louse infestations. The biological agent is available as an oil or a ready-made mixture from specialist retailers and garden centers.

1. Put the neem oil in a spray bottle with a little water.
2. Spray the plant regularly with the solution.

Another trick to combat aphids is said to be rapeseed oil or sunflower oil. This should be rubbed or sprayed on all parts of the plant. The problem with this method: the oil clogs the plant’s pores. It is further weakened and collapses.