The summer months are almost upon us, meaning it’s the perfect time to give your garden a spruce up. Hopefully the weather will be good enough that we can spend many hours sitting outside in the garden this summer, but this increase in temperatures unfortunately means more garden pests.
Ants and flying ants are a particular nuisance. They don’t do too much damage to your plants, but they are annoying to deal with – and if they’re in your garden, they’re likely to enter your house too. Thankfully, there’s a cheap and natural method to help drive them away.
The gardening experts at Yell have put together their top tips for deterring common garden pests that can appear all year round, but more commonly in summer.
And if ants are causing problems in your garden or finding their way into your home, some of the best natural deterrents involve strong citrus scents.
Lemon is a particularly effective method – all you need to do is mix lemon juice with water and spray it around ant trails to keep them away.
This citrus fruit can also be used around the home to stop ants from entering. According to the experts at Safeguard Pest Control, you can squirt lemon juice directly into know entry points and place shavings of lemon rind along the ant’s pathways.
You can use real lemon juice for this, or a bottle of lemon juice from the supermarket – but if you’re opting for this, make sure there’s no added sugar, or you’ll simply attract more ants and defeat the whole purpose.
However, it’s not just lemon juice that can help to keep ants at bay. Another scent they dislike is peppermint oil, which can be used in a similar way by mixing a few drops with water and spraying affected areas. You can also keep this for adding a fresh smell around your home.
Other common household staples like vinegar, sugar, and baking soda can also be useful when tackling ants in the garden. If you mix equal parts of vinegar and water, you get a natural repellent that can be used on plants and flowers.
