The outdoors can be fun for a variety of fun activities with others. Garden parties, picnics, barbecues, and camping can be cheap and fun ways to spend time outside. However, sometimes bugs can get in the way. The most common commercial bug-repelling lotions and sprays contain Deet, a chemical that is thought to confuse bugs into not being able to find the Deet-wearer.
However, Deet can be an irritant to the skin and eyes and is mildly toxic to the environment. It can be absorbed into the skin and cause severe reactions inside the body too much is used. Many people have decided to try natural bug repellents to keep bugs away while avoiding harm to themselves and the environment.
Natural Insect Repelling Oils
There are many different kinds of essential oils that are known to repel different bugs. Some of the most popular of these oils are:
- Cedar oil
- Citronella oil
- Tea tree oil
- Geranium oil
Cedar oil is known to be a bug and tick repellent. There are three kinds of compounds in citronella oil that have been proven to repel bugs including mosquitoes and sand flies up to a meter. Tea tree oil has been known to repel and even kill mosquitoes and geranium oil has some similar properties as citronella oil. Rosemary, lavender, catnip and mosquito plant oils also work well for repelling bugs.
Natural Repellent Lotion or Spray
- 20 drops eucalyptus oil
- 20 drops cedar wood oil
- 10 drops tea tree oil
- 10 drops geranium oil
- 2 oz. carrier oil or base
First buy a carrier oil or base. For a spray, jojoba oil works well. For a lotion, refined shea butter does fine. For the lotion, make sure to heat the shea butter gently until it is soft enough to mix with the oils. Add all of the oils into a mixture and stir. Carefully pour the mixture into a clean spray bottle or lotion container. Chill the shea butter lotion before using so that it has an opportunity to harden back into lotion.
Potpourri Repellent
Sometimes at more formal events it may not be polite to wear bug repellent. Fragrant bug repelling potpourri keeps bugs at bay while smelling and looking very pleasant.
Natural Bug Repellent Potpourri
- 2 cups lavender flowers
- 1 cup rosemary
- 1 cup southernwood
- ½ cup spearmint
- ¼ cup mugwort (optional)
- ¼ cedar wood chips
- 3 large teaspoons orrisroot (ground or powder)
Mix all of the ingredients together, saving some of the lavender flowers to for garnishment. Pregnant women should have someone else handle the ingredients because mugwort in large quantities can cause uterine contractions.
Essential oils have many different uses and insect repelling is only one use for these oils.
Sources:
Ethnobotanical study of some of mosquito repellent plants in north-eastern Tanzania. Tropical Pesticides Research Institute, Division of Livestock and Human Disease Vectors Control, 2008.
Siegel-Maier, Karyn. The Naturally Clean Home: 150 Super-Easy Herbal Formulas for Green Cleaning. Storey, 2008.
The Dollar Stretcher: Natural Insect Repellents.
Amy Schumaker - Amy is a young musician based out of Philadelphia. A native of northeast Ohio, she went to Capital University Conservatory of Music, where ...
