Volume 245, September 22, 2023 | |
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How to Get Rid of Bugs Without Pesticides
By Tammy Pitts
With summer in full swing, you may have noticed a sudden increase in pest activity around your home and lawn. And while it may be tempting to just pick up chemical pesticides from the store, these harmful solutions pose a risk to your health and the environment.
When pesticides are sprayed on the grass and plants, they seep into the ground. Runoff ends up in the waterways, and both humans and animals are negatively affected. Here at ORI, we take environmental education seriously, and we aim to make it as easy as possible for you to do your part.
Fortunately, there are safe and natural methods to combat pests without resorting to harmful chemicals. Here are a few ways to keep pests out of and away from your home.
Maintain a clean and tidy home
Keeping your living spaces neat and tidy is the best way to keep pests out. Regularly vacuum, sweep, and mop floors to eliminate any food crumbs that might attract ants and other pests. Store your food in airtight containers and Ziplock bags to prevent bugs from getting access.
Additionally, empty the trash a few times a week so that garbage doesn’t pile up. The smell can attract flies.
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Natural repellents
Essential oils such as peppermint, tea tree, and lavender oil can naturally deter bugs while making your house smell wonderful! Mix a few drops of peppermint oil with water to naturally repel ants, spiders, mosquitoes, and even mice. Shake 10-15 drops of the oil into 8 oz of water into a bottle and then spray the mixture around windows, doors, and vents.
● Lavender oil can be sprayed or leave a few drops in saucers sitting around your home. Moreover, you can place lavender sachets or pillows in linen closets and drawers to keep moths and other insects away all while leaving a fresh scent.
● Tea tree oil is another great essential oil to use in your battle against bugs.
● Citrus peels like lemon or orange are equally effective at repelling bugs. Place the peels in problem areas or entry points to deter insects.
● A pot of basil set on a windowsill or table helps to repel flies. Keep the basil well-watered from the bottom to produce a stronger scent.
● Try pine, if you love camping outdoors but hate using chemical bug sprays with DEET. Pine is a natural repellent against mosquitoes that will also keep you smelling fresh.
Combine dish soap and lemon for a natural homemade spray
Liquid dish soap is eco-friendly and an effective bug killer. Yes, Dawn to the rescue! Dish soap can kill common garden pests like fleas, ants, and grasshoppers. Just get a bottle and evenly mix it with soap and water and spray. The dish soap breaks down the bug’s exoskeleton, causing it to dehydrate and die.
Combine dish soap with lemons, and you have a powerful, environmentally safe insecticide. The acidity in the lemon will kill bed bugs on contact. Make a homemade spray with dish soap and lemon and spritz any area where you’ve spotted bed bugs.
You can also use the spray to prevent bugs from coming in. Coat the perimeter of your home and any cracks or crevices where bugs can enter.
Behold the power of vinegar
Vinegar is another simple solution to keep ants and other pests at bay. Just mix equal parts of white vinegar and water into a spray bottle and apply it in areas where you see bugs. The strong scent disrupts the bugs’ chemical trails and discourages them from returning to your home.
Seal entry points
Bugs can easily find their way into your home through the smallest cracks or gaps, so seal all entry points. Before the start of each season, walk around your property and inspect the foundation for cracks. Seal up any cracks you find.
Use weather stripping around doors and windows, and repair or replace damaged screens.
Diatomaceous earth
Diatomaceous earth, or DE, is a popular and safe way to rid your home and property of annoying pests like flies, spiders, beetles, earwigs, and more. DE is safe for humans but deadly to insects with an exoskeleton. Sprinkle it in areas where bugs are active, around the perimeter of your home, and in all cracks. Within about 48 hours of coming in contact with DE, bugs will die of dehydration.
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Introduce natural predators
Introducing natural predators can reduce or eliminate pest populations and keep your lawn critter-free. Natural predators native to New England include beetles, spiders, and ladybugs which feed on common pests and can help control pest populations.
Protecting your home from bugs without using dangerous pesticides is better for our Earth's environment, climate, and future. And it’s safer for your pets’ and family’s health. By embracing these eco-friendly methods, you’ll be able to get rid of bugs invading your home and lawn naturally.
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Tammy Pitts has an extensive background in journalism, media relations, social media strategy, marketing, and brand management. She resides in Michigan with her family, which includes her two sons and their Goldendoodle, Max. In her free time, she loves to read, travel, and root for the Michigan State Spartans. Go Green! | |
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How We Created the Hottest Global Average Temperature Day and What to Do About It
It was more than fireworks heating up the sky during the 2023 Independence Day celebrations.
July 3 was the hottest day recorded as a global average of temperatures taken at hundreds of sites worldwide. The worldwide average for that day was 62.62 degrees Fahrenheit. The record stood one day until July 4, which was even hotter at 62.92 degrees. The previous record was 62.46 degrees, measured on August 14, 2016.
The third-place record was set despite the many parts per million increases in atmospheric CO2 driving climate change because there was also an El Nino in the Pacific Ocean off California. An El Nino is an ocean effect when warm water is along the coast instead of offshore, permitting cooler water up well. This is one example of how the ocean determines the climate. . .
In 1896, Svante Arrhenius, Greta Thunberg’s great, great grandparent’s second cousin, calculated that increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide would increase and result in a 0.2 degree C rise in global temperatures. He was not alarmed because he understood that it would require people to alter the hydrological cycle for this to happen. Something he thought impossible given the immensity of global systems.
George Perkins Marsh understood how we were altering global water cycles. In his book Man and Nature, or Physical Geography as Modified by Human Action (1864), Marsh documented how humanity had disrupted the hydrological cycle for 8,000 years. It began with agriculture that worked the land unnaturally.
See the entire article in The Eden Magazine September 2023
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Make a big difference with a modest gift
Three ways to give.
1. Make a one-time donation.
2. Giving a designated amount monthly or quarterly.
3. ORI’s Round-up Change Program
I prefer the Round-up Program. If I buy a latte for $4.40, $4.40 goes from my credit card to buy the coffee, and 60 cents is held for ORI. At the end of the month, if $9.99 has accumulated, it is gifted to ORI. If less than that, no gift is made, and the next month starts at zero. You may set the monthly maximum to $10 or higher. I prefer this to monthly pledging because when I’m spending, ORI benefits. When I’m saving, for example, packing lunch and coffee, I give less to ORI.
Check out how you can make a difference going the distance; modestly
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Publications:
How We Created the Hottest Global Average Temperature Day and What to do about it. The Eden Magazine, September 2023
"Saving Forests with Carbon Offset Rewards for Not Cutting, Let Forests Grow Old." E The Environmental Magazine, March 14, 2023
"Speak for the trees: President Biden should protect public forests." Illuminem, December 18, 2022
"Slowing Water for Greener Neighborhoods." Illuminem, December 9, 2022
"Top Gun at COP27. It's not the plane. It's the pilot." The Environmental Magazine, November 29, 2022
"Biden’s game-changing administrative actions for climate at COP27." illuminem Voices, November 19, 2022
"Taking action to improve plight of right whales." Boston Herald, November 9, 2022
"Revival Coffee in Somerville takes up the Natural Lawn Challenge." The Somerville Times, August 27, 2022
"For eco groups, less lawn fertilizer is key to water crisis." By Dustin Luca, Salem News August 12, 2022
“More carbon capture, better water retention and greener emerald bracelets for Dedham.” The Dedham Times, August 12, 2022.
“Emerald Bracelets to Solve Three Of The World’s Greatest Environmental Problems.” by Rob Moir, The Environmental Magazine, June 21, 2022
"Of Mousy and Elephantine Cycles, Managing the CLIMATE CRISIS after Glasgow COP26." The Eden, March 2022
“Lincoln resident promotes natural lawn care,” Concord Journal, Aug 3, 2021
“Zumi’s host Natural Lawn Care for Healthy Soils Challenge,” Ipswich Chronicle Transcript, Aug 10, 2021
“Peabody peak capacity generator need not burn fossil fuels,” The Salem News, Aug 5, 2021
“30% preserved or restored by 2030,” The Salem News, Sep 29, 2021
“Pogie deaths, a Mystic River mystery,” Boston Herald, Oct 4, 2021
“Remember the right whales with a special day,” CommonWealth, Oct 29, 2021
“Retreating Arctic Sea Ice, Sea Ice Formation, and the Stronger Flow of the Gulf Stream” Seven Seas November 2021
"Rob Moir, PhD, Science Advocate," Bloomberg Business, April 11, 2022
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