Get Rid of Pest Naturally!

I love to garden, and at times attempt to grow vegetables. Since I have tried to grow organic only I was searching for a way to get rid of pests on plants and vegetables.


I am not sure where I found this tip, but I assure you that it works. Soapy dishwater gets rids of bugs in a flash. Now, I just wash my dishes in a large container or tub in the sink and rinse my vegetables with the soapy water. Don't worry the soapy water (because it is diluted) won't harm plants or vegetables.

Comments for Get Rid of Pest Naturally!

Average Rating starstarstarstar

Click here to add your own comments

Sep 13, 2008
Rating
starstarstarstarstar
It does work
by: Anonymous

It does work for sure, my grandma used to keep her tomatoes free of bugs this way.

Sep 12, 2008
Rating
starstarstarstarstar
I will have to try this next season.
by: Anonymous

I am a new gardener this season and was dissappointed with all the little pests on my vegetables. I am eager to try this quick and simple trick and see if it works. Thanks for the idea.

Sep 10, 2008
Rating
starstarstarstarstar
Very true!
by: Anonymous

This is very true. The soapy water is a very good way to get rid of pests - works equally well on indoor and outdoor plants.

Sep 03, 2008
Rating
starstarstarstar
A good and safe method
by: Anonymous

I am also an organic gardener. The dishwater trick does work. I have found that you can make this even safer. Use non toxic and eco friendly dishsoap instead of the usual petroleum based soap. It works just as good but is even safer. Happy gardening!

Sep 01, 2008
Rating
starstarstarstarstar
Dishsoap is safe for plants and it works
by: S.G.

This summer I had an swarm of flea beetles fly into the garden and swarm a single plant amongst my mixed lettuce. Flea beetles can devour the leaves of a plant in hours, if left to their own devices. I took a spray bottle, added 2 drops of liquid dish soap, filled it with water and sprayed all the leaves of the plant, and within minutes, some of the flea beetles died. I also took a plastic bag and wrapped the outside of it with masking tape, sticky side out, and set it beside the plant, and within an hour, hundreds were stuck to it. These methods of pest removal are far safer to use than pesticides, and are equally effective.

Jul 16, 2008
Rating
starstarstarstarstar
YEs
by: Anonymous

I too have used this phenomenon for 2 weeks and I have found it useful in my friends organic patch and also as you said the soapy water is not much of a problem.

Jul 15, 2008
Rating
starstarstarstarstar
Natural Removal of Pests..
by: ShelleyC

This soapy detergent idea does work. Another tip that keeps ants out of gardens naturally is using wet coffee grounds. Pour the coffee grounds all over the ants and it drives them out!

Jul 10, 2008
Rating
starstar
Companion Plants!
by: kdschu

More effective would be to build up a sustainable eco-system around your plants that defend them naturally- for instance wasps, planting crops that attract them, and there are also good companion crops that naturally repel what destroys other plants. With the advent and success of co-op/organic farming there is more helpful info out there on how do this than there ever was before!

Jul 05, 2008
Rating
starstar
Be careful
by: Cilantro

You need the right amount to kill insects without harming plants. There's a huge variation in dish soaps. There are special soaps/detergents just for plant insecticides that you can buy if you insist on going this route.

I prefer using things like garlic spray and planting insect-repelling flowers around the veggies. I don't believe in killing any sentient being unnecessarily, no matter how small, cute, ugly, cuddly, many-legged, etc. If I can keep my veggies so my family can eat them, and I don't have to cut someone else's life short at the same time, why would I want to kill them?

Most people don't care about insects because they associate them with inconvenience, disease, etc and don't think of them as "cute" or "smart" (although those are subjective, and some, like types of ants, have measurable, surprising levels of intelligence), but this is no excuse for making the insects suffer for human prejudice. I was brought up hating bugs and freak out to this day when they touch me, but I still never intentionally kill them because I never have to (let's hope that doesn't change). Many methods not only kill insects, but do so in ways that are probably very painful. How would you like soap covering your exoskeleton and slowly killing you like that? Yeah.

Click here to add your own comments

Join in and write your own page! It's easy to do. How? Simply click here to return to Gardening Tips.