Repelling Bugs With The Essence Of Grapefruit

Like those farmed products depicted over cafes in Amsterdam?.......


But more seriously, yes the research on lighting and wavelength (nanometer level or Kelvin) does show promising food yields.

 

Indeed. The farmers noticed that recent climate change affected their yields. The skies were more cloudy, with progressively less direct sunlight, but for some reason their crops (cant recall the crop now) was drastically diminishing year on year over the past 20 years; which coincided with the endless cloudy skies. They experimented with new LEDs to help 'add' light of a certain colour hence wavelength..and hey presto..yields back to normal!

 

I went through 10 cans of DEET already this summer. It makes me cough when I spray it and the can says wash treated clothes before wearing again (can't be too good for you!) Can't stand the noseeums and mosquitoes without it. Hope something less toxic comes. Maybe an acre of Citronella and Lavender on each side :idea: Lemon Balm, Peppermint, Garlic, and Basil are supposed to repel bugs too. Might go on ebay and buy some bulk seeds and see if it makes a difference next year.

 

Wd-40 works as good as diesel and does not smell as bad. I have had some luck using UV blacklights to confused them. Between fans and uv lights, I have them confused enough they don't bother me when I sleep. If I work outside, Deet spray is only thing that works.

A quick mosquito story, I was out on a small sailboat with a friend, for a nice romantic sunset cruise, west of Key West Florida. And everyone told me that mosquitoes don't fly out that far. Well, let me told you they fly very happily 10 or 15miles to come and greet you in masses. We spent hours in pure hell, lock up, killing the buggers as they can in via any cracks in the windows or doors. I went through several bottles of spray, wd40, I was throwing sun tan lotion at them. The windows were covered with their little bodies as they tried to break in. Finally, we got some wind and got out of there.

 

just because it comes from a plant does not mean it is not toxic. Cedar dust from sanding will do permanent damage to your lungs, and it is toxic to sea life when used in docks and piers.

what makes cedar, and other rot resistant wood, from rotting are natural toxins that prevent bacteria and mold growth. It is just a natural pesticide.

It would be interesting to know what the toxicity findings were for this cedar-grape fruit based bug repellent.

cocaine and opium also come from plants, but I am not about to start using them because they are "natural". Lots of other toxic compounds come from plants, I would not use them either.

 

There's arsenic in laurel too.....

A couple of timber yards I've been to have remarked on WR Cedar keeping moquitos at bay, the wood is used in ball form as Moth (clothes) deterrent.

 

Aniseed oil extended with some skin-friendly natural oil is claimed to be effective by some.

 

more on Nootkatone

https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pressroom/newsreleases/2013/september/substance-that-gives-grapefruit-its-flavor-and-aroma-could-give-insect-pests-the-boot.html

 

I lived where the back end of my house is a creek. The creek is polluted, sometimes stagnant and naturally, there is a lot of mosquitoes in the area. We screened the entire house but that didn't solved it. I planted a neem tree and eucalyptus tree. The neem tree is fully grown now but the eucalyptus did not survive. We don't have any mosquitoes now and can even have the luxury of a barbecue pit in the back porch.

I can't smell the scent of the neem tree but mosquitoes avoid it. Others swear by the eucalyptus tree and the scent is strong but they say it is a much more powerful insect repellant. Fire hazard though. Semi dried leaves burn like it's soaked in oil, releasing a very strong pungent odor.

Another one, a plant called locally as "tanglad" is also a repellant but can also be used in cooking as a flavor enhancer.

 

Interesting.
I'm going to fwd that onto a friend who has a big back yard full of plants.

 

I googled "tanglad" and turned out it is lemon grass. http://tagaloglang.com/tanglad/

There is also a popular slow burning insect repellant called "katol". It smells like eucalyptus leaves burning. Some say it came from eucalyptus leaves dried into a peat but with stronger chemicals added. http://tagaloglang.com/katol/

 

The pyretrea mentioned in an earlier post I assume refers to permethrum (originally made from African lilies and the oldest insecticide known to man). Or it's synthesized cousin permethrin. THIS IS THE STUFF! I live by it in the Caribbean. Available most anywhere here as a coiled incense. Studies have shown one sniff by a female mosquito (or sand fly) causes them to lose interest in feeding. Within 2 minutes they're ALL dead. Even works fairly well outdoors. The CDC does however suggest not burning it continuously indoors due to lack of long term studies.

 

I visited a Seminole Reservation some time back and during that visit I learned they used dog fennel to repel biting insects. They simply picked some of the green leafy stalks and rubbed it onto exposed skin.

http://plants.ifas.ufl.edu/plant-directory/eupatorium-capillifolium/

 

supposedly the local native population in the Puget Sound area used fish oil on their skin. Lewis and Clark seemed to think it was to keep warm, though I can not see how that thin a lay of oil would help much in a cool and damp climate. Might reduce some evaporation off the skin, but I suspect it was more likely to repel mosquitoes, which Lewis and Clark also complained about when they visited the area.

 

Anyone have any ideas about termites in the interior wood work. Been spraying with lemon oil, it does kill them but only if hit then directly.