Mama Hippie

Natural Living through Pregnancy, Birth & Beyond

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Instagram
  • RSS
  • Pregnancy & Birth
    • Natural Childbirth
    • Placenta
    • Pregnancy Loss
    • Postpartum
  • Natural Parenting
    • Babywearing
    • Breastfeeding & Pumping
    • Cloth Diapering
    • Cosleeping & Sleep
    • Toys & Crafts
  • Green Living
    • Essential Oils
    • Green Cleaning
  • Resources
  • Trades of Hope
    • Become a Compassionate Entreprenuer
    • Shop!

Natural Solutions for Getting Rid of Ants

by Stephanie 2 Comments

Share on Facebook
Share on Twitter
Share on Google+
Share on LinkedIn
Pin to Pinterest
Share on StumbleUpon
+

The weather around here has been amazing lately. This past weekend is was a sunny 75 degrees F outside (that’s about 23 degrees Celsius). That’s winter in California for you. Unfortunately, with the weather heating up, it means BUGS!

Honestly, I don’t mind bugs too much when they stay outside. That’s their home, their source of food and water, so I’m fine with sharing my outside spaces with them. I can’t stand it though, when their are bugs in my house (particularly ants). Recently there has been a ton and I can’t for the life of me figure out what the ants are going after. They seem to be hanging out on our dining room table, bookshelf and on my nightstand, none of which have food present. The most annoying thing, however, is when I was walking my son around and noticed an ant about to crawl into his eye.

I’m not a huge fan of commercial bug sprays or ant traps. I try to do no harm to any living thing; not to mention they can cause some major damage if a child or another animal were to ingest it.

Natural solutions for getting rid of ants. No kill!

1. Keep clutter and open containers of food to a minimum – Although this may seem like a no brainer, eliminating things that ants are interested in is the easiest tactic. This means putting leftovers away promptly, keeping tabs on dishes, cleaning breast pump parts and putting fruit bowls in the fridge. That last one was hard for me since I love looking at a bowl of fresh fruit on the counter.

2. Live Plants – This one works the best for an outdoor garden, but can also be helpful around doorways as well. Consider adding live plants to your decorations. Herbs such basil, mint, or rosemary are all great choices. Plus, they can be quite tasty in cooking. Win win!

3. Chalk – If you know where the ants are coming from, you can draw a line of chalk across the threshold which naturally deters them. I actually haven’t tried this one, but I have heard such good things about it, I thought it would be worth mentioning.

4. Vinegar – Vinegar (either white or apple cider) repels ants and masks their scent trails. Place it in a spray bottle and spray onto doorways and known entrances to help repel ants. Using in conjunction with essential oils amplifies this effect.

5. Essential Oils – One of my favorite ways to deter ants is with essential oils. Black pepper, tea tree, cinnamon, clove, citrus, eucalyptus and peppermint are all good options. I find that peppermint oil works the best for all household. I simply place a few drops on a cottonball, and rub down any areas I don’t want ants to be. I’ll also place the cottonballs in our cabinets where food is stored for an extra boost. Just make sure to keep out of reach of pets – ingestion of essential oils (particularly eucalyptus,tea tree and peppermint essential oils) can be fatal. DoTerra makes a blend of essential oils called Purify that contains lemon eucalyptus, citronella, and lemongrass that may help to protect against environmental threats. I love diffusing it in my problem areas. You can purchase it at my DoTerra shop.

Note: If used as a spray, I recommend spraying the area rather than the ants themselves as some essential oils can harm ants.

Ants can be a very annoying problem, but there are a lot of natural remedies to prevent them from taking over your life. Sometimes one thing will work, but other times several different options need to be used in conjunction with one another. So try a few methods and see what works.

Do you have any tried and true methods to repel insects? Share in the comments below.

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr
  • Email

Related

«
»

Filed Under: Cleaning & Organizing, Essential Oils, Green Cleaning Tagged With: ants, essential oil, insect, living, natural, repellent

STAY CONNECTED & GET MY FREE LABOR BAG CHECKLIST

Subscribing to the newsletter is the best way to stay connected to great things happening here at Mama Hippie, and I invite you to join to receive regular updates! My newsletter offers weekly natural living & parenting tips, tricks and advice!

Plus, when you subscribe, you’ll also get my natural labor bag checklist, free to you!



Amazon Associates Disclosure

Stephanie Tadlock is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com

Comments

  1. Angela says

    at

    I’ve used the vinegar trick! I had a problem with ants coming into my house when I was living in Australia. I started moping my floors with a mix of vinegar and water and the ants mostly stayed away, lol.

    Reply
    • Stephanie says

      at

      Mopping with it is such a good idea!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

About Mama Hippie

Hello, I'm Stephanie. I live in the United States with my husband, and 3 kids under 4. We're a cosleeping, babywearing, cloth diapering family. more?

For PR and Giveaway Requests, click here.

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
Learn how to earn a living helping women escape poverty around the world!

Stay Up to Date

Sign up for my newsletter and recieve a freeĀ copy of my natural labor bag checklist.


Top Posts

50+ Celestial Baby Names
9 Ways to Honor a Baby Lost Too Soon
50+ Baby Names Inspired by the Sea
4 Useful Ideas for Expired Breastmilk

Recent Posts

  • Immunity Booster Essential Oil Blend for Kids
  • Plants for Kids Room
  • Love Baby Names
  • Colorful Baby Names
  • Natural Immunity Boosters for Kids

Recent Comments

  • Hsu Mon on 30+ Baby Names Inspired by Fruit & Herbs
  • 50+ Baby Names Inspired by the Sea - Mama Hippie on 50+ Celestial Baby Names
  • 50+ Baby Names Inspired by the Sea - Mama Hippie on 50+ Baby Names for the Bohemian or Hippie Baby
  • 50+ Baby Names Inspired by the Sea - Mama Hippie on 36+ Gem & Crystal Baby Names
  • 50+ Celestial Baby Names - Mama Hippie on 26+ Baby Names Inspired by Royalty
Terms of Service * Disclosure * Privacy Policy * Disclaimer

Copyright © 2021 · Delightful theme by Restored 316

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.