Buzz
Garlic is not just a flavorful and nutritious ingredient for cooking, it also has benefits for your garden. Due to its sulfur compounds, garlic serves as a natural repellent for many types of insects. This means you can transform garlic into an inexpensive and safe pesticide. You can use basic garlic spray to control aphids, slugs, and various insects, or create a spray mix with onions, chili, and garlic to repel ladybugs, caterpillars, deer, and many other pests and animals.
Ingredients
Basic Garlic Spray
- 1 bulb of garlic
- 4 cups (1 liter) of water
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of liquid soap
Garlic, Onion, and Chili Spray
- 4 cups (1 liter) of water
- 1 peeled garlic bulb
- 1 peeled onion bulb
- 1 teaspoon (2 g) of cayenne pepper powder
- 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of liquid soap
Steps
Making Basic Garlic Spray
Peel the garlic. Use your hands to remove the outer skin of the garlic bulb. Separate the garlic cloves and place them into a metal mixing bowl. Cover the bowl with another bowl of the same size, press the two bowls together, and shake them vigorously for 10 seconds. Remove the top bowl and pick out the peeled garlic cloves.
- You can also use a large glass jar with a lid if you don't have two matching metal mixing bowls.
Grind the garlic in a blender. Place the garlic into the blender. Add 1 cup (240 ml) of water and secure the lid. Blend the mixture until the garlic is finely chopped (approximately 1 minute).
- If you don’t have a blender, you can also use a food processor or hand blender. Alternatively, chop or crush the garlic with a knife or garlic press, then stir it with water.
Pour the remaining water and soap into the blender. Blend for another minute until the mixture turns into a smooth liquid. The soap will help the mixture adhere to the leaves in the garden and also act as a pesticide.
- You can use any liquid soap you prefer, such as dish soap or castile soap.
Let the mixture soak overnight. Pour the blended mixture into a clean glass jar and seal it. Allow it to sit for 12-24 hours. The longer the mixture sits, the more the garlic's sulfur compounds will infuse the water.
Strain the mixture. Place a fine mesh strainer over a bowl and line it with cheesecloth. Pour the mixture into the strainer to remove the garlic solids. Gently squeeze the cheesecloth to extract as much liquid as possible.
- This straining step helps prevent the garlic from clogging the spray nozzle.
Pour the mixture into a spray bottle. Place a funnel on the top of a clean spray bottle and pour the garlic water into it. Remove the funnel and screw on the cap. Use the garlic spray to treat pests and fungi in the garden as needed.
- Store the mixture in the refrigerator and use it within one week.
Prepare garlic, onion, and cayenne spray
Chop the garlic and onion. Use a knife or garlic press to crush the garlic. Place the onion on a cutting board and finely dice it with a sharp knife. Add the onion and garlic into a large pot.
Add water and cayenne pepper to the pot. You can substitute dried red pepper for cayenne, or use fresh hot peppers like jalapeño or habanero if preferred. If using fresh peppers, be sure to chop them finely before adding them to the pot.
- For enhanced pest control, you can add 3-4 fresh or dried mint leaves to the pot. Mint leaves are known to repel beetles and other types of beetles.
Bring the mixture to a boil. Cover the pot and bring the mixture to a gentle boil over medium-high heat. Once the water reaches a boil, lower the heat to medium and let it simmer for an additional 15 minutes. Remove the pot from the stove and set it aside.
Allow the mixture to steep. Keep the lid on the pot and let the garlic, onion, and pepper mixture cool for a minimum of 12 hours and up to 24 hours. This will allow the sulfur and oils from the vegetables to infuse into the water.
Strain the mixture. Pour the mixture into a fine mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth placed over a bowl. This step removes the pieces of garlic, onion, and pepper, leaving only the liquid that can be sprayed.
Pour the mixture into a spray bottle. Use a funnel to avoid spilling while transferring the mixture into the spray bottle. Spray this solution in the garden when needed to eliminate pests and leaf-eating animals.
- This mixture can be stored in the fridge for about a week.
Using the spray
Spray on plants to repel pests and treat powdery mildew. The garlic in these sprays has antibacterial, antifungal properties, and repels insects. When sprayed on garden plants, garlic water helps address common garden issues. Garlic is effective at:
- Repelling aphids, slugs, caterpillars, and other insects.
- Repelling deer, rabbits, and other animals that might damage plants.
- Killing powdery mildew.
Maggie Moran
Gardener
Gardener
Garlic spray can also be used to repel mosquitoes. Horticulturist Maggie Moran shares her recipe: “Soak crushed garlic cloves in mineral oil. After soaking for 24 hours, remove the garlic from the oil, then add 2 cups (240 ml) of water and 1 teaspoon (5 ml) of fresh lemon juice to the oil. Finally, strain the mixture and pour it into a spray bottle.”
Spray the solution on plant leaves in the evening. Hold the spray bottle about 15-30 cm away from the plant you want to treat. Spray the solution evenly over both the top and bottom surfaces of the leaves. Many insects prefer hiding on the underside of leaves, and powdery mildew often develops there.
- It’s best to spray in the evening, when the sun isn’t scorching the leaves and when insects are typically more active.
Reapply every few days and after rain. For the best results, reapply the spray every 3-5 days (even daily if needed) until you’ve controlled the insect population, then reduce to once a week. Be sure to reapply after rainfall, as rain will wash away the solution from the leaves.
Wash fruits and vegetables before consuming. While garlic spray is non-toxic, it’s a good idea to wash your produce thoroughly after harvesting to remove any residue. The garlic spray is spicy and hot, and the soap content can leave a bitter, unpleasant taste.
Warning
- Be very careful not to spray into your eyes, nose, or mouth, as garlic spray can cause a burning sensation, especially if the mixture contains chili peppers.
