Power of Peppermint For Pest Control

No one likes being cold, and that includes unwelcome guests entering our homes such as spiders and rodents. With the arrival of cold weather, keep this in mind as you prepare your home for the chill of winter.

Take action at the first sign of mouse droppings because if there is one there are more. Mice breed at an incredible rate and with each litter consisting of six to twelve young it only takes a few weeks of ignoring the signs to find yourself with a real problem. The spots we have had the most trouble are under the kitchen sink, the cabinets nearest the vent for the stove and in our unfinished basement. All areas where there are most likely gaps in construction and should be remedied. 

Killing with mouse traps, glue traps or poison works in the short run but in the long run they only open up space for another mouse to move in.
Should you want to avoid dealing with the smell of death but unable to find the source, or disposing of the dead or dying caught in traps, a humane method of pest control is best. 


Peppermint essential oil is the essence of peppermint leaves. These oils are obtained by steam distillation and contain the volatile oils within the plant itself.  It is strong and offensive to the sensitive noses of our little rodent pests and being they find it repulsive they avoid it and the hope is that they move out or don't enter our homes in the first place. Don't buy the type of peppermint oil used for flavoring in the cooking section of your store. Purchase at a reputable health food store where you'll find 100% pure, therapeutic essential oils. Synthetics may smell the same but it is more than the smell that does the trick. You want the real thing. 

Add a few drops to cotton balls and leave them at the points of suspected entry or activity. Add fresh oil to the cotton balls on a weekly basis as a preventative measure. Or use the spray bottle method of 10 - 15 drops peppermint essential oil to 8 - 12 oz. of water. Spray around doorways, counter tops, baseboards, garage doors, basements, etc. 

Spiders are more common in our homes than we think. If we leave them alone, usually they try in earnest to leave us alone. According to David Bodanis in his book, "Secret House", the typical clean and tidy home still houses many, many spiders. These beneficials prefer to stay hidden in dark corners and quietly give us a hand in keeping those insects at bay who can do us harm. While we don't want visible spider webs we also don't want to contribute toxins to our home by spraying with pesticides.

As with rodents, spiders and ants also hate peppermint. Ants can be a problem in any home but those with mortar and brick seem to be more susceptible for entry points. Be sure to keep your kitchen counters and cabinets free from open food and crumbs. Ants follow a trail so take notice of where they are coming in and block the trail with undiluted peppermint oil or spray the peppermint oil/water mixture.
Use the spray bottle method of adding 10 to 15 drops of peppermint essential oil to 8 to 12 ounces of water. Spray wherever you suspect ants and spiders are entering your home.
Planting peppermint outside near your doorways can help deter pests. Just be sure to plant in tubs or pots since mints spread rapidly and can easily take over a flowerbed or garden area.

Aside from spiders and mice, peppermint oil also is a natural insect repellent for fleas and mosquitoes. To use as a bug repellent spray for yourselves or your dogs (not to be used on cats) add a bit of vodka to distilled water at the ratio of 10 - 15 drops peppermint essential oil to 8 - 12 oz of the distilled water/vodka mixture. Rubbing alcohol can be used in place of the distilled water/vodka mixture. Peppermint is strong and though known to be safe test first on a small area of skin to check for any skin sensitivity.


Check out the many uses for using peppermint oil as a body spray. 

The Webby Weave of the Spider

 

What Do Spiders Have To Do With Halloween?

Outside in the early morning hours,I noticed the multitude of spider webs seemingly everywhere. The two types of webs most prevalent were that of the grass spider, who weaves the funnel type webs, and the garden spider, who weaves the round web we are most familiar.

A cool site was on the telephone and cable lines. The webs were lined up one after the other connecting the two cable lines which are spaced about a foot apart. It was such a pretty site glistening in the morning sun.















I'm usually ok with spiders as long as they aren't actually crawling on me. In the garden I come across the orb spider fairly frequently. I know they won't hurt me but being the size they are, it always gives me a jolt. Spiders are beneficial arthropods, that survive by feeding on insects. Oftentimes they are the most important biological control of insect pests in gardens, fields, forests, and homes.

In fall and winter, spiders might be found lurking in dark corners of the house or the basement. For a female spider getting ready to lay eggs, she’d need to catch enough food so she would have the energy necessary for laying eggs. Then, she’d need someplace to tie up those eggs. For spiders that make webs, all this extra work would leave quite a few cobwebs around.

So why the connection with Halloween? Mainly it is a matter of association with that which people fear. People often are afraid of the dark, creepy, hidden places and any creatures lurking in such places. Walking into a spider web is rarely a pleasant experience.

The spider web is said to represent the wheel of life and time, the turning of the seasons. In addition the spider has eight legs - and there are eight major festivals in the pagan/Wiccan year. One of them is Samheim, which is a time to reconnect with our ancestors, and honor those who have died. This is the time when the veil between our world and the spirit realm is thin, so it's the perfect time of year to make contact with the dead.

Below are just a few of common spiders who are contentedly living amongst us just trying to survive. If we leave them alone, usually they try in earnest to leave us alone. Spiders are more common in our homes than we think. According to David Bodanis in his book "Secret House" the typical clean and tidy home still houses many, many spiders. These beneficials prefer to stay hidden in the dark corners of our cabinets and basements and quietly give us a hand in keeping those insects at bay who can do us harm. While we don't want visible spider webs on the corners of our walls it may not be the best idea to douse our homes with poisonous insect sprays.

An alternative to using pesticides (in doing so we expose ourselves, children and pets to these poisons). A much safer method is to use the natural repellent nature of Peppermint essential oil. Purchase only from a reputable, health food store where only 100% pure, therapeutic essential oils are sold. You don't want synthetic fragrance oils or those used from the cooking section of the grocery store. Peppermint oil is strong and a good deterrent to not only spiders but ants, fleas and rodents. Add 10 - 15 drops to 8 - 12 oz of water in a spray bottle. Spray weekly around cracks, doorways, windows, any points of entry in your home.

Wolf spiders are common spiders outdoors and are occasionally seen indoors. They are moderate to large-sized spiders (1/4 - 3/4 inch long). Wolf spiders are found on the ground or under stones in a wide variety of habitats, such as forest floors, grassy meadows, swamps, and bogs. Some even like to live underground. They commonly hunt during the day or at night when it is warm. Wolf spiders are dark-colored, usually brownish or grayish, with white markings.
The bite of the Wolf Spider is poisonous but not lethal. Although non-aggressive, they bite freely if provoked and should be considered dangerous to humans. The bite may be very painful. First aid and medical attention should be sought as soon as possible, particularly as to children or the elderly.

Orb spiders are common spiders outdoors near buildings, but are usually not found indoors. They range in size from small to large (1/8 - 1 inch long) and are found in a variety of colors, with some being brightly colored. Orb spiders have large, swollen-looking abdomens, including some that are oddly shaped. They make the classic round, flat, wheel-like web familiar to most people.
The black and yellow argiope (are-JI-o-pee) spider, also known as the garden spider, is familiar to many. It is large (up to 1 inch long) and brightly colored black and yellow.

Another common orb spider is the barn spider (figure 9). It is large (4/5 inch long) and brownish in color.
The bite of Orb-Weaving Spiders is of low risk (not toxic) to humans. They are a non-aggressive group of spiders. Seldom bite. Be careful not to walk into their webs at night - the fright of this spider crawling over one's face can be terrifying.




















Grass spiders, a type of funnel weaver, are common outdoors and are occasionally found indoors. They are generally brownish or grayish with light and dark stripes near the head. They have long spinnerets and are moderate-sized (3/4 inch long). Grass spiders construct a large sheet web with a funnel they use as a retreat. These webs are commonly built on the ground, around steps, window wells, foundations, and low shrubs.

These spiders are non-aggressive and the bite of these spiders is of low risk to humans.
 Most spider bites are harmless to humans and animals with the exception of poisonous types such as the black widow and the brown recluse.
If you think you've been bitten by either of those, get medical attention as soon as possible. Otherwise, the use of lavender and/or roman chamomile essential oil can bring quick relief for a spider bite. 
Apply 1-2 drops directly on the bite up to four times per day.
These oils can be safely used on your pets and livestock animals.

Spiders certainly are in the creepy category, but if you really look close at them they are fascinating. Not so ugly they're cute, as the saying goes, but then again there is certainly nothing dull about our natural world.

What Do Spiders Have To Do With Halloween?

Out with the dogs in the early morning hours I noticed the multitude of spider webs seemingly everywhere. The two types of webs most prevalent were that of the grass spider, who weaves the funnel type webs, and the garden spider, who weaves the round web we are most familiar.

I'm usually ok with spiders as long as they aren't actually crawling on me. Being a gardener I come across the orb spider fairly frequently. I know they won't hurt me but being the size they are, it always gives me a jolt. Spiders are beneficial arthropods, that survive by feeding on insects. Oftentimes they are the most important biological control of insect pests in gardens, fields, forests, and homes.

In fall and winter, spiders might be found lurking in dark corners of the house or the basement. For a female spider getting ready to lay eggs, she’d need to catch enough food so she would have the energy necessary for laying eggs. Then, she’d need someplace to tie up those eggs. For spider that makes webs, all this extra work would leave quite a few cobwebs around.

Click here for an interview with our local Penn State Horticulture Educator Emelie Swackhamer.

So why the connection with Halloween? Mainly it is a matter of association with that which people fear. People often are afraid of the dark, creepy, hidden places and any creatures lurking in such places. Walking into a spider web is rarely a pleasant experience.

The spider web is said by some pagans to represent the wheel of life and time, the turning of the seasons. In addition the spider has eight legs - and there are eight major festivals in the pagan/Wiccan year. One of them is Samheim, which is a time to reconnect with our ancestors, and honor those who have died. This is the time when the veil between our world and the spirit realm is thin, so it's the perfect time of year to make contact with the dead.

Below are just a few of common spiders who are contentedly living amongst us just trying to survive. If we leave them alone, usually they try in earnest to leave us alone. Spiders are more common in our homes than we think. According to David Bodanis in his book "Secret House" the typical clean and tidy home still houses many, many spiders. These beneficials prefer to stay hidden in the dark corners of our cabinets and basements and quietly give us a hand in keeping those insects at bay who can do us harm. To destroy their webs and then spray liberally with poisonous insect spray just seems ludicrous.
Wolf spiders are common spiders outdoors and are occasionally seen indoors. They are moderate to large-sized spiders (1/4 - 3/4 inch long). Wolf spiders are found on the ground or under stones in a wide variety of habitats, such as forest floors, grassy meadows, swamps, and bogs. Some even like to live underground. They commonly hunt during the day or at night when it is warm. Wolf spiders are dark-colored, usually brownish or grayish, with white markings.
The bite of the Wolf Spider is poisonous but not lethal. Although non-aggressive, they bite freely if provoked and should be considered dangerous to humans. The bite may be very painful. First aid and medical attention should be sought as soon as possible, particularly as to children or the elderly.
Orb spiders are common spiders outdoors near buildings, but are usually not found indoors. They range in size from small to large (1/8 - 1 inch long) and are found in a variety of colors, with some being brightly colored. Orb spiders have large, swollen-looking abdomens, including some that are oddly shaped. They make the classic round, flat, wheel-like web familiar to most people.
The black and yellow argiope (are-JI-o-pee) spider, also known as the garden spider, is familiar to many. It is large (up to 1 inch long) and brightly colored black and yellow.
Another common orb spider is the barn spider (figure 9). It is large (4/5 inch long) and brownish in color.
The bite of Orb-Weaving Spiders is of low risk (not toxic) to humans. They are a non-aggressive group of spiders. Seldom bite. Be careful not to walk into their webs at night - the fright of this spider crawling over one's face can be terrifying.


Grass spiders, a type of funnel weaver, are common outdoors and are occasionally found indoors. They are generally brownish or grayish with light and dark stripes near the head. They have long spinnerets and are moderate-sized (3/4 inch long). Grass spiders construct a large sheet web with a funnel they use as a retreat. These webs are commonly built on the ground, around steps, window wells, foundations, and low shrubs.

These spiders are non-aggressive and the bite of these spiders is of low risk to humans.

Sure spiders are ghoulish but if you really look close at them they are fascinating. Certainly not so ugly they're cute as goes the saying, but we sure can't say mother nature is dull.