Summer is a time for the great outdoors. Camping, hiking, swimming, BBQ’s and entertaining outdoors. What do you do when mosquitoes and other biting bugs invade your al fresco fun?! Read on for 7 Green Mama Approved tips to battle bugs without harsh chemicals.
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Lemon juice rubbed directly on the skin makes you an undesirable landing spot for bugs.
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Diffuse citronella essential oil.
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Eat your bug repellent. a garlic rich diet supposedly wards off pesky bugs.
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Stay indoors or wear covering layers during dawn and dusk
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Apply oil, such as olive, coconut, or sesame, to your skin . Mosquitos don’t like landing on oily skin.
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Make a DIY Bug Spray
(Recipe via Brittany Wood Nickerson’s Herbal Homestead Journal)
1.5 oz lemon verbana or mint tea
1 Tbsp Olive Oil, almond oil, or jojoba oil
1 Tbsp Witch hazel
1 Tbsp aloe vera gel
7 drops lavender essential oil
10 drops citronella essential oil
7 Drops tea tree essential oil
7 drops rose geranium essential oilCombine in a 2 oz spray bottle. Shake well before using. Store in a dark place.
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Make up some Plaintain oil to soothe bites incase all the above fails.
(Via Melissa Corkhill’s Self-Sufficiency Natural Remedies)
1.tightly pack a clean jar with plantain leaves (harvested on a sunny dry afternoon) and fill with olive oil to cover.
2. place jar out of sunlight and store at room temperature for 3 weeks (top up oil to make sure leaves are completely submerged)
3. strain oil and apply to itchy irritated skin / bug bites