Safe and Simple ways to attack pesky little bugs.

Are you being attacked in your home, in your yard, or in your garden, by those pesky little bugs? You know the ones – spiders, Japanese beetles, fleas, ticks, aphids, and all of those other little pests that make life miserable and make the garden you worked so hard on, their own little buffet. Did you know that there are some simple ways to attack those pesky little bugs that is safe for you, your plants, your kids, and your pets?

I lived in the city for many years and when I moved to the farm I got the opportunity to learn many farmer tested ‘hacks’. One of those hacks was a consistent answer to many of the problems I was having around my new farm. Those farmers kept telling me… “You need to use Diatomaceous Earth!”…wait…what??!!!😲 What is Diatomaceous Earth (pronounced dye-ah-toe-may-shus…) Earth?

There are somewhere around a hundred or so uses for Diatomaceous Earth (Dye-ah-toe-may-shus … I know it took me a while too… so we’ll just call it DE for now). The most important thing to remember is that it is great in the home, yard, or garden for bugs and for so many things.

What is Diatomaceous Earth?

According to the Farmer’s Almanac, DE is “ground fossilized remains of a type of phytoplankton called diatoms, which have existed on earth for millions of years” (Kanuckel, 2020). These diatoms live in rivers, streams, lakes, and oceans. They have a skeleton made up of silicone (silica commonly found in the Earth’s crust) dioxide and when it’s ground it gets categorized into two different grades dependent upon its use.  

Two Grades of Diatomaceous Earth –

1. Food Grade – non-toxic to humans and pets, but… is also used as a human safe pesticide for:
   1. Ants
   1. Aphids
   1. Bed Bugs
   1. Carpet Beetles (and other kinds of beetles)
   1. Colorado Potato Beetle
   1. Cockroaches
   1. Crickets
   1. Earwigs
   1. Fleas and Ticks
   1. Japanese Beetles
   1. Lady Bugs
   1. Silverfish
   1. Spiders
2. Filter Grade – for cleaning swimming pools, hot tubs, or other water systems (you can’t eat this one so please don’t try).

Food Grade Diatomaceous Earth (DE) –

So what is Diatomaceous Earth… you guessed it…. A food safe pesticide AND healthy body cleanse to name just a few… (I know that sounds weird right… but just stick with me… you’ll understand why here in a minute… )

Diatomaceous Earth (DE) is ground so extremely fine that to the touch, it feels like a very fine powder, however, do not let this fine powder deceive you. These diatoms have microscopic sharp edges which can dry your skin but are essential for killing pests. The sharp edges won’t hurt you, but they cut into the exoskeleton of your least favorite pest, and dry them out from within.  

According to WebMD,  1 tsp of DE in a full glass of water daily on an empty stomach will detoxify the body, eliminate tapeworms, treat constipation, and lower cholesterol levels. Hmm… ‘lower cholesterol’… without drugs… this might just save your life…. Count me in 😊.  The powder is not absorbed through the human digestive system so it catches toxins and kills parasites on its way through. However, just like any other treatment, you should always contact your doctor prior to starting a DE regimen.

So DE is a detoxifying agent, lowers cholesterol, AND… a pesticide…. So….

Why you need DE –

As I stated before, there are around a hundred possible uses for DE around the home and garden. A 20lb bag of DE lasts for months… and months… and months around the Misfit farm (but you don’t need a bag that size to start out). It is highly used by farmers, homesteaders, animal lovers, nutritionists and is a necessity around your home. So I’ve started to compile a list of just 5 mere essential uses around my home to get you thinking about starting your own list and falling in love with a new found ‘go to’ around your own home and garden.

5 uses for DE around the home/farm:

I already mentioned using DE as a body detoxifier. It is non-toxic to humans and pets. Although I am going to mention this because it is extremely important. The fine powder of DE is safe for consumption but try to avoid breathing it into the lungs. This can cause problems over time and is no ‘bueno’. See the WebMD site for possible side effects of breathing DE in over time. It is always advisable to mix in a well ventilated area and when dry treating surfaces, quarantine the area during treatment while the powder is airborne. Once the powder has settled, it is safe again to be around. The diatom sharp edges keep it adhered to soft surfaces so it will be killing fleas/ticks/bed bugs without getting back up into the air for you to breath. Just remember to vacuum in a couple days and use safety glasses and face mask whenever possible.

• Deodorizer –

I sprinkle some DE into my trash cans and my old dirty barn boots, but you can also put some in your favorite running shoes, athletic bag, or clothes hamper to eliminate odors.

• Dog and Cat dewormer –

I mentioned that DE is good for eliminating tapeworms in humans, but you can also kill tape and roundworms in your dog or cat. Since DE is a food grade treatment appropriate for all livestock, you can use it to kill parasitic worms in almost any animal.

Dilute DE with water and mix with your dog or cat’s food in the morning once a day for 30 days to effective kill off parasitic worms.

Mixing ratios for Dogs:

Small dog – ½ tsp with food

<50 lbs – 1 tsp with food

>50 lbs – 1 TBSP with food

100+ lbs – 2 TBSP with food

Mixing ratios for Cats:

Adult Cats – 1 teaspoon with food

Kittens – ¼ teaspoon with food

• Yard Ticks and Spiders in and around the home –

Ticks and spiders live in and around your yard. We hate it when they invade and make our home… their home (at least they could get a job, pay some rent, or help clean up around the house… right…? 😊). I buy Soresto collars and keep them on all of my pets, but I sometimes find ticks on my pant legs when I come in from outside, and spiders sneaking in through cracks and crevasses that I didn’t even know existed. If you have fleas, ticks, or spiders in your home, you can treat carpets, bedding (especially effective on bed bugs), couches, chairs, and throw rugs with a light dusting of DE. I leave the room and wait for about 2 hours until it settles and I am good to come back in. I wait about 24 hours and vacuum (emptying my canister often). I then repeat in 2 weeks. This will ensure that the diatom sharp edges penetrate the exoskeleton and dry out the intruder… but also… it will kill any newly hatching pests.  

I like to create a barrier outside so that ticks and spiders stay out so I sprinkle some dry DE dry along my foundation, in my flower beds, and grass (or any place I have a spider problem… ick ☹). They need it dry so they can walk, crawl, and jump on it for the DE to cut them and dry them out. Dry powder spreaders work good or you can use a gloved hand. Just remember to keep it away from your face (mask and safety glasses are again…recommended).

One of the most interesting aspects of using DE is that it must be dry to kill those pesky critters. However if it does get wet outside when it rains, as soon as it dries… it’s back to killing.

• Garden Pests –

Organically killing pesky garden critters is much safer than using harsh store bought pesticides. Sprinkle some dry DE over your garden after the dew or nice rain. You can also mix DE in a sprayer to spray over your garden. When it dries, it will kill the insects that destroy your garden and will not hurt you or your fruits or vegetables.

DE is effective in the garden to kill:

• Cabbage Maggots
• Caterpillars
• Colorado Potato Beetles
• Cutworms
• Japanese Beetles
• Mexican Bean Beetles

YET…. DE will NOT harm Earthworms…. Yes that is right. The happy little worm that is beneficial to our gardens has the ability to digest some of the DE, so DE is not toxic or harmful to our friend the worm.

• Eliminate Chicken/Duck Coup Mites –

My favorite and easiest application for DE is in treating my chicken and duck coups for mites. This is the problem that started the DE revolution here on the Misfit Farm and how I came to find hundreds of uses for DE.

I lightly sprinkle DE in my chicken and duck coup. I wait a couple of days for the mites to crawl all over and around the DE (don’t worry…hens, roosters, drakes, and eggs will be fine). After a couple of days, I clean out my coup. I replace the pine shavings (or whatever you use) and I am good again with a happy little flock. I have been doing this EVERY time I clean the coup and I am finding less problems with my birds. I figured that I am cleaning out the coup anyway, what’s sprinkling a little DE a couple days ahead going to hurt. It’s not really any more work and it doesn’t take much DE to be effective so I get the ‘win win’!

I also sprinkle some DE where my hens like to roll around in the dirt to bath. This is a great way to support my coup mite eradication by directly attacking the mites on the bird. They’ll shake it off and the mites too.

This is also great to use this for guineas, turkeys, horses, donkeys, or any livestock that has problems with pesky little critters.

So… what is Diatomaceous Earth again and why shouldn’t you live without it?….

It is an inexpensive organic treatment that has so many valuable uses for you, your family and around your home and garden… Protect your garden, home, and pets in simple ways to attack those pesky little bugs with a food grade organic insecticide that you can even eat. You’ll find that you need to go get some and start your own list of uses for this definite ‘go to’ problem solver and potential life saver.

Hey.. I want to thank you for stopping by 😊.

If you want to know more information on living the Semi-Rural Homesteading lifestyle, visit my post at: What is Semi-Rural Homesteading?

~Enjoying it simple

Luv ya and see you next time – Susan 😊

Disclaimer… Yes… I know there is a difference between ‘bugs’ and ‘insects’, however anything that makes me mad by crawling on me, eating my garden, scares me in the middle of the night when I run into its web, or is just a gross little critter… bugs the heck out of me and thusly… a bug… lol.

Don’t forget to “pin-it” in case you need it again in the future 🙂

Resources:

Kanuckel, A. (2020). What the heck is Diatomaceous Earth?. Farmer’s Almanac. Web. June 1, 2020. Retrieved July 20, 2020 from https://www.farmersalmanac.com/what-is-diatomaceous-earth-27832

WebMD (2020). Diatomaceous Earth. Retrieved July 20, 2020 from https://www.webmd.com/vitamins/ai/ingredientmono-1531/diatomaceous-earth