Gardening Tips For Senior Citizen

PLANTS USED AS INSECTICIDES

Plants have so many uses either as foods, feeds, medicines, and above all as insect repellents in the form of insecticides. In fact, almost anything that the human race needs always depend on plants.

Insecticides that come from plants are much cheaper, less toxic as against the synthetic chemicals, and besides plant insecticides are environment friendly.

The followings are among the plants that can be used as insect control:

1. Tobacco – Nicotiana tabacum. The leaves are pounded or pulverized together with mint ad tomato leaves, pepper, garlic and onion.

Formulation:

• Extract the sap or juice from the powdered material. For every cup of sap, mix one cup water. Filter and set aside.

• For easy and efficient spraying of the mixture, the following materials are needed: two eggs, eight tablespoon of oil, two cups water, two tablespoon vinegar, one pack cigarettes, and one bar laundry soap.

• To prepare, place the cigarettes in an empty gallon can. Add the two cups of water and boil for 15 minutes. Remove the heat and filter the solutions. Add the oil and vinegar. Mix the eggs ad beat until the mixture is sticky. This will make the insecticides stick to the plants. Soap helps make spraying easy and even.

2. Makabuhay – This plant is a natural pesticides. This has been proven to be effective against brown plant hopper, green leafhopper, and rice stem borer.

Procedure:

• Chop the leaves and scatter them in the rice fields or vegetable areas.

• Ground makabuhay leaves are broadcasted at the rate of two kilos per square meter on rice seedbeds 10 days after sowing.

• This procedure has proven makabuhay as toxic as broadcast carbofuran.

• Toxic effect lasts five to seven days after application.

3. Derris roots – Derris plant or “Tubli” in some parts of the Philippines especially in the Visayas and Mindanao provinces. It has a biodegradable insecticide known as rotenone.

Procedure:

• Powder or make a liquid form of the root sap and sprinkle or spray directly into the plants.

• Liquid form should be sprayed to the plants affected with pea aphids, corn borers, bean beetles, mosquitoes, and houseflies.

3. Aromatic Herbs – Mint, oregano, and other aromatic herbs traditionally used as spices may be planted around garden plots to repel insects. Experts recommends that for every 100-square-meter bed, 8-10 marigolds should be intercropped in the garden with 20-25 garlic or onion bulbs to discourage pests from attacking plants.

Procedure:

• Chop-fine aromatic herbs such as onion, garlic, horseradish, red pepper, mustard, mint.

• Strain the solid and add a quart of water and liquid detergent.

• Mix with onion brew (Brew contains onion roots, stems and leaves).

• The brew is sprayed generously over plants infested with insects. If the brew ferment, it has been found to effectively repel insects.

There are lots of plants that are used as insecticides. I will be publishing them in future issues. Just stick to me.

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Cris Ramasasa is a freelance writer, retired horticulture teacher. Writes on home gardening and Internet marketing tips. Written ebooks, titled; “Discover How to get Started in Flower Gardening” and “Vegetable Gardening Made Easy”. Subscribe his Free articles and ebooks at: www.crisramasasa.com