Keep It Beautiful the Natural Way

A friend recently mentioned that, because of her allergies, she must go inside anytime her husband sprays outside. I hope you will join me in doing it the natural way by making your own herbicides and pesticides that will not bother humans and will kill only the undesired plants or insects. Any treatment that kills indiscriminately interferes with our food chain, and that is potentially harmful to species like us at the top of the chain. Spot spraying with safe products is much safer for all of us and should be the Wimberley Way.

The good news is it’s easy to do, and I found several recipes on the internet. Here are a few of them:

Pesticide - Soap Spray – mix 1 ½ tsp of mild liquid soap with one quart of water. Spray directly on pests or infected plants. Also try diatomaceous earth. It is a natural substance with many household uses and can be found at garden stores.

Herbicides – Salt spray – combine 1 cup salt, 1 T liquid dish soap and a gallon of horticultural vinegar. Using a spray bottle treat weeds at the sunniest time of day. Corn Gluten, a corn biproduct, is available from some garden stores in granules, pellets or powder. It acts as a pre-emergent week suppressant for your lawn.

This year Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring celebrates its 60th anniversary. Carson was a conservationist and author, and her books paved the way for the modern environmental movement. Carson gathered evidence of the devastating toll pesticides, such as DDT, were taking on wildlife. Our coastal brown pelican and revered bald eagle were on the verge of extinction before certain pesticides were banned. In Carson’s honor we can help protect the “least of these”, the small invertebrates and native plants on which all else depends.

Written by Becky Denton, Hays County Master Naturalists