What Plants Repel Insects (Including Mosquitoes)?

Insects are essential to the environment, but you must admit that mosquito, gnat, fly, and no-see-um bites are very annoying. Many people use chemical insect spray to stop their itchy and painful bites. They don’t know that plants can, at least partially, keep bugs away. Here is a list of plants that can help you control the number of mosquitoes and other bugs in your garden.

You can get rid of bugs and other pests with these herbs and flowering plants. Plants that keep bugs and mosquitoes away can give you and your yard an extra layer of protection.

Check out this helpful list of plants that keep bugs away and enjoy a backyard without bugs!

How do plants keep insects away?

Bugs can be scared away by the smell of some herbs and flowers, which comes from tiny globules that hold essential oils. When the globules are heated to high temperatures, the essential oils can escape from the globules and turn into vapors. One of the best ways to see this is in the globules on the underside of rosemary leaves.

Most plants that keep bugs away do so with their natural scents, which keep mosquitoes and other bugs away and fill your garden with pleasant smells. If you don’t want to use chemical bug sprays on yourself or your garden, you can grow some of these plants to naturally keep bugs, like mosquitoes, away.

Plant these plants in places where people will often be, like by a doorway or a place to sit.

A list of plants that are known to keep insects away

A few plants with a strong scent can help keep pesky biting bugs like mosquitoes and flies away. Growing these naturally insect-repelling species can make spending time outside more pleasant, and less buggy.

Here are some plants revered for their insect-repelling characteristics:

Basil: Basil is a great plant to grow if you’re looking for a natural way to repel houseflies and mosquitoes. Place basil plants around patios in pots to create a barrier to keep these pests away.

Bay leaf: The bay leaf is a slow-growing plant that is commonly used as an ingredient in soups and stews. It is also effective at repelling flies, cockroaches, and ants. If you do not want to grow your own bay leaf plant, you can purchase them at the grocery store and sprinkle pieces of the leaves around pest-heavy areas of your garden.

Chives: This allium plant, when placed in your garden, will keep away Japanese beetles, carrot flies, aphids, mites, and even rabbits.

Chrysanthemums: Chrysanthemums work well as natural insect repellents because they contain pyrethrum. Pyrethrum is also found in many artificial insect repellents and is effective against pests such as spider mites, silverfish, Japanese beetles, ants, bed bugs, roaches, and fleas.

Dill: Dill can be planted as a way to keep pests like spider mites, squash bugs, and aphids away from your vegetable garden. However, dill is also known to attract tomato horn worms, so it is best to keep dill away from your tomato plants.

Garlic: This allium plant with a strong smell is a bug repellent for carrot flies, cabbage worms, slugs, and aphids.

Geraniums: Geraniums are a popular type of flower that many people use to decorate their flower beds and hanging baskets. Geraniums are also effective at deterring many types of insects, including mosquitoes and leaf hoppers.

Lemongrass: This ornamental grass, which is tall and attractive, is a common ingredient in herbal teas. It contains citronella oil, which is fragrant and acts as a mosquito repellent. Citronella is utilized in natural mosquito repellents, patio candles, and other products. You may not know that citronella is grass. Most citronella products use the plant’s pleasant-smelling oil. Because the oils evaporate quickly, citronella skin products only last around two hours. Plants help repel biting insects. Citronella grass may grow six feet tall and wide, so allow it room. Grass likes the sun, but with a tree to block some of it. It’s also thirsty.

Lemon thyme: Lemon thyme is often grown for its culinary purposes, but it also helps keep mosquitoes at bay. Its tiny flowers attract bees, which help pollinate surrounding plants.

Marigolds: The smell of marigolds deters mosquitoes, aphids, and rabbits.

Mint: Mint repels mosquitoes6. Stems and blossoms are also aromatic. You can blend the plant’s oils with vodka and apple cider vinegar (or witch hazel) to make a mosquito repellent. Mint pots in the yard or on the patio might keep insects away from surrounding plants. Mint spreads quickly, so grow it in pots. Once planted, it’s hard to remove.

Nasturtiums: Nasturtiums are referred to as “trap crops” because they draw bugs to their own leaves rather than repelling them. This means bugs like cabbage moths and aphids will focus on the nasturtiums rather than vegetables like beans, tomatoes, and cabbage. Because of this, nasturtiums are a common flower to grow as a border for vegetable gardens.

Parsley: This plant, which is bright green and only lives for two years, is popular as a decoration for food. It also works well to keep asparagus beetles away.

Petunias: Petunias are available in many colors and can help improve the look of any flower bed. They also help control aphids, tomato horn worms, and asparagus beetles by trapping them in their sticky stamens where the insects die instead of harming your plants.

Thyme: Thyme can be used for medicinal purposes, and its essential oils are a great natural way to deter insects like cabbage loopers, white flies, tomato horn worms, and corn earworms.

Lavender: Lavender smells harmful to mosquitoes, and research shows that lavender essential oils keep most species away for six to eight hours. If you grow the fragrant plant around your house, it can also bring in helpful pollinators that will make lots of purple flowers. Lavender should be planted about 2 to 3 feet apart to give them room to grow, and they do best in direct sunlight. Water the plants once or twice a week, depending on how dry the soil is.

Rosemary: In addition to being a tasty and useful herb, rosemary leaf has oils in it that have been shown to keep mosquitoes away. Rosemary is easy to grow, so many people grow it at home. It can grow well in a garden, a window box, or even in your landscaping. Also, having a rosemary plant nearby makes it easier to add flavor to your food.

Catnip: Catnip is a type of mint, and it has a chemical in it called nepetalactone that makes cats want to eat it and keeps mosquitoes, flies, deer ticks, and cockroaches away. It’s said that it makes insects feel pain or itching by activating a chemical receptor. It’s not too hard to grow catnip plants. You can plant outside in the spring or fall, either from seeds or from plants. It can get as tall as three or four feet and has small lavender flowers. Be careful, though, because catnip can spread and take over your garden if you’re not careful.

Floss Flowers: Floss flowers have coumarin, which is a chemical that is used in some commercial bug sprays. This chemical, which is also in sweet grass, smells bad to mosquitoes. Not only do they keep biting bugs away, but their blue, pink, and white blooms in the summer and fall make them very pretty. Floss flowers do best in rock gardens, flower beds, or as an edging plant in areas with rich soil.

Pitcher Plants: Pitcher plants devour bugs. Carnivorous plants are the largest group. Exotic-looking plants draw insects into a “pitcher” leaf with nectar, fragrance, and color. Insects land on a smooth surface with downward-pointing hairs within the pitcher. They drown or are too weary, becoming plant food. North American pitcher plants devour ants, flies, wasps, bees, beetles, slugs, and snails. Wild pitcher plants flourish in bogs. They demand a sunny and moist spot, which is rare in a residential garden. They grow better in water-filled pots.

Sage: If you like to gather around your backyard fire pit, plant some sage nearby. If you throw some of the plants into the fire, the earthy smell will keep bugs away. Sage can also be dried and made into bug spray at home.

Bee Balm: Want to bring in beneficial bugs like bees and butterflies while keeping away the bad ones? Then you should grow bee balm, which is also called Monarda or horsemint. Just crush the leaves to get the smelly oils out. Plus, you’ll get to see flowers all summer long that are red, pink, lavender, white, or purple.

A Few More Bug-Smart Methods

To keep mosquitoes, biting flies, and other irritating pests at bay, use these methods in addition to planting bug-repelling plants in the garden.

Get rid of the weeds. Bad bugs can get food and shelter from weed plants. They also take water and nutrients from good garden plants that are close by.

Encourage the growth of strong plants. If you put the right plant in the right place, it will grow into a healthy, strong plant that will naturally fight off diseases and bugs.

Mulch. A 2-inch layer of mulch stops weeds from growing and keeps soil from drying out, making a healthy growing zone.

Try to find pest-resistant plants. Some types of plants are chosen because they can handle insect pests better than others. Look for plants that can handle pests well.

Dispose of any accumulated water. Unwanted pests, particularly mosquitoes, love stagnant water where they may breed.

In Conclusion,

As well as being attractive, pest-repelling plants can be aromatic. In order to keep the bugs at bay, consider planting a few of these in your garden.

Aside from citronella candles and insecticides, there are natural alternatives to keep mosquitos and other pests out of your yard and your vegetable garden. Insect-repelling plants can be grown at home as a DIY pest control method.

 Happy Gardening!