These Plants Will Scare Away the Rodents:
It’s always extremely worrisome when you have mice in your home, or even worse when you spot a rat in the backyard. That’s why it’s so important to tackle pest issues as soon as possible. Learning how to get rid of mice and rats is definitely a challenging, frustrating, and even expensive task.
That’s why we’d advise you to try other alternatives, too. Who knows, you might get lucky and eliminate the pest “the old-fashioned, natural” way! There is one hassle-free solution: get more plants. Believe it or not, there are specific plants that keep rats and mice away from your home.
These plants are known for their fragrant properties, and they are actually offensive to rodents, especially since they have such a strong sense of smell, which is much stronger than what humans have.
Ultimately, natural repellents are completely non-toxic, inexpensive, and very safe to use, which makes them ideal for use around children or pets. You should bear in mind that rodents are not only a huge nuisance, as they cause damage to your property and garden, but they also carry a host of diseases that could put your family’s health at risk.
That’s why it’s so crucial to pest-proof your home and backyard. Are you looking for other alternatives? Cool, check these natural repellents, and test if any of these 9 plants will help you keep mice and rats away from your home:
Garlic and onions
Most of us have garlic and onions in our homes because, at the end of the day, they’re one of the healthiest vegetables! Moreover, their smell is quite repulsive to mice and rats. In fact, garlic has a number of sulfur compounds that release a pungent scent, which rats really hate.
On a similar note, a cut, raw onion releases a powerful smell that can easily irritate the eyes of mice and rats and send them far away. If you ingest it, this might cause instant anemic symptoms in rats. They basically become deprived of oxygen.
Try placing a couple of onion slices around the house to keep them away from you. Moreover, you can learn how to grow garlic from cloves in your backyard or pots. If you don’t have a backyard or enough time on hand to grow them, you can easily make a garlic repellent.
Just take four or five cloves to make a puree, and add that to a pint of water in a spray bottle. Then, spray that solution around any areas where mice and rats are spotted and in all potential entryways. It could make your home smell like garlic, but it’s still a small price to pay for preventing pests.
Lavender
This beautiful purple plant is also known for its fresh scent that fills the air. But even though this lingering scent is quite pleasant for us, it’s just as repulsive and obnoxious for mice and rats. Because of this, you should try growing lavender in your backyard or even sprinkle a couple of stalks around the base of other existing plants.
As an alternative, you could also fill little sachets with dried lavender and carefully place them in spots or crevices where rodents might try to get into your home. Or, you could also opt for spraying lavender essential oils around the house. The powerful, aromatic smell will keep the mice and rats away.
Daffodils
Even if these popular spring blooms have a very pleasant, floral scent, they are still repugnant to mice and rats. Daffodil bulbs can be easily planted around outdoor plants that attract rodents, or even place fragrant flowers around the house.
Even more, the whole plant is poisonous if you ingest it because it contains lycorine and other alkaloids, especially the bulb. This might result in diarrhea, vomiting, and even death for small animals. If you have pets indoors, make sure you keep them away.
Chrysanthemums
On a similar note, chrysanthemums are yet another colorful plant that holds “magical powers” against rodents. The blooms possess a very special combination of insecticidal compounds that are quite toxic but also effective repellents.
As you probably already know, chrysanthemums are popular flowers, which you can easily find in your local gardening store and either place outdoors or inside the house. Again, they are known to be quite toxic to both cats and dogs.
Nibbling on any of these might cause serious harm to these animals, like diarrhea, vomiting, excessive drooling, and even more, so you better keep them away!
Sage
This beautiful, fragrant herb that’s commonly used in pasta dishes also makes an incredible pest repellent. Rats, especially, hate the smells of both green and white sage varieties. Just sprinkle some herbs onto the soil, around outdoor plants, entryway crevices, and any other cracks around your home.
The pungent smell is more than enough to repel mice and rats from entering. You can either grow fresh sage in your own backyard or simply buy it from your local supermarket to leave outdoors.
Whichever way you want to go, you will have a constant supply of tasty meals. Other effective herbs with a very strong smell include oregano, basil, thyme, black pepper, and cayenne, which can all be found in your kitchen cupboards.
Mint
On a similar note, rodents hate anything fresh, which also includes the scent of mint. To be more specific, anything related to peppermint or spearmint, because these two tend to be the strongest.
Consider growing your own aromatic herbs in the backyard, or simply place them in pots to deter mice and rats. As an alternative, you can soak cotton balls in peppermint essential oils before placing them around trouble spots or even areas around the house.
Just remember to remove and replace them as soon as the scent has faded. Or, you can mix a solution of two teaspoons of peppermint oil with a cup of water in a spray bottle. Then, just use the homemade solution and target the areas around the house and outdoors where you generally see rodents.
Lemongrass and citronella
Lemongrass is a beautiful, tropical grass-like plant well-known for its fresh, citrus scent, which rats and mice simply hate. If you can, grow lemongrass plants outdoors, and you will instantly ward off any pests.
At the same time, rodents hate the lemon-like smell of citronella, which you can use around your house. If you can’t plant lemongrass plants in your backyard, you can just buy citronella candles or spray some lemongrass or citronella essential oils.
Moreover, if you mix some lemongrass extract oil with other essential oils, it will become even more potent for rodents. As a matter of fact, lemongrass and citronella are by far the most effective forms of repellents.
How to tell if you have a pest issue
General signs you should look out for include rodent droppings, stale odors, and holes chewed through your walls and floors. To scare mice and rats away from your home, make sure that all entryway points are well sealed.
Remove any food or water sources and clean the messes, including bird food. Besides, cover up any outdoor garbage or even compost bins, and remove nesting materials like wood, cardboard boxes, and newspapers.
Naturally, we can’t let you go without a certified organic herb seeds set. After all, what’s the point of reading about it if you don’t try it?
If you found this article useful, we also recommend checking out: 7 Trees That Will Ruin Your Yard (and What to Plant Instead)
