12 Plants That Repel Unwanted Insects

We love summer! Its gentle rays of the sun… These pleasant temperatures… But unfortunately we are not the only ones! Summer is a hot and humid season that is particularly conducive to the development of mosquitoes. To prevent these undesirables from entering our homes, there are solutions to scare them away naturally. We give you our top 12 mosquito repellent plants to adopt urgently to have a peaceful summer!

1 – BASIL

In addition to flavoring cooked dishes, basil is very useful in gardens, as it helps to repel flies and mosquitoes. You can also install basil-filled planters near doors and windows to block insects before they enter the house.

2 – LEMONSELLA

If you have already seen citronella candles decorating the windows of certain stores, it is because their existence is not simply intended to delight our nostrils but also to repel mosquitoes. Lemongrass is a decorative plant from which a natural oil of the same name can be extracted and which is very effective in repelling insects. Moreover, you can take advantage of the plant for your gastronomic uses by using its leaves in your chicken dishes or simply to flavor vinaigrettes and soups.

3 – SAVORY

Savory is very effective against mosquitoes since the smell of its flowers repels them while its leaves are good remedies against bites.

4 – LAVENDER

Lavender is a natural repellent against moths, fleas, flies and mosquitoes. Used for centuries for its anti-insect properties, lavender gives off a sweet and pleasant scent in the house, especially in clothes drawers and closets. Most people love the scent of lavender. But mosquitoes, flies and other unwanted insects hate it!

How to use it ?

• To keep flies away from your home, make wreaths of dried lavender stems and place them near doors and on window sills.
• Likewise, plant lavender in sunny areas of the garden and near the entrances to your house.
• You can also use this lavender oil. Applied to the skin, it protects you from mosquitoes when you garden or spend time on your terrace.
• The other advantage is that lavender oil is known for its nourishing properties on the skin, as well as its calming effect to help you fall asleep more easily.

5 – OREGANO

Very useful in the kitchen, oregano acts as a repellent for mosquitoes, cabbage butterflies and cucumber beetles.

Other herbs that can help repel insects include parsley, dill, bay leaves, fennel or lemon balm.

6 – ROSEMARY

A small aromatic shrub with blue flowers, rosemary is an essential asset for your garden. Its smell repels mosquitoes and attracts butterflies. It grows in all soils, even clay, and prefers to live in full sun. But rosemary also lives very well in pots, so you can easily welcome it on a terrace or on a windowsill.

7 – MINT

You can’t do without mint in cooking. Its leaves flavor salads, herbal teas, desserts (dipped in melted chocolate… It’s a treat!) and even grilled foods. But that’s not all, its smell is also very effective in repelling mosquitoes. All mints work but I particularly like Algerian mint which has a spicy flavor. Mints can be grown in all soils and if possible in partial shade. Be careful, however, you should provide enough space because it has a tendency to spread with its creeping roots. Obviously it doesn’t matter if you want to grow it in a pot near a window in the kitchen. Note that the smell of mint also repels aphids and ants.

8 – THYME AND LEMON THYME

• This very fragrant herb also repels mosquitoes, particularly when you take the time to cut a few branches so that the plant’s chemicals are released into the air.
• In addition to adding a lot of flavor to herbal teas and lemonades, it also helps to repel certain types of insects, including tomato hornworms, cabbage loopers, cabbage maggots, corn ear worms. and whiteflies (whiteflies). This plant is therefore very useful in gardens.

9 – THE NEPÉTA

Do you have cats that you want to please and mosquitoes that you want to keep away? Then nepeta is the ideal plant! A hardy plant from the Lamiaceae family, it grows equally well in sun and shade. It can be grown in pots, in planters or in beds and it is one of the most effective against mosquitoes.

10 – MELISSA (MELISSA OFFICINALIS)

Also called lemon grass, the foliage of lemon balm, like that of verbena, is very lemony. It is a perennial plant capable of growing everywhere, lemon balm even tends to spread in the garden, particularly in the gaps in the walls between two stones. By its smell, lemon balm repels mosquitoes in the evening, it is also very useful for fighting chiggers.

11 – CAT NIP (CATMARY)

This aromatic plant contains a mosquito-repellent oil. Moreover, a study concluded that catnip was 10 times more effective than the products in commercial repellents. This plant grows easily in gardens or in pots. And there’s a little bonus: your cats will also be able to enjoy it! In fact, cats love to roll in catnip. So, just be careful not to plant catnip next to your flowers, vegetables or herbs, as cats may damage them.

12 – THE AURONE

• Aurone is used as a condiment in cooking. As with lemongrass, it is its smell that will repel mosquitoes.
• You can also dry a few strands of it, which you will then place inside your house. Fearsome!