13. Become Friends With Lacewings
Supplies required: Lacewings
Making It: $10–$15*
Aphids may be taking over your garden, in which case you may need to find some new friends. “The enemy of my enemy is my friend,” as the proverb says. Pet supply and garden stores carry lacewings.
Make friends with Lacewings.
Like ladybugs, lacewings consume aphids and pose no threat to your plants. Green lacewings are a “natural predator” of bothersome insects that will obliterate your plants, claims Preferred Pest Control. Just $14 will get you 1,000 lacewing eggs on Amazon (5,000 for $26).
14. Honey and Borax Will Keep Ants At Bay
Supplies required: borax and honey
Making It Cost: $15*
Unless they construct enormous tunnels and anthills, ants won’t actually harm a garden, but the aphid farms they manage most definitely will. Ants consume the honeydew secreted by aphids, and these pests are frequently coexisting.
Ant Control With Borax And Honey
Make a paste out of borax and honey to use as an organic ant killer. If needed, you can substitute peanut butter or maple syrup in place of the honey. Apply this mixture to ant and aphid-infested plants, being sure to completely cover the base of the stems. In addition to dehydrating the ants, this mixture will destroy the colony when the ants return with the paste.
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