I am looking for a good recipe to make pepper spray for insect repellent. The recipes I have found are pretty consistent in ingredients, but the amounts are all in totally different ratios. Does anyone have a good recipe for pepper spray?
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Hi Katie,
Great question! There are many people around the world using pepper spray as an organic pesticide. The exact ratios will be different based on the type of pest you want to control for, the plant you are spraying, and your climate. It’s a good idea to test your recipe on a small percentage of your crop before spraying everything, as the spray might be damaging to your plants.
One of the interns at ECHO Florida is experimenting with a pepper spray against army worm on her corn.
Her recipe is as follows:
One pound of ghost peppers
Three cups of water
2 Cloves of garlic
1 squirt of soap
She blended the above ingredients and then strained the liquid. She then diluted the spray 1:3. She sprays her corn 2-3 times per week, wearing gloves and a respirator.
She has reported that she is having trouble with the spray washing right off in the rain. Adding a vegetable oil to the solution might prevent this from happening as quickly.
You may need to experiment with the ratios to figure out what works best for your situation. Let us know what you find out!