Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

Tip: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

Adding DE (diatomaceous earth-food grade) to your seed starting soil will eliminate most little buggies and grubs that kill the seedlings. DE can also get rid of parasites by putting it in your dog's food, it will also help older dogs with joint troubles.

By bailey36 from Dowagiac, MI

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RE: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

Please make sure you get food-grade DE. Pool-grade DE, sold at Home Depot, etc. is strictly for pool filters and should never be used for any other purpose. (04/15/2010)

By pjabiff

RE: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

DE is also good for ridding cats and dogs of fleas. You need to make sure you get the proper DE. There is another type for pools and you don't want that. You want "FOOD GRADE" diatomaceous earth. (04/15/2010)

By Needtoknow

RE: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

DE is one of the best natural product I have ever used. The way it works is the silica (which DE is made of) slices through the critters bodies and kills them.

I use it every day on my animals. I mix it in my dog, cat, horse and chicken feed. This will help kill internal parasites and it only takes a very tiny amount. Also, I use it externally on all my animals to help kill fleas, ticks and mites. I lightly dust them with the DE and use my bare hands to rub it in.

With my 30 chickens, I dust their bottoms with DE to kill mites, dust the chicken coops with each cleaning to kill the mites that hide in the cracks and roosts, and put a small amount of DE in their favorite dust bath sites.

You can order it on line, or check with farm co -ops. (04/17/2010)

By raknhorse

Tip: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

Diatomaceous Earth is a safe and effective way to get rid of bugs such as; centipedes, silverfish, spiders, etc. I sprinkle it in my closets, under sinks, in the basement, along baseboards, in the garage or any place you have had bugs.

By Christa

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RE: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

DE certainly is good for bug control. Just be sure it's the type you can buy in organic gardening stores, etc., and not the more highly processed kind used in some swimming pool filtration systems. (07/08/2004)

By Kathleen

RE: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

I can attest to that. I've used it for years to kill ants outside. And I sprinkle it around my house to keep bugs from coming in. You can get it in bags at a nursery. It's all natural and safe for pets. It's literally ground up sea shells and it dehydrates the insects, ie: it sucks the life moisture out of their bodies. (07/08/2004)

By Vicki

RE: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

Works for snails, too. Pour a border around plantings and snails can't/won't cross over it. (07/08/2004)

By Linda

RE: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

Amazon.com has it. I couldn't find diatomaceous earth in any gardening shop in all Miami, They were like WTF? when I asked for it. I got rid of bedbugs and roaches forever with it. Ut is incredibly effective and cheap. RAID and that kind of stuff are energy food for the bugs. (08/09/2005)

By Anon

RE: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

You may be able to find it at the pool store. My husband uses it in the filter, and when we discovered we had a bedbug problem, he found out the diatomaceous earth would work. It was the only thing that did work, but it took a year and a 1/2 for the nightmare to be over (08/21/2005)

By Rachel

RE: Diatomaceous Earth for Bug Control

Make sure you use food grade diatamaceous earth and not pool grade DE in your house. Pool grade DE can be dangerous if you inhale it. (04/08/2008)

By dragon