CHAPTER 11 - The Best Control 2

and ask me what to use to spray and kill their answer.Peace of Mind - The main ingredient in Pestisafes ® and Safe Solutions, Inc. products.Peach (Prunus persica) - The leaves and flowers are toxic to many insects. Note: A peach tree can grow froma nectarine pit and a nectarine tree can grow from a peach pit.Peanut Butter - attracts ants, crickets, squirrels and rodents and may also attract people seeking to avoid diabetesand/or heart disease. A great source of fiber and monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats that both improveglucose and insulin stability as well as protect against heart disease. But, remember, 1.5 million Americansare allergic to peanuts with over 100 deaths each year!Peanut Oil - Put ¼ cup in a hot bath; soak for 1 hour and keep the water moving. Dry off and put a light coveringof peanut oil on the skin to control scabies and other mites. Do not use if sensitive to peanuts.Peas - A diet of peas will sterilize mice. Pea protein is repellant, toxic and sterilizes some insects.Peat Moss - helps plants grow but could cause lung infections. Be careful.PEG - Polyethylene glycol comes as solid or oily liquid. The Author has worked with the oily liquid, which is veryeffective as a non-volatile solvent because of its high boiling point. Every PEG-type surfactant has excellenthygroscopic property and as the degree of condensation increases, the hygroscopic property is increased, and,therefore, is wonderful for killing insects and arachnids.Peladow ® - Sprinkled on ice will melt the ice, sprinkled on gravel or playgrounds will keep down the dust and killweeds and when sprinkled in crawl spaces, etc. will kill termites permanently or until flushed away.Pennyroyal (Mentha pulegium [in Europe] or Hedeoma pulegioides [in the New World]) - A small leafedperennial herb that has spikes of lavender, fragrant flowers. Pliny the Elder named the plant because of thecommon practice of covering the floors to control “pulex” or “pulices” (fleas) (Stuart 1979). Pennyroyal relievestoothaches and is thought to heal the bites of snakes and serpents. The plant will repel many insects, e.g.,fleas, flies, ticks, mosquitoes, ants, kissing bugs, gnats and flies. Take some fresh leaves; crush them and rubthem on your skin and clothes. The oils have a minty fragrance that repels ticks, chiggers, flies, mosquitoesand gnats. Ground pennyroyal is one of the most effective tick deterrents available. Dust powder made fromthe leaves can be scattered around areas where the pet sleeps and plays. It can be used as a biting insectrepellent when rubbed on skin or clothes. It was used to cause abortions in the past and often killed themother. See if you react to a small amount first. It has often caused toxic problems in people and pets.Do not use internally!Pepper - Black pepper extracts discourage insect pests from laying eggs on leaves and will control many peststhat are soft-bodied in the larval state because the pepper extract can easily penetrate their bodies. Pepper oiland/or dust will protect grain supplies and dwellings from insect and some rodent pests.Pepper and Salt Water - Put 2 oz. table salt (sodium chloride) and 1 oz. white pepper in 1 pint water and spraythe mixture around areas inside the home wherever ants have been seen. This mixture is also very effectivewhen applied around the foundation walls outside to repel ants - you can add a little soap as a “kicker”.Pepper Sprays - work best when made from fresh or frozen peppers and can be used to control ants, mites,caterpillars and to control some plant viruses, e.g., ring spot and cucumber mosaic.Peppermint - Crushed dried peppermint leaves securely tied in small sachets or bags will make your summerhome/cottage smell better - toss them in closets, drawers, dishwashers, stoves, under crawls, beds and furnitureto repel mice. Peppermint inhaled or eaten will also keep you more alert. Peppermint soap diluted in watermakes an excellent insect spray. Peppermint is a natural hybrid of the garden spearmint and the water mint.The principle components of peppermint oil are menthol, menthone and menthyl acetate, although analysis ofpeppermint’s volatile oil will typically show more than 40 different compounds. Peppermint oil (and tea) havebeen used to fight the common cold and have demonstrated significant anti-viral activity. We have found when424