Anyone can get lice. Thousands of species have specialized in humans, animals or plants. This is no reason to give in to the concentrated diversity of species and cunning infestation strategies. Natural home remedies provide effective protection in the fight against penetrating parasites. Read this guide on how you can successfully fight lice without chemicals.
Which home remedies are suitable for combating lice?
Vinegar, cooking oils and essential oils are effective home remedies against head lice. In the garden, soap solutions and nettle decoction can be used against all kinds of lice. The combination of natural home remedies and herb-based defense strategies, such as sage, garlic, thyme, wormwood and chervil, helps to protect plants susceptible to lice.
Home remedies for lice and nits on the head
It starts with severe itching and red spots on the scalp. If you look closely, the first living louse makes our blood run cold in our veins. Now the question arises: What helps against lice? Chemical lice treatments are frowned upon for treating children. Adults also prefer to use natural remedies. In fact, the kitchen cupboard has a lot that works as an effective home remedy against head lice and lice eggs. The following lines explain the preparation and use of the 3 best natural remedies:
Vinegar
Pure vinegar is too aggressive for delicate scalps. To ensure that the home remedy works perfectly against lice and nits, add lukewarm water. Please dilute conventional vinegar with water in a ratio of 1:2. Mix milder apple cider vinegar in equal parts with lukewarm water. Rinse your washed hair with the vinegar water and let the solution work for 15 minutes. Then comb out damp hair with a nit comb.
Oil
Various oils are said to clog the tracheae of lice and loosen nits stuck to the hair. The focus is on cooking oils such as sunflower, almond or olive oil. Mayonnaise is also considered an effective lice remedy due to its high oil content. Distribute the oil on hair and scalp. So that the old home remedy can work for 3 to 4 hours, wrap your head with a towel or foil. Then shampoo your hair several times and comb out strand by strand with a lice comb.
Essential oils
For children of primary school age and adults, the oil may exude a strong, essential scent. It is believed that the fumes cause adult head lice and their larvae to suffocate. Of course, there is no reliable evidence for this thesis. Mix 100 milliliters of warm water with 6 drops of oil. Moisten previously washed hair and leave the mixture to work for a maximum of 60 minutes. Lice and nits do not fall off on their own. You can only get rid of the beasts after using the nit comb.
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Damp combing – step-by-step instructions
Treating your head and hair with the chosen home remedy only marks the prologue in the fight against lice. Only wet combing guarantees that you will actually get rid of the parasites. The following instructions explain step by step how to do it correctly:
- Let the natural home remedy take effect and wash it thoroughly several times with hair shampoo
- Apply hair conditioner and do not rinse
- Brush your hair well (with a normal brush or comb with wider teeth)
- Separate damp hair into strands using clips or elastics
- Place the lice comb on the scalp
- slowly pull the teeth up to the ends of the hair
- check the nit comb for lice and lice eggs after each stroke
- rinse the teeth with hot water before combing out the next strand of hair
To track down tiny head lice and nits, wipe the comb teeth on light kitchen paper or a white towel. The parasites are easy to see under green light. Ideally, you should use a magnifying glass to locate the pests.
Effective treatment plan
Lice need to be treated over a longer period of time
Lice and nits are tough. A single treatment is not enough for children and adults to finally get rid of the hardened rabble. Successful lice control requires a good deal of patience and a well-planned treatment regimen. The following procedure, which is based on the recommendations of the Robert Koch Institute, has proven to be successful in practice:
- Day 1: Distribute home remedies evenly, allow to take effect and comb out damply according to the instructions above
- Day 5: Treat the head and hair again including combing out with the nit comb
- Day 9: Repeat treatment to control later hatched larvae
- Day 13: Lice control by wet combing
Continue the treatment plan until no more lice or lice eggs can be found in the nit comb. Don't be afraid to use a magnifying glass for the inspection so that you can unequivocally discover lice, larvae and nits.
Background
High risk of infection with head lice
Short physical contact is enough to become infected with head lice. The cunning parasites don't care about the age, gender or ethnicity of their human hosts. As long as a person has hair on their head, they are not immune to lice infestation. If head lice occur in one family member, it is strongly advisable to thoroughly examine the rest of the family. To prevent this, the damp hair is combed out strand by strand with a lice comb and the teeth are examined closely.
What helps against lice in the garden
Roses are a common playground for lice in the garden. Nobody likes to treat the queen of flowers with chemical spray solutions. Poisonous insecticides are also taboo for aphid control on plants in flower beds, vegetable beds or on the balcony. Find out below which home remedies really help against lice on roses and other plants:
Soap solution
The best home remedy for lice on plants can be made from potassium soap or soft soap. This type of soap contains no dyes or fragrances and does not contain excess fat or thickeners. When combined with water, a natural lice control agent is created that has been proven to be superior to chemical insecticides.
Production and application are incredibly simple. Heat 1 liter of water in a kettle. Dissolve 50 grams of potassium soap in it. Fill the cooled soap solution (€8.00 on Amazon) into a spray bottle. Spray the tops and bottoms of the leaves as well as shoots and leaf axils until dripping wet. For high infestation pressure and thick-fleshed leaves, add 2 teaspoons of spirit to increase effectiveness.
Stinging nettle broth
A soapy home remedy against lice is not recommended for leafy vegetables, lettuce or tender-leaved ornamental plants. A decoction of nettles has proven to be an effective home remedy on a par with a soft soap solution. Fill a container with 200 grams of fresh leaves from a non-flowering nettle plant. Pour a liter of water over the leaves and let everything steep for 48 hours. Strain the broth and spray the aphid-infested plant every few days.
You can achieve comparable control successes with the leaves of wormwood, tansy, field horsetail or bracken. It is important to note that you use the finished decoction promptly. If stored for a longer period of time, a foul-smelling fermentation will result in plant manure, which should no longer be sprayed on undiluted.
My olive tree is full of ants crawling over lice that look like smallpox. Unfortunately, my lice spray made from coffee and vinegar didn't help. But I got a good tip that hopefully helps. Lavender water is supposed to help! I put a few sprigs of lavender in a liter of water and let it steep for a few days. Today the spray would be poured into a spray bottle. The mixture smells wonderful and will definitely be used for the pillow. Lavender is said to have a calming effect. And hopefully the lice will now be de alt with. I will report ✔️
A post shared by Frau Schubert▪️Blogger▪️Writer (@besserlebenohneplastik) on Aug 1, 2019 at 7:38am PDT
No one should get a louse on their liver because of a few lice on their head or on plants. Luckily, there are effective home remedies.
Plants with frequent louse infestations
Regular inspections are a good way to prevent lice on bedding and balcony plants. Check the leaves and shoots regularly from spring to autumn to catch the parasites in good time. In the early stages of a pest infestation, you can achieve just as good results with grandma's home remedies as with chemical insecticides. The following table lists which plants are particularly frequently affected by lice:
| Flower and perennial bed | Vegetable patch | Balcony plants | Trees/Shrubs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roses | Salad | Petunias | Privet |
| Daisies | Tomato plants | Orchids | Fruit trees (cherry, apricot, peach) |
| Sunflowers | Cucumbers | Oleander | Maple tree (ball maple) |
| Ivy | Strawberries | Palm trees | Clematis |
| Pelargoniums | cabbage | Geraniums | Honeysuckle |
| Carrots |
The larger and juicier the leaves, the higher the risk of lice infestation. Poisonous plant sap does not prevent aphids from piercing the epidermis and sucking the life out of the floral victim. Exotic summer beauties such as dipladenias and oleanders should be checked for pests just as often as native flowers, perennials and trees.
Excursus
Repel lice with herbs
In the garden and on the balcony, you can get rid of lice by combining natural home remedies with defensive plants. For this purpose, combine commonly affected ornamental and vegetable plants with intensely fragrant herbs. A proven dream team is roses and sage. Furthermore, garlic, thyme, wormwood or chervil are useful as a floral bulwark against an impending aphid plague. The mixed culture needs to be carefully considered, because not all herbs will ward off lice. Basil is a popular destination for numerous aphids to feast on the plant sap.
Do home remedies for lice also help with mites
Soap solutions should be applied several times
In autumn, plant lice pass the scepter of terror on to mites. Spider mites in particular continue on houseplants in winter where aphids left off in the garden. Both pest species belong to different orders of insects. Mites are arachnids and are tougher than aphids from the arthropod family. Soap solution as the best home remedy against lice does not show any significant results against spider mites.
To deal with the winter rabble, different calibers of combat are required. That doesn't mean you have to resort to chemicals. How to get rid of mites on houseplants:
- isolate the affected plant in a bright, cool room
- shower thoroughly, including overhead
- wrap the entire plant in a transparent foil bag
- close tightly over the pot ball with clips or string
- Keep it unopened on the windowsill for 2 weeks
Rapeseed oil against lice and mites
The use of rapeseed oil as a home remedy against lice and mites is controversially discussed among experts and hobby gardeners. This natural home remedy uses fine drops of oil to block the respiratory tract of lice and mites. The downside of the coin is that the vital wax layer of the leaves is also affected. The wax layer acts as protection against evaporation. If at all, thick-leaved plants are primarily considered for treatment with oil, such as rubber trees or palm trees.
Tip
Under no circumstances should you lump together home remedies for head lice and plant lice. Mixups don't end well for your green favorites. Fruit vinegar or lemon juice works wonders against lice and nits on the head. Sprayed on plant leaves in high concentrations, vinegar and lemon juice do not achieve any results against aphids, but only damage the leaf tissue.
What to do against lice and fleas on animals
The best home remedy for lice and fleas on animals is coconut oil. Lauric acid contained in it kills most parasites. The remaining pests find the intense smell anathema, so they quickly run away and drop. There have been good control successes in dogs, cats, cattle and horses.
For proper use, rub a little coconut oil between your palms and spread it over the fur. To ensure that your pet doesn't lick off the home remedy straight away, massage the oil primarily into inaccessible areas, such as between the shoulder blades. For cats, just 1 drop of coconut oil per application is enough. For larger dogs, massage 2 to 3 drops into the fur.
Frequently asked questions
How can you tell if a child has lice?
Head lice are bloodsuckers, comparable to mosquitoes and ticks. The first sign of a head lice infestation is constant scratching of the head. However, the itching does not always occur. A reliable diagnosis is possible if you find lice, larvae or nits (lice eggs) on the scalp and in the hair. This can be done reliably with a nit comb. Wash the child's hair with water and conditioner. If you comb out damp hair strand by strand, the 1-3 mm small grey-brown lice will not go unnoticed.
Is there a simple home remedy for black lice?
A threatening damage occurs when black lice colonize a plant in droves. The dark body color does not imply that control is more difficult than with green or red aphids. The old home remedy soapy water effectively kills the parasites. Dissolve 50 grams of potassium soap in 1 liter of warm water and add a splash of spirit. Pour the cooled soap solution into a hand sprayer and treat infected plants every 3 days until all black lice have disappeared.
What can I do against white lice on orchids and other houseplants?
Mealybugs are often referred to as white lice and are primarily unpopular as pests on houseplants. The infestation can be recognized by white webs or mealy-white cotton balls on the leaves. Immediately carry affected orchids to a bright, cool quarantine station. Then mix 15-20 milliliters of curd soap and 2 teaspoons of spirit with 1 liter of water. Apply the soap solution with a soft brush every 2 to 3 days.
Tip
Do you already know grandma's home remedies for aphids? To make it, brew fresh coffee and let it cool. Pour the black coffee into a spray bottle and spray the affected plant until dripping wet. The concentrated load of caffeine scares away the lice, never to be seen again. After three to four days, the aphid plague is a thing of the past.
