Essential oils have a lot of good things in store for us: They envelop us with their wonderful scent, have various healing properties - and keep annoying insects such as wasps away. How effective they are depends on how and under what circumstances you use them.
Which essential oils help against wasps?
Essential oils such as lavender oil, basil oil, lemongrass oil and clove oil can repel wasps as they do not like their unpleasant smell. The oils can be used in fragrance lamps, water dispersers, on furniture or on your own body.
Which essential scents wasps detest
Essential scents are intense, but usually extremely pleasant for our human noses. Some of them, on the other hand, can't stand wasps at all. They generally have an aversion to citrus, herbaceous and bitter smells. Essential oils that repel wasps are, for example:
- Lavender oil
- Basil oil
- Lemongrass oil (citronella)
- Clove oil
How to use the oils?
Essential oils can be used against wasps in various ways. For example by:
- Let it evaporate in the aroma lamp
- Spraying over water disperser
- Rubbing furniture and possible nesting sites
- Rubbing your own body
fragrance lamp
A classic fragrance lamp (€13.00 on Amazon) effectively releases the aromatic substances in the oils and spreads them into the air. A positive side effect of this method is the open flame. Fire and smoke also have a wasp-repelling effect.
Water disperser
You can also mix some oil with water and apply it into the air using a spray disperser. The practical thing about this method is that it can be used in a very targeted and situational manner, i.e. when the wasps actually come.
Rubbing furniture and possible nesting sites
In order to be able to sit quietly at the seating area in the gazebo, it can also help to rub the furniture with essential oil. It is best absorbed by wooden furniture. Essential oil applied to places that queen wasps might choose as a nesting place in spring - such as niches in the roof beams - can also have a deterrent effect.
Rubbing yourself
If you absolutely hate having a wasp settle on your arm, you can also rub the oil on yourself. However, it is important for allergy sufferers to dilute the oil beforehand.
When essential oils don’t help
The wasp-repelling effect of essential oils is there, but only limited. In certain situations, their scents can't do anything. For example, at the dinner table full of sweet and savory treats or with existing nests.
