If you haven’t already, you should definitely look into beginning a journey with essential oils. Not only can they help your own body and mind, but they can help you in all sorts of ways around the homestead. There are endless ways to use essential oils, but today I wanted to focus on 8 ways essential oils can benefit you around the homestead! They’re great all-natural ways to keep your animals happy and healthy, keep pests at a distance, and even help with bug bites and sunburns you might get stuck with after a long days work. Read on!
1) Calming animals
While there are mixed opinions on whether or not essential oils should be used on cats, for larger animals like dogs, horses, and cows essential oils are great for treating anxiety. My dog growing up, Bonnie, hated thunderstorms— she would hide in the bathroom and shake 🙁 But, essential oils made for anxiety relief, like lavender and frankincense work wonders. Just massage a couple drops into their neck or back, about where you would put flea medicine!
2) Fly spray
- 3 – 5 cups raw apple cider vinegar
- 40 – 60 drops of essential oil
- 1 tbsp dish soap
While it may not smell the greatest, this is a good all-natural alternative for keeping flies off your animals. You can even use it in the chicken coop, though you might consider watering it down first. Like always, you’re welcome to mix and match whichever essential oils you prefer, and good options for repelling insects include peppermint, rosemary, lavender, and tea tree.
3) Pest control
Branching off the fly spray, here are a bunch of essential oils that can help you keep away various pests: Peppermint, spearmint, lavender, clove, patchouli, sage, rosemary, basil, clove, oregano, tea tree, lemongrass, cedarwood, thyme, lemongrass, and the list goes on… So long as you research beforehand, it’s a much safer alternative to pesticides. Here are a few ways to use essential oils for pest control:
- Mix 1 cup of water with 5 drops of essential oil and spread it around areas of your yard you need to keep slugs out of.
- Add plenty of peppermint oil to water and spray it into areas that you often find mice to keep them away!
- Dilute around 10 – 15 drops of essential oil with a carrier oil (almond, coconut) and apply a couple drops of the mixture on your furry friends neck to get rid of fleas and ticks. Be sure to research this first and make sure you’re using something safe for them! (lavender, geranium, sage, peppermint)
4) Pet shampoo
- 2 cups water
- 1/2 cup castile soap
- 5 drops lavender
- 5 drops tea tree
It’s super easy to make your own pet shampoo, and it works great! Just be sure to rinse thoroughly 🙂
5) Attract pollinators
While a lot of these solutions are to repel insects, you can attract bees and butterflies to your garden with essential oils too! Orange, lavender, and lemongrass are great options. You can mix it with water and spray areas you’d like them to migrate to, or simply put a few drops on a cotton ball and stash it somewhere.
6) Bug bite relief
- Coconut oil
- Beeswax pellets
- Essential oils
By combining the right essential oils with a carrier, you can create your own balm to relieve itchy bug bites! Check out the instructions here. Or, if you don’t have a double boiler (like me) you can simply use a carrier oil with essential oils. It won’t be solid, but it’ll still provide relief!
7) For beekeeping
While I have yet to start a journey as a beekeeper, plenty of beekeepers claim that bees benefit greatly from essential oils, namely spearmint and lemongrass. Check out this article for more information on that.
8) Sunburn relief
- 1/2 cup witch hazel
- 10 drops lavender
- 10 drops peppermint
- 1 – 3 tbsp aloe vera (optional)
Lavender, peppermint, tea tree, chamomile, and geranium are all good options for relieving sunburns. You can make this mixture, which will be a liquid spray, or alternatively just add some essential oils to your aloe vera if you have it handy.
There are plenty of other things you can use essential oils for around the homestead; making your own soap, laundry supplies, cleaning products, candles, cooking with them (cilantro oil in salsa, yum!) and even relieving sore muscles.
Are there any ways you like to use essential oils around the homestead that I missed?! Share with me in the comments!
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