non-toxic options

Chemical Alternatives For Everyday Activities.

Lawn & garden:

Salt/De-Icers – Substitute sand, Use sodium chloride (softer salt and petsafe) instead of calcium chloride 

Insecticides – Spray plants with soapy water, then rinse. Import natural predators such as ladybugs, ground beetles & praying mantises. Natural insecticides such as rotenone. Rotenone can be purchased at Sears or Amazon. 

Insect Repellant – Screen, protective clothing, creams or lotions such as ―Skin So Soft‖. Brewer’s yeast tablets taken daily gives your skin a scent that mosquitoes seem to avoid. Burt’s Bees oil lotion. Boil citrus rinds while in area on patio. 1 tbsp orange oil, 1 tbsp vanilla and 1 cup of water. Mix together and apply to your skin. 

Fertilizer – Compost kitchen & yard waste 

Snail & Slug Killer – Fill a shallow pan with stale beer & place in the infested area. The slugs will then crawl into it and drown. Overturn clay pots & the snails will seek shelter in them from the heat. Lay boards between the rows of planted vegetables. Destroy collected snails. 

Insect Repellant For Plants – Mix 1 tbsp of mustard in 1 quart warm water. Shake vigorously until well mixed, then lightly mist spray your vegetable plants at the first sign of trouble. 

Fungicide – Mix 1 cup chamomile tea, 1 tsp salad oil & 1 tsp peppermint oil in 1 gallon of water. Spray plants every week or so. Or 1 heaping tbs baking soda, 1 tbs citrus oil or molassas and 1 gal of water. Mix together and spray plants as needed. 

Weed Killer – Spray weeds with a vinegar solution. (Ag vinegar) 5-10% works for young plants, older, estab-lished weeds require a stronger concentration. Pull weeds. Ag (Agricultural) vinegar can be purchased at many feed and farm stores and most hardware stores. 

cleaning supplies

**Baking and washing soda, lemons and vinegar can take care of most of the load, be it stain removals, deodorizing, disinfecting or general cleaning. Instead of using sponges or paper towels, go back to the old fashioned rag.** 

**Baking soda is a great cleansing agent. It can be used to keep appliances like the refrigerator and microwave odor-free. It can be used in laundry to remove stains. It is the perfect cleaner to scour pots and pans.** 

Chlorine Bleach - Hydrogen peroxide based bleach used in laundry instead of chlorine bleach will kill mold and mildew. Hydrogen peroxide based bleach used in kitchen and bathroom instead of chlorine bleach will still sanitize counters and cutting boards as well as removing stains from counters. 

Kitchen or Multipurpose Cleaner - Use water. Plain water or water with just a drop of soap or detergent in it is usually just as effective as a spray kitchen or multipurpose cleaner for many messes. Generally, whatever the amount of vinegar you use you should match with water. Now add a squirt of Dr. Bronner's castile soap, a squirt of pure lime juice. Add a few (3-7) drops of one or more essential oils. It is strongly recommend to use tea tree oil because it is antifungal, antibacterial, and antiseptic. Add another one for scent if you'd like. Lemon and Eucalyptus are great to clean bathrooms. 

Dusting - Use a dry cloth, barely damp cloth, or static duster. 

Window Cleaner - 1/2 c. ammonia, 1/2 c. isopropyl rubbing alcohol and 1/2 c. water. Mix. Pour into spray bottle. Spray on glass, tile counters, stainless steel or linoleum floors. Wipe with clean, dry, lint-free cloth. 

Personal Care

Lotion - Dr. Alkaitis Skin Care, Juice Beauty – The Organic Solution, Liz Earle – Naturally Active Skincare. 1 cup dried chamomile, 4 tablespoons honey, 1 cup milk, 8 teaspoons wheat germ. Steep chamomile in milk for a few hours. Strain, keeping liquid. Add honey and wheat germ to liquid mixture. Blend well. Place in a bottle. Refrigerate any unused portions. Keeps up to a week. Many more are listed on the internet when you look up ―"Home remedies for Lotion" 

Make-up - Burts Bees, Sephora’s natural beauty, L’Oreal Bare Naturale, Kaia house, Organic Wear. Mineral makeup is a safe product that has many benefits other than not containing chemicals harmful for the environment. Its pure formulations are safer and better for sensitive, even acne or rosacea-prone skin. Most also contain at least a SPF 15 to protect against the sun. 

Soap/Body Wash – Use bars of soap versus liquid. It's less expensive and lasts longer. For an easy and lightly scented bodywash, stir together 1 cup liquid castile soap, 3 tbsp. coconut oil, 5 drops lavender essential oil and 3 drops rose essential oil in a small bowl. Mix well and pour into a clean, plastic container. Shake well before each use. You can alter the type of oil or essential oil in the recipe to suit your needs. 

Shampoo—1/4 cup distilled water, 1/4 cup liquid Castile Soap - try unscented, but you can choose your favorite, 2 tsp jojoba oil, 1/8 tsp peppermint ess oil, 1/8 tsp tea tree ess. Oil. Mix all ingredients, then add 1/4 cup distilled water. Tigi, BedHead, CHI, and Redken offer Sulfate free products or ―"Green" products. 

Toothpaste – Toothpaste: 6 teaspoons baking soda, 1/3 teaspoon salt, 4 teaspoons glycerin, 15 drops peppermint or wintergreen extract. Mix thoroughly. Should be a tooth paste consistency. Store in a container. 

Mouthwash: 3/4 cup vodka, 20 drops lemon essential oil, 1 1/4 cup distilled water, 30 drops bergamot essen-tial oil. Combine the vodka with the essential oils in a bottle, shake well then allow to sit for 1 week. Shake once a day. When ready to use it , dilute the mix with 3 parts water/ 1 part mixture. 

Pet Care

NEVER GIVE YOUR DOGS TYLENOL OR IBUPROFEN IT WILL KILL THEM!! 

Cats – Tape Worm: adding garlic powder to wet cat food will get rid of tape worms. 

Fleas - Bath pet in Dawn dish washing liquid. It kills the fleas it comes in contact with. Borax workes for the carpet. Bath your animal in Pure white vinegar. 

Dogs - Benedryl for itching or allergies. *Chewable Pepto for vomiting or diarrhea. *Baby asprin is a great wormer and also for pain. (must be asprin, not tylenol or advil) *Plain yogurt for vomiting and diarrhea as it turns the 'bad' bacteria to 'good'. ALWAYS check with your vet first. 

Dog Mange - 1% solution of Hydrogen Peroxide. One part 3% Hydrogen Peroxide and 2 parts water equal a 1% solution. Put in borax until it won't dissolve any more and you're done. 

Dog Weight Loss - Feed half the amount of regular food, supplement the other half with canned unsalted green beans. 

Ear Mites - Try a few drops of mineral oil twice a day for 1-2 weeks.