Essential Oil Tick & Bug Repellant Spray

There are other bug sprays out there. Wondercide, Cedarcide, and Badger make high quality essential oil bug sprays. I’ve tested them all on the ground and in the woods of Lyme, Connecticut and I can tell you that nothing works better at repelling bugs, including ticks and mosquitos, than Stephen Harrod Buhner’s essential oil formulation. He gave me permission to share his formula and here it is: 

Combine 1/2 teaspoon each of the following essential oils in a brown glass bottle: 

  • Rhododendrum tomentosum also known as ledum palustre (Labrador tea)

    1. Artemisia absinthum (wormwood)

    2. Chamaecyparis nootketensis (Alaskan cypress)

    3. Juniperus virginiana (cedarwood)

    4. Eucalyptus citriodora (lemon eucalyptus)

    5. Origanum marjorana (marjoram)

    6. Myrica gale (bog myrtle)

    7. Tagetes minuta (southern cone marigold)

In front of cedar and lavender fronds, five brown glass bottles ranging from 5mL - 60mL some partially filled with liquid rest with their dropper caps.

Add 8 ounces of pure grain alcohol to the oils and blend well. Keep in a tightly capped bottle out of direct sunlight. Place smaller amounts into a spray bottle, apply liberally and often before going outside. Stephen Harrod Buhner states that “this combination is about 99% effective.”