Especially for those of you who are getting really bugged out by the flies, I spent sometime doing a little research today on suitable bug repellers but also included and little on mice, ants, ticks, moths, fleas and mosquitoes - ok so I got carried away :laugh:
I have only included one item that is not safe for parrots to eat but as it is suitable to grow in your gardens or around your dustbin to stop them perrishing flies I included it with an unsafe warning. All the other items I have checked and double checked are safe for our feathered friends even the stuff for mouse, moths etc etc is all safe.
Garden Only - Fly & Bug Repellent Plant But Not Safe For Parrots To Chew On!
Chrysanthemum cinerariifolium but is unsafe for parrots so don’t let them nibble it but it’s great for in those garden boarders outside where the parrots are not allowed to wander as a fly repellent - I grow it in a plant pot near the dustbin.
From here on down it's all parrot friendly stuff!
House or Garden - Fly & Bug Repellent Plants
Basil - An essential indoor and outdoor culinary herb that not only tastes good but also repels both flies and mosquitoes. Excellent in pots. Parrot safe if eaten.
Lavender (Lavandula augustifolia): An ornamental mosquito-repelling plant that likes sun and dry soil. Parrot safe if eaten.
Marigolds (Tagetes patula): These brightly colored annuals have a particularly pungent aroma that not only repels mosquitoes but also many other insects. They are often planted in vegetable gardens for this reason. Parrot safe if eaten.
Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis): An aromatic herb that is useful in cooking and contains oil that repels mosquitoes. Evergreen aromatic shrubs from the Mediterranean. Grows 2-6 ft. with pale blue 1/2" flowers and attractive foliage.
Powdered Rosemary leaves are used as a flea and tick repellent. Simply dust the powder onto the furry pets or areas where the furry ones sleep. A very effective and safe repellent. Parrot safe if eaten.
Lemon Grass – Parrot Safe and they do love to eat it, limit their consumption tho. Great in the kitchen too for cooking! Has many different claims to it health wise in the homeopathic world.
Anise - All aerial parts as needed. Leaves are added to salads and dried to use for tea. The seeds are most commonly used, flavoring baked goods and teas with their natural sweetness. Licorice taste, recommended for coughs, cleansing the breath and for preventing bad dreams apparently!!
Calendula flowers – Great indoor pot plant grows between 1 and 3ft high but has stunning flowers. Parrot safe if eaten.
Thyme – Great herb, easy to grow and parrots love em!
Eucalyptus (dried is poisonous) fresh / live plants only peeps
Mice & Ant Aviary Problems
Ok here’s an old remedy for those pesky mice and ants ram raiding where you can’t set traps or put poison down its parrot safe too. Peppermint oil, apparently it’s the very strong odour that repels them! If you find a mouse hole just pour the peppermint oil on to a cotton wool ball and pop it down the mouse hole. Mice will remove it and leave! Pour it around the edge of the aviary etc apparently it's such a strong scent that ants really don't like it due to the way that they use their sensor receptors.
The Great Mosquito Repellent
Mosquitoes are very sensitive to certain scents, chamomile especially. Easy to grow and used in dry flower arrangements.
To make The Great Mosquito Repellent pop two oz. of green leaves from plant and boil in a gallon of water. Strain and place in the refrigerator. Before going outside, splash the mixture liberally over your face and exposed parts of your body. You will enjoy the fresh smell but the mosquitoes will stay far away.
Moth Repellent
Equal parts of dried rosemary, mint and thyme in to a little material pouch, you can either pop it into the wardrobe or draws. If you end up storing things into a shed for the winter such as sun lounger cushions, parasol etc or maybe into the attic and want to protect them this is just the ticket!! All items parrot friendly!
Any still water is a breeding ground for mosquitoes. Check around your house and garden and remove or pour away any still water you find.
If still water is a feature—a pond, say, or a pot with water lilies or lotus growing in it—then add small goldfish or some native kokopu, inanga or any of the native Galaxiidae family (commonly known as whitebait), which will feast on any mosquito larvae present.
Flies Prevention
To stop flies driving you and your birds mad in the house the idea is to keep them out in the first place apparently open windows only on the windward side, apparently flies don’t like wind and will normally congregate in the sheltered of the side of a building.
Keeping food in fridges, pantries, tins and tubs also helps reduce those attractions for flies to drop by for a snack. Avoid cooking curries and boiling stock during daylight hours with the windows open.
Spiders - Encourage spiders in corners close to windows and they’ll scoff your flies for you.
Make your own fly paper: Right here you are for those who like to have a go at something parrot safe and not too expensive. Coat strips of brown paper with a mixture of 120ml golden syrup, 1 tbsp dark brown sugar and 1 tbsp granulated sugar. Hang on strings once the mixture has congealed. Flies are attracted, land and then can't leave! Once full remove strip and just pop in the bin for recycling. Parrot safe rather then those sticky glue fly papers you get at least if your bird nibbles it or flies into it your just sugar coating your parrot lol.
Hope this little lot helps
I have only included one item that is not safe for parrots to eat but as it is suitable to grow in your gardens or around your dustbin to stop them perrishing flies I included it with an unsafe warning. All the other items I have checked and double checked are safe for our feathered friends even the stuff for mouse, moths etc etc is all safe.
Garden Only - Fly & Bug Repellent Plant But Not Safe For Parrots To Chew On!
Chrysanthemum cinerariifolium but is unsafe for parrots so don’t let them nibble it but it’s great for in those garden boarders outside where the parrots are not allowed to wander as a fly repellent - I grow it in a plant pot near the dustbin.
From here on down it's all parrot friendly stuff!
House or Garden - Fly & Bug Repellent Plants
Basil - An essential indoor and outdoor culinary herb that not only tastes good but also repels both flies and mosquitoes. Excellent in pots. Parrot safe if eaten.
Lavender (Lavandula augustifolia): An ornamental mosquito-repelling plant that likes sun and dry soil. Parrot safe if eaten.
Marigolds (Tagetes patula): These brightly colored annuals have a particularly pungent aroma that not only repels mosquitoes but also many other insects. They are often planted in vegetable gardens for this reason. Parrot safe if eaten.
Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis): An aromatic herb that is useful in cooking and contains oil that repels mosquitoes. Evergreen aromatic shrubs from the Mediterranean. Grows 2-6 ft. with pale blue 1/2" flowers and attractive foliage.
Powdered Rosemary leaves are used as a flea and tick repellent. Simply dust the powder onto the furry pets or areas where the furry ones sleep. A very effective and safe repellent. Parrot safe if eaten.
Lemon Grass – Parrot Safe and they do love to eat it, limit their consumption tho. Great in the kitchen too for cooking! Has many different claims to it health wise in the homeopathic world.
Anise - All aerial parts as needed. Leaves are added to salads and dried to use for tea. The seeds are most commonly used, flavoring baked goods and teas with their natural sweetness. Licorice taste, recommended for coughs, cleansing the breath and for preventing bad dreams apparently!!
Calendula flowers – Great indoor pot plant grows between 1 and 3ft high but has stunning flowers. Parrot safe if eaten.
Thyme – Great herb, easy to grow and parrots love em!
Eucalyptus (dried is poisonous) fresh / live plants only peeps
Mice & Ant Aviary Problems
Ok here’s an old remedy for those pesky mice and ants ram raiding where you can’t set traps or put poison down its parrot safe too. Peppermint oil, apparently it’s the very strong odour that repels them! If you find a mouse hole just pour the peppermint oil on to a cotton wool ball and pop it down the mouse hole. Mice will remove it and leave! Pour it around the edge of the aviary etc apparently it's such a strong scent that ants really don't like it due to the way that they use their sensor receptors.
The Great Mosquito Repellent
Mosquitoes are very sensitive to certain scents, chamomile especially. Easy to grow and used in dry flower arrangements.
To make The Great Mosquito Repellent pop two oz. of green leaves from plant and boil in a gallon of water. Strain and place in the refrigerator. Before going outside, splash the mixture liberally over your face and exposed parts of your body. You will enjoy the fresh smell but the mosquitoes will stay far away.
Moth Repellent
Equal parts of dried rosemary, mint and thyme in to a little material pouch, you can either pop it into the wardrobe or draws. If you end up storing things into a shed for the winter such as sun lounger cushions, parasol etc or maybe into the attic and want to protect them this is just the ticket!! All items parrot friendly!
Any still water is a breeding ground for mosquitoes. Check around your house and garden and remove or pour away any still water you find.
If still water is a feature—a pond, say, or a pot with water lilies or lotus growing in it—then add small goldfish or some native kokopu, inanga or any of the native Galaxiidae family (commonly known as whitebait), which will feast on any mosquito larvae present.
Flies Prevention
To stop flies driving you and your birds mad in the house the idea is to keep them out in the first place apparently open windows only on the windward side, apparently flies don’t like wind and will normally congregate in the sheltered of the side of a building.
Keeping food in fridges, pantries, tins and tubs also helps reduce those attractions for flies to drop by for a snack. Avoid cooking curries and boiling stock during daylight hours with the windows open.
Spiders - Encourage spiders in corners close to windows and they’ll scoff your flies for you.
Make your own fly paper: Right here you are for those who like to have a go at something parrot safe and not too expensive. Coat strips of brown paper with a mixture of 120ml golden syrup, 1 tbsp dark brown sugar and 1 tbsp granulated sugar. Hang on strings once the mixture has congealed. Flies are attracted, land and then can't leave! Once full remove strip and just pop in the bin for recycling. Parrot safe rather then those sticky glue fly papers you get at least if your bird nibbles it or flies into it your just sugar coating your parrot lol.
Hope this little lot helps