Does Garlic Repel Bees?

It’s becoming more common knowledge that bees, wasps, and other insects are vital members of the natural world. While we don’t want to hurt them unnecessarily, we also don’t want to share our homes with these creatures. We’re also learning more about how overuse of pesticides is contributing to a major decline in beneficial insects. So are there some more natural and less harmful ways to prevent bees from taking up residence on your property?

If you search this topic online, you’ll find countless sources telling you to use an array of essential oils and DIY repellents to keep bees and wasps at bay. While we can’t say for sure that these work, we’ve certainly heard anecdotal evidence that they do . And at least using some of these natural products may not necessarily be harmful to other living organisms.

Along with various plants in the mint family, garlic is a commonly recommended bee repellent. From sprinkling dried garlic powder around your home to spraying with a homemade garlic spray, the ideas abound. Science has found that diallyl disulfide and diallyl sulfide, two active compounds in garlic, are strong enough to interfere with some pests’ sensory receptors. It is purported that small doses can repel, but large doses may be lethal. In fact, garlic has long been used to repel both insect and mammal pests that don’t care for its strong scent and taste.

Bees have a highly specialized sense of smell, so it would seem logical to assume that the potent smell of garlic would send them packing. That said, we would never recommend spraying or sprinkling garlic directly on bees or their hives. That could be detrimental to both you and the insects. Instead, garlic seems to be more effective as a preventive measure, to repel those bees who may be scouting for a new hive site. DIY solutions and bee removal don’t really mesh well–if you have an established hive that you would like to be rid of, calling in a professional bee control expert is the safest option. And remember too, that even when used as a preventive spray, garlic will need to be reapplied fairly often, especially after rain.

So the final word here is, we can’t say for sure. Garlic is delicious and has countless health benefits for humans and animals alike, and it’s affordable and readily available–so many reasons to love it! If you give a DIY garlic solution a try as a bee repellent, please tag us on social media and let us know if it worked! We’d love to hear all about it!

And if your home experiment doesn’t work, then you know you can always rely on the expert team at Cleveland Bee Removal for all of your residential and commercial pest removal needs. We have the expertise, equipment, and professionalism to get the job done right. Contact us today to learn more about honey bee removal in Cleveland.