DIY Natural Fly Sprays
A couple years ago, I stopped buying fly sprays. It wasn’t because I didn’t need them, but instead because I wanted to avoid the chemicals that many sprays contain–plus save a little money. So I started experimenting with making my own.
I’ve found one recipe that I’ve stuck with for a while–it uses only two ingredients: apple cider vinegar and citronella essential oil. You can find the recipe in this blog post, along with several others. But. . . several people complained that a few of the ingredients in some of the recipes weren’t completely natural or ‘safe’ to use on horses.
So I decided to write yet another post on DIY natural fly sprays–and this time, I found all new recipes which are made with completely natural ingredients! They all use a blend of essential oils mixed with various other ingredients.
Now I know that many people prefer to only buy a certain brand of essential oils, and I’m not here to sell any specific one– but personally, I like to know that the ones I use are 100% therapeutic grade and I Iike organic as well. Some of the brands I like include Mountain Rose Herbs, Young Living, and DoTerra, but I’ve used other brands as well. If you find a company you like, then go for it!
So, without further ado, here are a few DIY natural fly spray recipes for you!
Refreshing Fly Blend by Nan Martin
- 5-10 drops Peppermint Essential Oil
- 5-10 drops Tea Tree or Melaleuca Alternifolia Essential Oil
- 5-10 drops Idaho Tansy Essential Oil
- 5-10 drops Eucalyptus Essential Oil
- 5-10 drops Lemongrass Essential Oil
- 5-10 drops Lavender Essential Oil
Drop each of the oils into a 32 oz spray bottle and mix with water.
Source: Equimed
Natural Fly Spray
- 30 drops Purification Essential Oil
- 20 drops Eucalyptus Globulus essential oil
- 10 drops peppermint essential oil
- 50/50 Purified Water to ACV
- 1-2 oz. V-6 Carrier Oil (optional)
Mix ingredients in dark colored glass spray bottle. Add carrier oil as needed for ‘staying power’.
Source: Heavenly Gaits Equine Massage
Homemade Fly Spray
- 1 cup of apple cider vinegar
- 1 cup water
- 20 drops of doTERRA’s essential oil blend Terrashield
Source: Weed ‘Em and Reap
Natural Homemade Fly Spray
- 1 quart Raw Apple Cider Vinegar
- 20 drops rosemary essential oil
- 20 drops melaleuca essential oil
- 20 drops lavender esssential oil
Source: The Prairie Homestead
Natural Blend
Add 20 or more drops each of:
- tea tree oil
- peppermint oil
- geranium
In a few weeks, switch the oils out and use:
- eucalyptus
- lemon, and
- lavender
Add water to spray bottle. Optional: add liquid soap or oil for ‘staying power’.
Source: Deby Estel–blog follower
Geranium Blend
- leftover and dying geraniums –about 2 cups or 20 drops geranium oil
- 2 cloves of garlic or garlic granules
- 2 tablespoons neem oil-human grade
- 1 cup white vinegar
- 2 cups water
Blend for about 4 minutes, strain and put in spray bottle.
Apply with a sponge around the eyes. Lasts 2 days but that’s about how long the natural stuff lasts. This is cheap and easy if you have a bunch of flowers in your yard like I do. Marigolds are good too since they contain pyrethrin.
Source: Kayla Martens (left as a comment on my other fly spray post)
*Just a note–the melalueca essential oil is the same as tea tree oil.
Also, I think it’s important to mention that there are other methods of fly control that we can use with our horses. Cleaning up manure is an important one since flies hang out around manure piles. I’m also using Spalding’s Fly Predators this year and even though we’ve had an epic amount of rainfall this spring in Oklahoma, I am noticing a difference in the overall fly population.
Happy Fly Spraying!
Ta-ta,
Casie
Hi! I'm Casie, a freelance writer specializing in horse health. I'm certified in equine acupressure and have a great interest in equine nutrition and barefoot hoof care. The Naturally Healthy Horse encompasses all of these things, and I would love to have you follow along!
I have had problems with the oils clogging or deteriorating my sprayer mechanisms. I have tried several different brands of spray bottles, and always “heavy duty”. has anyone found a solution to this, rather than throwing sprayers away and starting with new ones, it defeats the purpose of trying to save money and the environment. thanks for any input anyone can offer…
re the clogging spray head. I have heard that the use of a few drops of hand wash or dish wash detergent will help to keep the oils in suspension so they don’t clog the sprayer.
I think the side benefit is that it also helps the oils stay on the horse longer although rain would wash it off just as quickly.
In the anti-fly wars please don’t forget free ranging chickens. Eggs are side benefit. If there are ticks in the area Guinnies (sp) are well worth the investment.
Great point, Virginia! I have free ranging chickens and they are great for ticks as well.
I’ve used fly predators (wasps) from both Spalding and Arbico and they are a fantastic way to keep the fly population down. It gets better with time. They don’t kill the flies you see but the wasps lay their eggs in the fly larvae so that they never hatch. It costs me, roughly, $16 a month for five horses. I’d spend a lot more than that in fly spray. Though I still like to spray the horses with something since the predators aren’t 100% effective.
Some of these formulas look interesting and should smell great.
The one negative note here is the ‘GMO bad, organic good’ crowd. My guess is there isn’t an organic chemist in the lot nor a biologist. These cultural memes get started for all sorts of reasons but science and truth isn’t one of them. That sort of shallow, ignorant thinking was behind the ban of DDT and responsible for the deaths of millions of people as a result of that, from malaria.
Every time I’ve challenged someone who hews to that line to provide me with evidence to back up what they are saying I get the sales brochure from some environmental organization pushing an agenda based on propaganda and junk science. People have a right to purchase the products they want and a right to be as ignorant about biology and chemistry as they want. But ‘GMO bad, Organic good’ is not just ignorant but downright silly.
Very well said, thank you.
Where do you find the citronella essential oil. Thanks
Hi Rhonda, You can buy it through several companies which sell essential oils, but I usually order it through Mountain Rose Herbs: http://edge.affiliateshop.com/public/AIDLink?AID=136553#&Redirect=/products/citronella-essential-oil/profile
Citronella oil is the best repellent I have found. Last year I tested a dozen different oils and it won hands down on all kinds of bugs and skeeters. Also, my horse totally lost her sh*t with even one single drop of peppermint highly diluted. It’s incredibly stimulating, which is why I use it to stay away on long drives when I’m exhausted.
Thanks for the info on peppermint. I love it but I don’t need my boy all jacked up.
I have found that (rose)geranium essential oil attracts bees. Just FYI. I personally have not used it in a fly spray blend yet, only because everytime that I use that specific oil on me, the bees are always buzzing around me.
Looking forward to making some of these recipes thus year though, I love using the ACV!
good to know–thanks for sharing!
I will try some of these. Please add me to your newsletter list.
Hi Julia–please add your email to the box where it says ‘Subscribe to Blog via Email’ on the upper left hand side if you’d like to receive weekly updates. Thanks!
Thank you for this blog, and the natural fly spray recipes. I look forward to trying out a few.
I was told that it is very bad to ingest the essential oils(horses grooming each other) and you should not mix essential oils with water only oils because oil and water doesn’t mix together, is this not true?
It’s true that there are certain essential oils which aren’t safe to ingest, but others can actually be given internally (always consult a professional before giving any oil internally though). I’ve used my citronella oil recipe for years and have never had an issue with it. The way I see it, I’d rather use a fly spray with essential oils than one with permethrin which is known to be fatal to fish and cats. Also, I don’t use water in my fly spray, but I know many people who do. I would just shake it each time before using.
Thank you
FYI- A friendly reminder- Be very careful if you are showing your horse at a USEF/USDF show they random “drug test’ and many of these ingredients are forbidden. Don’t rely on the “on line” list. Email them. Happy horsing around!
Hi, does anyone have an effective method against horse flies? Can be internal or topical or whatever. Thanks.