The Elegant Cook

The health-promoting, diuretic, eye-freshening cucumber holds a drastically different meaning for certain garden and household pests.

Raccoons and skunks don't like cucumbers, in fact they are repelled by them, therefore planting cukes at the outer edge of your vegetable garden is a wise plan. There you are also easily able to provide cucumbers with a surface on which to climb, such as a fence or trellis.

Cucumber skins placed about the kitchen will naturally repel cockroaches. These hard-shelled bugs are a perennial problem in New York City and Paris, where even the most posh apartments are afflicted with roaches. Las cucarachas detest the bitter compound called trans-2-nonenal that is inherent in cucumbers.

~~Copyright M-J de Mesterton 2010

A safe ant-repellent for your kitchen and bathroom is a solution of 50% vinegar and 50% water. Vinegar will leave a fresh, clean smell and is employed widely as a household deodorizer. Use this vinegar and water mixture to clean floors and counters, or just spray it onto your surfaces.