Kids can make homemade bug sprays to protect their veggie garden. When kids see tiny holes in the lettuce leaves, they can spray the plants with pure soap mixed with natural ingredients. Chemical sprays harm birds, kill friendly bugs, and get into the water, making people sick. Pure soap flakes, not detergent, makes an effective spray and can be found at the hardware or health food store. Kids can recycle a plastic spray bottle by cleaning it thoroughly. Fill the spray bottle with water and a spoonful of soap flakes and shake until dissolved. Kids can squirt the soapy water right on the plant. If the soapy spray doesn’t get rid of the pests, use a garlic spray. Put a quart of water in a saucepan, add 3 crushed cloves of garlic, and boil for 5 minutes. Kids can let it cool, strain the garlic, and pour it into the spray bottle and squirt it on the plant. Kids can make a larger batch of bug spray by recycling a gallon plastic milk bottle and washing it thoroughly. Put a quart of water in a saucepan, add 8 cloves of garlic, 1 tbsp cayenne pepper and boil for 5 minutes. Cool, strain, pour into the gallon bottle, add 1 tbsp of pure soap flakes, and fill with hot water from the sink. The next day, fill the spray bottle with the mixture and squirt onto the infested plants. The spray won’t hurt the plants, but it will repel the bugs as they don’t like the smell or taste of the spray. Periodically, kids can respray the plants by refilling the spray bottle with the mixture in the gallon bottle. Kids can spray any garden plants that show evidence of bug damage and not harm the environment.
Cooking Magic for Kids 