Essential oils are the aromatic parts of plants and are being proven over and over to be beneficial to us in so many ways.  Often times, when our body begins to feel out of balance, disease or sickness ensues. By using essential oils, the body gets a natural support to restore balance or homeostasis, resulting in the perfect environment for the body to begin doing what it knows to do, which is heal itself.  

People are not the only living beings which need a natural boost once in a while.  Plants (and pets too--that's for another day!) can also benefit from the perfect support provided by essential oils.  Even though I personally have been enjoying the benefits of essential oils for myself and my family for the past 6 years, it is only recently I discovered what a huge help they are when gardening!!  The joy of my summer is tending to the raspberry garden in our backyard and I assure you the past 2 summers have been even more enjoyable and exciting because the plants are in LOVE with doTERRA essential oils!  How do I know?  Because the yield this year from the raspberry garden is INSANE!!  I picked 5 QUARTS of berries yesterday and in years past I have been lucky to get a quart a day. Today I imagine there will be another 3 or 4 quarts for me to pick.  I am talking QUARTS people!!  Not the little tiny half pints you buy at the store.  My berry patch has not at all increased in size over the past 2 years, but the size of the berries and the number of berries per plant have multiplied significantly.  doTERRA has boosted the health and wellness of the berry patch and I want to share a few of my new insights with you here.  Below is a quick guide of how to use essential oils in your garden and my top 5 list of essential oils for every gardener!

Plants are like sponges and absorb what is placed on their leaves ("topical" application) or in the dirt surrounding them ("internal" application) quickly.  They use these tiny bits of essential oils for protection and to support their growth and development.  And even though my plants cannot talk, they are showing me in their abundance how much they LOVE doTERRA ESSENTIAL OILS!!  Why wouldn't plants love essential oils after all?!?  Plants produce essential oils, right?!  

Keep in mind though, plants are very small when you consider their mass to that of a human. When using oils on plants, be sure to dilute a lot: one to two drops to eight ounces of water can be plenty!  Personally, because I am covering so many plants over a large area, I purchased a new pump sprayer that I only use water and essential oils in to be sure of no cross contamination with any other chemicals (anyone else have a husband who likes to use round up on weeds...AHHHH!!)  The sprayer allows for even distribution of oils in a very small concentration over a large surface area.  I use 8-10 drops of essential oil per gallon of water for a nice, even topical application to my berry plants.  Another way I like to use oils to "feed" the plants is by placing 8-10 drops in a watering can and water the base of the plants.  This is typically what I do for the potted plants on the patio and those flowers planted next to our pergola in the back yard.

How often to use essential oils on your plants?  My rule of thumb is 2 to 3 times per week and I typically spray late in the evening so the leaves can dry off before the direct sun hits them in the afternoon (if the leaves are still wet with oils then photo sensitivity could result in scorching your leaves).

The main reasons I have used essential oils in the past 2 years is to keep those NASTY PESTS (like japanese beatles, fruit worms and aphids) off my plants!  But just like I have noticed SIDE BENEFITS from using essential oils personally (as opposed to nasty side effects), the plants are reaping SIDE BENEFITS too and it is safe to say, PLANTS LOVE doTERRA ESSENTIAL OILS!!  

Karla's Top 5 Essential Oils for the garden:
5.  TerraShield:  For an all around great bug deterrent, you cannot go wrong with this blend of essential oils.  And how many times can you be out in the garden spraying the plants and notice the mosquitos are after you and spray yourself with the same thing you are spraying the plants with and not have to worry it may harm you?!  I love this blend for outdoors!!
4.  Peppermint:  Not only does this essential oil smell GREAT when you are spraying it on, you can literally see the mini flying pests flee fast from your plants as you spray this on!  An all around pest deterrent, peppermint is great against spiders, worms, and aphids.  I used this one quite a lot last year with great results!
3.  Wild Orange:  This is a GREAT oil to use when you want to attract pollinators to your plants!  I have seen it work too.  Spray some wild orange on and within a few hours you will start to see the bees in the neighborhood come for your blossoms!  
2.  Rosemary:  This has really worked to get rid of the japanese beatles from my berry plants!  If any of you have ever battled these little boogers you know they are NOT easy to deter!  They are the most persistent pest I have ever seen and I am pretty sure they could survive a nuclear blast!  It is safe to say we have tried EVERY natural way known to man to keep these pests off the berry plants and using ROSEMARY has been the only effective way to keep them away.  They obviously hate the smell and my plants and I are quite pleased with that!!
1.  DDR Prime: With Frankincense, Wild Orange, Litsea, Thyme, Clove, Summer Savory, Niaouli, and Lemongrass essential oils, you could not find a better blend for your plants every need.  If in doubt, just use DDR prime and your plants will say THANK YOU!!  It enhances cell health for both plants and people!!  

List of Essential Oils for various garden pests:
 ANTS: Peppermint
 APHIDS: Peppermint, Sandalwood, White Fir
 BEETLES: Peppermint, Thyme
 CATERPILLARS: Peppermint
 CHIGGERS: Geranium, Lavender, Lemongrass, Thyme
 CUTWORM: Thyme
 FLEAS: Lavender, Lemongrass, Peppermint
 FLIES: Basil, Clove, Eucalyptus, Lavender, Peppermint, Rosemary, Geranium
 GNATS: Patchouli
 MICE: Peppermint
 MOSQUITOES: Geranium, Lavender, Lemongrass
 MOTHS: Lavender, Peppermint, Geranium
 PLANT LICE: Peppermint
 SLUGS: White Fir, Cedarwood
 SNAILS: Patchouli, White Fir
 SPIDERS: Peppermint
 TICKS: Lavender, Lemongrass, Thyme
 WEEVILS: Patchouli, Sandalwood, Cedarwood
 JAPANESE BEETLES: Rosemary