There is a plant that can chase bugs away all by itself, and it is called beautyberry. This plant grows like a weed in a lot of yards, especially in the southern parts of the United States. It has small purple berries that look really pretty. But the real magic is not in the berries. It is in the leaves.
The oil inside beautyberry leaves works as a natural bug fighter. People have used it for years to keep mosquitoes and other pests off their skin.
You can make your own beautyberry mosquito repellent at home with just a few things, and here is how it works.
If you also want to protect your whole yard and not just your skin, check out this DIY natural mosquito repellent for your yard as well.
What You Will Need
Before we start, let’s gather our supplies. This project is easy, and you probably already have most of these items around the house.
- Fresh beautyberry leaves (about 50 to 60 leaves)
- A wide mouth jar with a lid
- Rubbing alcohol (enough to cover the leaves)
- A strainer or coffee filter
- A dark cabinet or cupboard
- Essential oils (optional, for a nicer smell)
- A spray bottle
Step One: Pick Your Leaves
Head outside and find a beautyberry bush. These plants are tough, so do not worry too much about hurting them. Just take a few leaves from each stem instead of stripping the whole plant bare. Skip any leaves that have bird droppings on them. Nobody wants that in their bug spray.
Keep picking until you have a good handful. You want enough leaves to fill a jar about four or five inches deep once they are packed down.
Step Two: Fill the Jar
Take your leaves and push them down into a wide mouth jar. A wide jar makes this step much easier than a skinny one. You do not need to chop up the leaves. Just leave them whole and pack them in tight.
Now pour rubbing alcohol over the leaves until they are fully covered. The alcohol is doing all the hard work here. It pulls the oil right out of the leaves, and that oil is what keeps the bugs away.
Some people like to mash the leaves down with a spoon or a stick to make sure everything stays under the alcohol. That part is not really needed, but it does not hurt either.
Step Three: Let It Sit
Put the lid on your jar and shake it up so everything settles. Then place the jar in a dark cabinet. Let it sit there for about four days.
During this time, check on it once or twice. Give it a shake so the leaves stay covered. If some leaves float up and are not covered anymore, just push them back down. This helps the alcohol pull out as much oil as possible.
Step Four: Strain Your Beautyberry Mosquito Repellent
After four days, it is time to open the jar and see what you have made. Pour the liquid through a strainer into a new jar or container. You can squeeze the leaves a little to get every last bit of oil out.
Here is something you should know before you look inside. The liquid will not be clear. It will be a deep green color. That is because the alcohol pulled out the chlorophyll along with the oil. Chlorophyll is the stuff that makes plant leaves green. Do not worry, this is totally normal, and it does not mean anything went wrong.
Step Five: Dealing With the Green Color
That green color might make you a little nervous at first. Will it stain your skin? Will it ruin your clothes?
Good news. It does not stain your skin. Once you rub it in, the alcohol evaporates and leaves a light coat of oil behind. Your skin will not turn green.
Clothes are a different story. If you spray this on light colored shirts or pants, it might leave a mark. So it is best to spray it on your skin directly, or be careful around clothing you care about.
If the color bothers you, there is an easy fix. Just add more rubbing alcohol to your mixture. This will thin it out and make the color lighter. You will still get the same bug fighting power, just with less green tint.
Step Six: Add a Nice Smell
On its own, this spray smells a bit like fresh cut grass or herbal tea. Some people like that smell just fine. Others want something a little more pleasant.
If you want to change the scent, add a few drops of your favorite essential oil. Lavender, citronella, or eucalyptus are popular choices, and they can also help boost the bug fighting power even more (shop essential oil sets — add your affiliate link). Just add a little at a time until it smells the way you like.
If you want to try other scent based bug fighters, tea tree oil and Listerine are two more natural options people swear by. You can read our tea tree oil bug repellent recipe or our Listerine bug repellent recipe to see how those work.
Step Seven: How to Use Your Spray
Pour your finished spray into a bottle (grab a spray bottle here — add your affiliate link if you did not already link one above). When you are ready to use it, spray a little into your hand and rub it on your skin. Face, arms, legs, wherever the bugs like to bite.
Since it can leave a green tint at first, give it a minute to dry before putting on light colored clothing. Once the alcohol dries, you are left with a thin layer of oil that helps keep mosquitoes and other bugs away.
Why Try This at Home
It feels great to use something natural instead of store bought chemicals, and this spray does not cost much to make. All you really need is a plant that many people already have growing in their yard, some rubbing alcohol, and a few days of waiting.
Plus, once you try it, you can experiment with different scents and even try other extraction methods to get a clearer spray if the green color is not your style. Neem oil is another plant based option worth trying if you want to compare — check out our neem oil spray recipe for the details.
So next time the mosquitoes start buzzing around your yard, remember this simple trick. Grab some beautyberry leaves, mix up a batch of beautyberry mosquito repellent, and enjoy your evenings outside without swatting bugs the whole time.
