How to make natural pesticides to kill ticks.

A traditional treatment prepared from a woody shrub is highly effective at protecting cattle against ticks in southern Africa.The University of Greenwich team in collaboration with the University of Zimbabwe, carried out the research. The team pulped and soaked the Lippia leaves in water to produce an extract which could be sprayed on cattle easily. The Lippia javanica, widely consumed to alleviate symptoms of fever is also used by some farmers to make a pesticide,which is cheap and easy to produce.Cattle are extremely vulnerable to ticks, mites and flies which can transmit blood parasites, cause irritating wounds and then infections. These ticks are a cause of severe economic loss as many infested animals die and those that survive rarely put on weight as they are debilitated thus producing little or no by-products. The use of the perennial plant at the proper concentration and dosage is as effective as the chemicals used and the ease of accessing shrub's leaves makes it an easy alternative. The shrub can easily be harvested from abundant bushes in the wild and can also be easily grown from seed. The farmers only needs to take the time to harvest and prepare the Lippia extract instead of buying expensive commercial synthetic products.