Do I put them out whole or cut them in half? How many do I put in each room?
By Jody
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I used whole hedge apples in my house to run out spiders, and was I ever wrong in doing it! They drew gnats, my house was full of them! And then they rotted. Gross! I got rid of them, got rid of the gnats, and learned a lesson. :-)
I know many of you are experienced gardeners, but some may be new. If you see an insect or spider, dont just automatically squish it.
The old saying is to let the bodock fruit dry first n a cool dry place before putting them n ur house thts wus the old wise tail I've always been told I had about 12 drying and I con my neighbors kids thought they were made to play with cause they come up missing but thts what my grandparents always told me to use the is dry them n they wld be 100% effective thnks
Maybe it's where you live. I have never had gnats or fruit flies and when I put them in corners and on steps (just 3) going to the basement, I don't see any spiders either.
They should only be used outside the home. I have heard conflicting stories about whether they work or not. My daughter used them outside and had great luck but from what I have read, they do not work at all.
I have used them and told to use them outside the house because they will draw ants etc.
I researched this and drew the conclusion that they do work! Look. When we first bought one, we put it in the house near our patio door and lo and behold, one by one by one spiders started coming INSIDE! I looked this up and found that an article mentioned how spiders actually build their nest in the trees which they grow.
Really interesting! When I first learned about them (in Nebraska) I found a lot and took them home. At my mother's house there were always cobwebs and spider webs in the corners of the steps going to the basement. I placed one at the top on the right corner, one in the middle on the left corner, and one at the bottom on the right corner.
I have successfully placed hedge apples (also known as Osage oranges) around the house without drawing ants or gnats and have left them 'til they dried up or almost rotted. It's best to place them on a saucer or in a re-used plastic container and not directly on the floor or carpet. It may also depend on what area of the country in which you live whether or not they attract ants/gnats.
I wait until after a good frost to harvest them from the ground. They then have that lovely fragrant aroma, which I would wear as a perfume!, which may act as the repellent. Blessings
Added info. I think Martha Stewart recommended slicing them, letting them dry in a slow oven, and using as Christmas ornaments. They are almost impossible to cut into. My dad almost ruined a saw doing that for me several years ago. The final product was not worth the effort!
My grandpa always hung them up in nylons or netting or something like that never had spiders and they never rotted.... I always remember these being around growing up lol!
I have heard they smell awful. The ones I have used have no scent. I just got some this week and they had gone through a frost. I only gathered ones that were firm. Those that were soft I left. Now I'm thinking I should try some soft ones.
Thanks for the info.
My mom put them in nylons too...they never rotted!!
I have used Hedge apples outside of my home successfully. I've never used a commercial pesticide around my home as I live on the water. I went on my porch last year during the Fall to find 62 spiders lounging in the sun there. Yes, it was alarming. But, I looked up how to get rid of them naturally and found the Hedge apples. I found 20 and put around and under my crawlspace. They worked great!! Never saw another spider all year until last week and I got more Hedge Apple's today.
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