Castile bar dilution for garden

[Peepersnickle]

I have searched online for a good starting point and can't find anything. Everything is for liquid "Castile" and not bars. I have Castile soap bars that I'm just trying to cut chunks off in a gallon of water for insecticidal soap. Anyone have any idea of how much I should try?

 

[DeeAnna]

My guesstimate -- A very brief look on Google suggests homemade insecticidal soap is about 2% liquid soap. Liquid soap as made by handcrafted soap makers is usually around 20-30% actual soap. Hand made bar soap is about 80% actual soap.

(Most people don't use actual soap in their insecticidal soap solution, however. They usually grab dishwashing liquid (like Dawn) which is a blend of synthetic detergents, not actual soap. )

Mother Earth News -- Make Homemade Insecticidal Soap Spray

(There's an unending debate on this forum about the word "castile" because it has at least two valid, long-standing, but quite different meanings. It's a lot less confusing if a person simply lists what fats were used to make the soap, like 100% olive oil, rather than use this word.)

 

[KiwiMoose]

Add some neem oil to your spray...

 

[Zany_in_CO]

Anyone have any idea of how much I should try?

According to what I have read, it's 1 part shredded soap to 8 parts water. That will dilute it. However, you end up with a gelatinous goo that your grandkids love to play with! I used it for laundry, and it did a good job along with adding other laundry soap boosters.

I like the "To use the soap spray, put 1 teaspoon of concentrate per quart into a sprayer." in the link @DeeAnna provided. Sounds about right to me. The reason I say that is because I use a mere tablespoon of my homemade coconut LS (40% soap) in a quart of water to make an "Orange Spray Cleaner" similar to the ones found on the grocer's shelf. Spray and wipe with a paper towel -- it leaves my mirror black range top clean and shiny with no streaks. I made it for my DH- the-fry-cook to clean up the greasy messes he made.