1. Spread whole cloves generously around these areas.
  2. Make small cloth sachets (even paper napkins tied with string work) and place them inside pillowcases or under the mattress.
  3. Replace them every 7–10 days, as the smell fades.

What to expect:

Cloves will push bedbugs away from your sleeping area, making it harder for them to come near you at night. This is a repelling method, not a killing method.

2. Making Clove Powder Barriers

When you grind whole cloves into powder, their active oils become more intense.

How to prepare it:

  1. Put whole cloves into a grinder or crush them manually.
  2. Make a fine powder.

How to use it:

  • Sprinkle the powder in the seams of your mattress.
  • Apply a thin line of powder around the bed legs.
  • Dust cracks and crevices where bedbugs hide.

Tip: Bedbugs avoid walking through strong-smelling powder lines, slowing their movement and reducing activity around your bed.

3. Clove Oil Spray (Strongest and Most Effective Method)

If you have clove essential oil, you can create a natural spray that bedbugs strongly dislike.

You will need:

  • 10–15 drops of clove essential oil
  • 1 cup of water
  • Optional: 1 tablespoon of rubbing alcohol (helps disperse the oil)

How to make the spray:

  1. Mix ingredients in a spray bottle.
  2. Shake well before every use.

Where to spray:

  • Mattress seams
  • Bed frame joints
  • Headboard (especially if wooden)
  • Curtains near the bed
  • Cracks, baseboards, drawer edges
  • The underside of chairs or sofas

Precaution:

Test the spray on fabric first to ensure it doesn’t stain.

Effect:

Clove oil’s strong aroma can disrupt bedbugs’ ability to locate you, making them less active and reducing bites.

4. Clove Steam Method (For People With a Steamer)

If you don’t have clove oil, you can still create aromatic steam using whole cloves.

How to do it:

  1. Boil water with a handful of cloves.
  2. Let the pot simmer for 10–15 minutes.
  3. Pour the hot clove water into a bowl.
  4. Place it carefully under the bed or in the infested room.

As the steam rises, it fills cracks and fabric with clove aroma, pushing out hidden insects.

(This method does not kill bedbugs but helps flush them from hiding spots.)

Where to Focus Clove Treatments

Bedbugs hide extremely well. For best results, apply cloves in every place they might crawl through: