This is some good info I found.
Rose Geranium essential oil
I dug deep in my herbal formula for this recipe out of desperation, given that I live in the epicenter of the tick-generated Lyme disease epidemic. I tested the essential oil that is recommended for ticks, Rose Geranium, by putting a few drops no more! on our dogs' collars, to see if it would repel ticks. Lo and behold, we went from 20 ticks a day on each dog, to none.
Two tablespoons of vegetable or nut oil almond oil contains sulfur, a repellent in its own right. 10 to 25 drops of Rose Geranium essential oil. Combine the ingredients in a glass jar; shake to blend. Makes 2 tablespoons. Shelf life: six months. Dab a few drops on skin or clothing, making sure to avoid eyes.
Palmerosa is a sister essential oil to Rose Geranium, and it also repels ticks. It is cheaper, and sometimes easier to find, than Rose Geranium. Another good repellent that also worked on our dogs is feeding them garlic pills on a daily basis.
Vanilla
One of the best natural insect repellants that I've discovered is made from the clear real vanilla (not the grocery store vanilla extract which is mostly alcohol). This is the pure vanilla that is sold in Mexico. It's cheap there if you know of someone that lives there or in the US close to the border. If not, health food stores usually carry it or can order it for you. I use it half vanilla and half water and find that it works great for mosquitoes (mosquito repellent) and ticks (tick repellent), don't know about other insects. It's nice that you don't smell like a chemical plant but a cookie! I cannot use chemical insecticides, so I love the way this works and I hope you and your kids will also.
Citrus
Citrus scents also ward off ticks, and a citrus tick repellent can be easily made for just a few dollars. Bring 3 cups of water to a boil, then add a few sliced citrus fruits (oranges, lemons, limes, grapefruits–any combination will do). Let boil for one minute, then simmer on low heat for an hour. Take out the sliced fruits, and pour the remaining mixture through a strainer. Pour into a spray bottle, and spray directly onto clothing, pets and lawn. The acidic scent of citrus fruits work to repel both ticks (tick repellent) and fleas (fleas repellent), keeping your family free of these blood-sucking insects.
Peppermint
Peppermint also natural tick repellent and flea repellent, and a spray-on repellent can be made for just a few dollars. In a spray bottle, add 2 cups water and 20 drops of peppermint essential oil. Spray onto clothing, pets and around the lawn to keep ticks and fleas at bay. Alternately, crush a few peppermints and sprinkle throughout the lawn, or brew a pot of peppermint tea, strain into a spray bottle and use this as a spray-on repellent as well.
This is a little different from eHow.
Peppermint Spray
Make a non-toxic spray at home using peppermint. Combine two cups water and 15 drops peppermint essential oil and pour the mixture into a spray bottle. Spray the solution around the yard once a week and it will suffocate and kill the ticks and also prevent future tick invasion.
Cinnamon Spray
Alternatively, make a mixture of one oz. cinnamon oil and half gallon horticultural oil. Coat the lawn completely with the spray. The cinnamon oil contains cinnamaldehyde, anethole and eugenol that are eco-friendly and effective in getting rid of ticks.
Neem Spray
A natural method to kill ticks in the lawn is by using neem oil. Neem oil is used by many brands for preparing pesticides and insecticides and neem plants are available at health, organic or ethnic stores. The oil extracted from neem has the ability to kill ticks in all its life stages. To prepare a natural neem spray for the lawn, extract neem oil from the neem leaves. Mix few drops of oil with a gallon of water in a spray bottle. Coat the lawn with this spray to destroy eggs and adult ticks.
Essential Oils
A combination of essential oils serves as a natural tick repellant. Essential oils extracted from lily, citronella and clove have a strong aromatic scent that can help get rid of ticks. Prepare a solution by adding a few drops of clove, lily and citronella essential oils to a cup half filled with water. Fill this solution into a spray bottle and spray the solution directly on the lawn. Spray the solution, five days a week for four weeks until all the ticks disappear. The strong smell of the essential oils kills the ticks and their eggs and prevents further infestation.
Commercial Insecticides and Pesticides
Insecticides and pesticides offer an effective way to kill ticks in the lawn. Before treating the lawns with insecticide, mow the lawn to three inches in height and remove all unnecessary weeds, litter, grass and undergrowth. Insecticides and pesticides come in both liquid and granular form. As per the SMDC website (smdc.army.mil), granular pesticides are good for tick eggs or young ticks that hide in lawns, while liquid pesticides are best for adult ticks that are crawling in the open.
Yardsafe
Yardsafe is a popular tick killing product by Greenlight that is most effective against ticks. It contains cedar oil, which is safe to use around plants, lawns and pets. Yardsafe also enriches the microbial activity in the soil and thereby increases the life of the plant. It comes in a 32-oz. concentrated pack that is sufficient to treat 4,000 square feet of the yard
