Don’t Throw Away Tangerine Peels — Here’s Why You Should Keep Them on Your Windowsills
My husband’s grandma gently places orange peels on the windowsills whenever she eats them. I tried to throw them away once, but she wouldn’t let me and didn’t explain why. Why would anyone leave orange peels on windowsills?
I thought it was just a quirky habit—until the night the burglar came.
We’d left for a weekend trip. Grandma, 83 and stubborn, insisted on staying home alone. “The house needs watching,” she said, peeling her evening orange as always.
Security footage later showed a masked man prying the back door at 2 a.m. He froze mid-step, sniffed, then backed away. Same at every window—those curled, sun-dried peels lined the sills like sentries. He circled the house twice, confused, then fled empty-handed.
Turns out, citrus oil repels insects—and apparently, thieves too. The sharp scent masks human smells that attract prowlers scouting for empty homes. Grandma learned it during the war, when food was scarce and break-ins common. “Peels keep the bugs out,” she’d say with a wink, “and the bad men guessing.”
She never told us because she didn’t want to scare the kids. Or admit she still lived half in 1943.
Now, every windowsill holds a silent orange ribbon. I add mine without question. Some traditions aren’t quirks—they’re quiet armor, passed down in curls of citrus and love.
