Natural Pest Control For Silverfish

Silverfish. No, not a fish that is silver. The other kind. The insect variety.

Annoying little critters that scamper out of the pages of your favorite book, giving you a bit of a scare. They also like warm places such as beds, ovens, clothes dryers, and fireplaces.

They live on dry starchy “pantry” foods as well as certain glues (most commonly the ones used in book bindings). While they are harmless, they certainly are annoying, especially in large numbers.

We haven’t dealt with an infestation and I really don’t mind the occasional visitor. Usually once my cat spies the silverfish, the problem is solved. However, I do know a lot of people who battle these critters and would like to find a natural solution to rid their homes of them.

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Guess what? I happen to know a few natural ways to get rid of silverfish for good.

Silverfish greatly dislike rosemary. In fact, they detest it. So grab a bunch of dried rosemary and make some little bundles to put around the house in places they tend to frequent. Those silverfish will haul rump to get away from it. Logically, you do not want to place the rosemary near any doors that lead outside your house. You want the silverfish to have an exit route.

Cucumber peels can also be placed around the home to deter silverfish. Silverfish loath the odor of the peels and will turn tail and run.

If you do NOT have pet or small children in the home, boric acid is a fabulous silverfish slayer. Once it touches the silverfish’s skin, it pretty much kills them. And if they eat it, good bye for good!

If you have pets and small children, the alternative to boric acid is diatomaceous earth. While it is extremely abrasive to the delicate exoskeleton of the silverfish, it can take a day or two to kill them. It works. It just takes a bit more time than boric acid.

If you are not keen on the above ideas, there are some ways to “trap” silverfish. Of course once you trap them, they eventually will die from lack of food.

Get a tall glass jar (like a quart-sized mason jar) and wrap the outside with masking tape. Place a piece of bread or another starchy food inside and leave it where you see silverfish the most often. They will climb inside to get the food but then get stuck and not be able to climb out the slippery glass inside.

Alternatively, you can just buy these sticky traps and put them along your baseboards.

Do you have silverfish in your house? What have you tried to control and prevent them?