You’re tidying up a rarely opened closet, pulling out a stack of old books or a long-forgotten sweater, when a small, silvery bug darts across the floor. Meet the silverfish—these quick-moving insects thrive in dark, humid corners of the home, and while they don’t bite, their presence is, well, gross and their feeding habits can damage your belongings.

Here’s everything you need to know about identifying, preventing, and getting rid of them for good.

How to Spot a Silverfish Problem

The first sign is often visual. “Homeowners often detect silverfish when they find one on the floor or in a sink or bathtub,” shares pest control expert Jeremy Christopherson of Truly Nolen Pest Control in Tucson, Ariz.

Since they are especially attracted to paper and damp clothing and are commonly found in storage boxes in garages and sheds, “if you suspect an infestation, start by inspecting boxes, bags, or closets where papers and fabrics have been stored for long periods,” suggests Christopherson. “Damage caused by their feeding can also indicate the presence of silverfish, along with their tiny pepper-like feces.”

How to Get Rid of Silverfish

“Addressing a silverfish infestation requires the treatment of both adult silverfish and their harborage,” explains Christopherson. And acting fast is key to success. “These insects reproduce very quickly,” he notes. “Depending on the species, one female silverfish can produce anywhere from one to three eggs each day. And since each individual can live as much as two years, it is extremely important to address an infestation swiftly and in its entirety.”

Follow these steps to help control and eradicate a silverfish problem in your home.

1. Install Dehumidifiers and Fans: “The silverfish bug prefers to live in moist, humid places and need high humidity levels to survive, typically between 75 and 95 percent,” says Christopherson. That makes controlling dampness in your home one of the most effective prevention and elimination strategies. Running dehumidifiers and fans is an excellent first step, especially in basements, crawl spaces, or areas where books are stored.
2. Ventilate Properly: “Low humidity levels can actually delay or stop silverfish eggs from hatching,” says Christopherson. Open vents in crawl spaces and ensure good airflow throughout the home.
3. Repair Leaks: Fix plumbing drips, roof leaks, or condensation issues quickly, since water sources invite pests. “If you have a leaky roof or a damp place in your home where mold can grow, the mold can become a food source for these bugs,” adds Christopherson.
4. Seal Entry Points: Silverfish often nest in dark, damp cracks and crevices. Identify where they’re coming from to target your efforts and use caulking to seal up entry points.
5. Vacuum Thoroughly: Pay attention to baseboards, floorboards, and shelves where eggs might be hiding. Dispose of the vacuum bag immediately.
6. Declutter: Remove old books, newspapers, and magazines that may become feeding sites. “For items that may already have a problem—like books with evidence of silverfish—you can place them in a sealable plastic bag and freeze them for several days to kill any bugs or eggs,” Christopherson says.
7. Use Traps If Needed: Sticky traps designed for silverfish can help monitor the problem and reduce their numbers.

Don’t hesitate to reach out to the pros! For severe infestations, pest control experts can provide treatments that eliminate both adults and eggs more effectively.

Silverfish Prevention Tips

“Stringent sanitation and housekeeping practices may help prevent an infestation by limiting potential feeding sites,” says Christopherson. So think of good housekeeping as your first line of defense. “Vacuum regularly and clean up spilled food or drink immediately,” he instructs. Keeping storage areas tidy can go a long way toward deterring them, too. “Clean closets on a regular basis to help remove harborage areas.”

Check secondhand books, fabrics, or boxes for signs of infestation before bringing them into your home—and be sure to store them properly once you do. “If books or fabrics will be in storage, store these items in sealed plastic containers,” says Christopherson.

With these strategies, you can reclaim your closets, bookshelves, and storage spaces from these unwelcome guests and keep your home fresh, organized, and pest-free.

Chrysanthemums, often called hardy mums or garden mums, are daisy-like, many-petalled flowers that bloom from late summer through autumn. They’re a popular choice for autumn containers and decor, and many nurseries and farm stores sell them as a seasonal item. In fact, they’re so ubiquitous that some gardeners find mums to be overrated. Though they’re often grown as annuals and discarded, these perennial flowers are a colorful and long-blooming presence in the late-season flower bed.

But mums also have utility beyond their beauty: their distinctive “flower shop” scent is due to compounds that can help deter insect pests. We spoke with some garden experts about whether mums really work for repelling pests, and they all agreed they can be an effective part of pest prevention efforts.

Do Chrysanthemums Really Repel Pests?

Some gardeners think chrysanthemums repel pests due to their scent, but this is only partly true. Rhonda Kaiser, a master gardener and landscape designer, says their real pest-repelling power comes from natural chemicals known as pyrethrins.

Another garden expert, Annette Hird, agrees that mums are believed to repel pests due to the presence of pyrethrins. Though she thinks it may be debatable whether most garden mums repel pests on their own, she confirms that pyrethrins extracted from plants do make excellent insect repellents.

The important thing to keep in mind is that there is only one chrysanthemum variety that contains pyrethrin in amounts significant enough to be an effective pesticide. That variety is Chrysanthemum cinerariifolium, also known as Tanacetum cinerariifolium, Pyrethrum daisy, or Dalmatian daisy. It has white daisy-like petals and prominent yellow centers that have a rounded shape.

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Why Chrysanthemums Work

The mums known as Dalmatian daisy or pyrethrum daisy are effective insect deterrents because they contain large amounts of naturally occurring pyrethrin. Kaiser says that while planting these mums in the garden may be an effective deterrent, pyrethrins are most effective when concentrated into sprays and other products.

Kaiser says that one advantage of pyrethrin products is that these compounds break down quickly in the environment, so they are a more environmentally friendly alternative than most synthetic pesticides.

Though pyrethrin compounds are often extracted from pyrethrum daisies and used to make commercial pesticides, these are not always organic formulas. You can, however, make your own organic pesticides from mums.

Pests Chrysanthemums Are Best For

The mums known as Dalmatian daisy can be an effective pest control option against insect pests. Pyrethrin in an insecticide spray works to kill a wide range of destructive insects, including aphids, thrips, mealybugs, whiteflies, and many more, as well as nuisance insects like ticks, cockroaches, silverfish, and ants.

Insects that are repelled by strong-smelling plants like catnip and lavender, such as mosquitoes, are also deterred by all chrysanthemums (not just Dalmatian daisies), because of their pungent (though pleasant to most humans) scent.

How to Make Chrysanthemums Work As Pest Deterrents

Though making an insecticide spray is the most effective use of certain mum varieties to kill insects, the strong scent of all mums can be an effective insect deterrent in the garden when they are planted strategically.

• Choose the correct chrysanthemum variety. The one known to contain pyrethrum in ample amounts to help deter insects is the pyrethrum daisy, or Dalmatian daisy, aka Chrysanthemum cinerariifolium. Other chrysanthemum varieties may be effective deterrents against some insects, such as mosquitoes.
• Plant near areas where you want to deter pests. This may be by your garden shed, patio, or outdoor seating area. Consider mums also as companion plants near your vegetable garden.
• Give your plants proper growing conditions. Mums of any variety need well-drained, rich soil and plenty of sun to bloom and thrive. Hird says that morning sun is desirable, and these plants benefit from some shade in the afternoon to protect them from the scorching sun.
• Prune the plant to encourage branching and blooms. Hird says that pruning young perennial mum plants is essential to promote bushy growth. Deadheading also helps encourage more flowers, and the flowers are where the plant’s insect-repelling properties are concentrated.

If you’re dealing with an ant infestation, your instinct may be to squish every one of the little suckers that you see under your house slipper. But one woman who received expert advice via Ring camera says this is the wrong way to go about it. 

In a viral TikTok, Dawn (@dawnthestoryteller) says she was communicating with the pest control worker via doorbell camera because she had to be out of the house for two hours to let him work, so she was at a coffee shop doing some work of her own. When he came to the doorbell, he introduced himself, and the woman gave him permission to enter her home. Then he asked her if she typically squishes ants when she sees them. She tells him that if it’s one or two, she typically does. 

“He goes. ‘Ooh, do you know what happens when you squish an ant?’” she says. The woman responded logically, saying, “It dies.”

Technically, this is correct, but it’s not quite what the man was getting at. 

Why shouldn’t you squish an ant?

“When you squish an ant, it sends out pheromones and a signal that mean the other ants have to come and get it because they don’t let their dead lie,” she recounts the man saying. “They have to bring the dead ant back to the hive.”

What is the right way to kill an ant?

Dawn says when she sees a large group of ants, she feels a bit guilty killing them (they’re a family, you see), so instead she takes a wet paper towel, gently scoops them up, and flushes them down the toilet, hoping they’ll swim to freedom. 

She says the pest control expert told her this was the right way to handle things. 

In the comments section, viewers confirmed the information Dawn relayed. 

“This is why some people, myself included, can smell ants,” one said. 

A second wrote, “True. I saw an ant carrying a dead ant and I followed it like what is going on! All the way to the hole!”

“I have seen this in a pack,” another said. “It was hundreds with the dead ants on their back. It is wild.”

Is it true?

According to Frazier Pest Control, yes, squishing ants can make your infestation worse because of the pheromones they release. Squishing an ant alerts nearby ants to danger, triggers defensive action from the colony, draws a search party of ants to the area for cleanup, and leads to colony splitting or relocation. 

@dawnthestoryteller This is what the pest control guy taught me about ants! #pest #ants #love ♬ original sound – dawnthestoryteller

Instead of squishing individual ants, try this

• Clean surfaces thoroughly with a mix of vinegar and water to erase pheromone trails. 
• Seal entry points like cracks or holes near windows, pipes, and baseboards with caulk or weather stripping. 
• Use bait—which, unlike spray, targets the whole colony by allowing ants to bring poisoned food back to the nest—in strategic areas.
• Call pest control. 

The Mary Sue contacted Dawn via email. 

Have a tip we should know? [email protected]

Sabine Joseph

Contributing Reporter

Sabine Joseph is a contributing reporter to The Mary Sue. Her work has appeared in The Daily Dot, The Miami Laker, and Miami Montage. You can follow her on X at @SabineJ22. You can email her at [email protected].

From a marching parade of ants to hovering fruit flies, pests can really put a damper on things. They don’t have to be a fact of life for your house, though. Along with keeping a clean home and sealing points of entry, there are smart ways to repel bugs that blend home aesthetics with pest control techniques. 

Squash bugs are common garden pests that overwinter in garden debris, like dead leaves and stems. When the warm weather rolls around, these bugs emerge and feed on new plant leaves, sucking out the sap and causing them to wilt, yellow, and eventually die.

As their name suggests, these bugs prefer squash—but they’ll eat other produce too, including pumpkins and melons. The good news? There are many ways to get rid of these pesky insects. Here, we share advice from a gardening expert and a pest control pro.

Clean Up Debris

You can prevent squash bugs before they even move in.

“[They] spend the winter in dead leaves, garden debris, or really anything left behind at the end of the season,” says Lindsey Chastain, gardener and founder of The Waddle and Cluck. “Clean this up before planting to reduce the number of bugs waiting to attack.”

However, there is a potential drawback to this method. “It’s good for the soil to leave some organic matter over the winter, so you may need to balance soil health with pest prevention,” she adds. One option is to leave some debris behind in non-squash beds, and only clear out the areas where you plan on planting squash.

Rotate Your Crops

Another way to keep squash bugs at bay is to plant your vegetables in a different spot every year. Crop rotation helps keep the soil healthy, Chastain says, but it also tricks any insects who are waiting for you to plant your produce in the same area as last year.

This method is effective because squash bugs tend to stay in the same spot. A good rule of thumb is to move your squash patch at least 15 to 20 feet from where you grew it last year.

Use Row Covers

You can also use row covers to keep squash bugs away. These work best when used early in the season.

“Once the plant flowers, remove [them], so pollinators can get in and do their work,” says Chastain. This method works because it provides a physical barrier, which stops pests from landing on the plants and laying eggs. However, you’ll need to stay on top of timing: “Leaving row covers on too long can block pollinators and reduce fruit production,” she adds.

Switch to Straw Mulch

You could also try switching to straw mulch so the pests don’t have a cozy place to hide. “Squash bugs love hiding in thick, moist mulch,” says Chastain. “Straw is less attractive to them.”

However, straw mulch does have a downside. It could mean more weeds—or cause the soil to dry out faster. Monitor it closely.

Try Companion Planting 

Marigolds and calendula are trap crops that can help keep squash bugs away. “I always plant marigolds with my vegetables because they’re great deterrents, but they also attract pollinators,” says Chastain.

These companion plants emit a scent that deters many garden pests, including squash bugs. However, it’s not a guaranteed solution and will work best when used in tandem with other methods.

Opt for Hand-Picking and Soapy Water

This method will kill squash bugs without using harsh chemicals. “Pick the adults off the plants by hand and drop them in soapy water,” says Nicole Carpenter, president of Black Pest Prevention.

While surveying your plants for squash bugs, make sure to check under the leaves every few days to scrape off any eggs. “There’s actually no store-bought pesticide that completely eliminates squash bugs because the adults are tough,” says Carpenter.

So while this method is labor-intensive, it does work, and you don’t need to worry about using harsh sprays in your garden.

We’re all shaped by family lore and old wives’ tales, whether we’re in our laundry rooms, kitchens, and yes, even our gardens. Often, this advice lasts generations because it’s so on point. Other times, it’s simply become a habit.

With this in mind, we decided to check in with a few garden pros to find out what gardening advice they learned from their own grandparents, and which tidbits have stood the test of time.

Feed the Soil, Not Just the Plant

Gardening pro Mary Phillips says her grandparents’ favorite mantra was feed the soil, not just the plant.

“They never just sprinkled chemical fertilizers,” she says. “Instead, they used generous amounts of compost, aged manure, and leaf mold to replenish the soil every spring and fall.”

For Phillips, this advice not only worked, it’s lasted into her adult life. 

“Feeding the soil is the secret to a thriving garden,” she says. “Healthy soil supports a diverse ecosystem, improves water retention, reduces the need for synthetic fertilizer, and ultimately leads to healthier plants.”

As a big proponent of wildlife-friendly gardens, Phillip says her compost bin is just as critical to her own approach to gardening as it was to her grandparents.

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Ward Off Pests with Human Hair

According to pro garden designer Linda Vater, her grandparents used to use hair from a hairbrush to ward off pests.

“The idea behind it is that adding a human scent to the garden will scare the pests away from your prized plants, reducing unwanted nibbling and protecting your garden bounty,” she says.

While another generation might have sworn by this method, Vater has her doubts—particularly because you apparently have to replace the hair frequently. 

“There are plenty of other solutions that have a proven track record of success,” she says. 

Instead, Vater is a big proponent for planting pest-resistant plants, such as ones that feature thorns and rough textures that are difficult or unpleasant to chew.

“You can even plant these pest-resistant plants as a border around more tempting flowers, fruits, vegetables, and herbs to deter garden snackers,” she says.

Never Leave the Soil Bare

As another tip from her grandparents, Phillips says she was taught never to let the soil be bare. 

“They were firm believers in mulching, often using straw, shredded leaves, or undyed wood chips around their plants,” she says. “If they didn’t have mulch, they’d plant groundcover.”

Now, as an adult, Phillips understands that this is a great way to support soil health and conserve water.

“Using native groundcovers and mulch suppresses weeds, reducing competition for resources,” says Phillips, who notes it also moderates soil temperature, prevents evaporation, and adds organic matter. “Bare soil erodes easily and dries out quickly.”

Bury Banana Peels Next to Rose Bushes

According to rose expert Wes Harvell, his grandparents taught him to bury banana peels at the base of his rose bushes. This, they said, should help them bloom bigger and brighter.

“While this can be true, [banana peels are] a targeted nutrient addition of potassium, only one of the nutrients needed for roses,” Harvell says. “Always start with a soil test to know what your soil needs before you amend it.”

However, when facing soil that does call for a potassium boost, Harvell admits he still uses a version of this same trick—just with a twist. Rather than solely burying whole banana peels, he chops or blends them and mixes them into his compost.

“It’s a simple, sustainable way to reuse waste and feed the soil naturally,” he says. “The peels can also be soaked in water for a few days to make a tea that can be used to water roses.”

But if you find banana peels aren’t doing anything for your garden, Harvell says it’s best to opt for a balanced rose fertilizer that includes both potassium and phosphorus.

Catch and Release Small Pests

According to gardening architect and author Pieter Croes, he has fond memories of his grandfather’s daily pest-removal process in his vegetable garden. 

“He told me that everyday before having his breakfast he would take a walk through the garden to catch the snails and remove them,” says Croes. “This became part of his morning routine—he would go to check on the vegetables but also see if the snails were causing trouble.”

For Croes, this instilled the idea that every aspect of gardening can be meditative and relaxing.

“It connects you to the garden and makes the maintenance less of a burden and more of a moment of stillness and joy.”

Always Remember Gardening Is About Joy

One thing we all often forget when it comes to tending to our homes and gardens is that this should all be about joy. Phillips says her grandfather, in particular, was a huge proponent of remembering this critical fact.

“He taught me the value of  coexisting with and supporting wildlife, and fostering a relationship with the natural world,” she says. “The garden is a living system, where everything is interconnected.”