Herbal Sachet: Make a sachet with two 4- by 4-inch pieces of natural fiber material, such as silk or tight-weave linen, sewing three of the sides together with a simple straight stitch. Or take a shortcut and use cotton tea bags, which come ready to fill with a drawstring (find them in health food stores or visit mountainroseherbs.com). Combine 2 teaspoons each of dried thyme, rosemary and mint, and 1 teaspoon of whole cloves in a bowl. Stuff your sachet about three-quarters full with the herb mixture and sew up the last side to seal, and leave the sachet in your drawer or around the closet where moths strike.

Cedar Chips and Lavender Sachet: Available ready-made at drugstores, cedar chip and lavender sachets work just as well as mothballs — and don’t fill your home with overpowering fumes.

Roaches

Boric Acid, Sugar and Bacon Drippings: To clear your home of roaches, mix 1/2 cup of boric acid (a low-toxic powder available at drugstores), 1/8 cup sugar and enough drops of bacon drippings to form a stiff dough when mixed together. To use as bait, roll into marble-size slabs and place them behind the fridge or the stove where pets can’t reach them. Roaches will keel over from the poison in boric acid. Follow up with a thorough cleaning by scrubbing with soap and hot water, and vacuum all the nooks and crannies to get rid of any eggs.

Ticks

Eucalyptus Oil and Water or Vegetable Oil: Even if you haven’t been hiking in the woods, you can still pick up ticks in your backyard or from family pets.

For a homemade repellent, herbalist Andrea Candee mixes 1/2 oz. eucalyptus oil with 16 oz. water in a spray bottle, then mists it on her body. For longer-lasting protection, combine the eucalyptus oil with vegetable oil instead of water, store it in a jar or vial, and apply with your hands.

To protect a furry friend, dip a thin rope in undiluted eucalyptus oil, then wrap the rope in a bandanna and tie it around your pet’s neck. Redip the rope about twice a week.

One note on going natural

“Natural products can provide protection, but they must be used more frequently, and more liberally, than any chemical-based product,” says herbalist Andrea Candee.