Q: You mention food-grade diatomaceous earth and boric acid in many columns. Are there other natural products we can use to help control bugs?

L.W., Los Gatos

A: Absolutely. Here are some others:

Baking soda: Baking soda, or sodium bicarbonate, is a mined alkaline mineral. When it is eaten by insects, it releases carbon dioxide bubbles that are fatal. A paste made from baking soda will also give quick relief to an insect sting. You can sprinkle baking soda around your home inside and out and around pet food dishes. It will repel ants and roaches.

Beer: Believe it or not, beer is very effective at controlling some pests. If you soak a rag in beer and put it in the middle of your garage floor at night, it will be covered in drunken cockroaches the next morning, waiting for you to dispatch them. If you put some saucers of beer out in your yard, you will attract snails and slugs which will get drunk and die in the brew.

Neem oil: Neem oil will repel mosquitoes, biting flies, fleas and ticks.

Rosemary: Powdered rosemary leaves are used as a flea and tick repellent. Simply dust the powder onto the pet or areas where the pet sleeps. Rosemary oil will control lice.

Salt: Salt mixed with water will kill snails and slugs. Salt also can be used in crawl spaces or other areas to deter termites and cockroaches.

Soap: Soaps can effectively kill insects because of fatty acids in the product that destroy cellular membranes in the bugs. It also produces a coating on the insect that prevents it from breathing through its spiracles. An effective soap spray consists of 40 percent water, 40 percent alcohol and 20 percent dish soap. You can mix 1 cup cooking oil with 1 tablespoon non-detergent liquid soap as an insecticide. Use 1 tablespoon of this mix to each cup of water, and you can control aphids, scales, mealybugs and spider mites. It will kill the eggs as well as the adults of these pests. Do not use it on plants if the temperature tops 85 degrees, as it may cause damage. Sprinkle laundry soap around the foundation of your home to keep ants out.

Sugar: Sugar is a popular insect attractant that can be used to control many insects if mixed properly with other ingredients. You can catch wasps and yellow jackets by cutting the top off a 2-liter plastic bottle, invert it inside the bottle to make a funnel and add 2 or 3 inches of sugar water mixed with a few drops of soap in the bottle. A good ant bait consists of 1 part active yeast, 1 part sugar and 2 parts molasses. Place the mixture on small pieces of paper. The ants will be attracted to the concoction and consume it readily. The yeast will produce gas, causing the ant's stomach to rupture. Another ant bait can be made by soaking paper towels with 2 tablespoons of boric acid, 2 tablespoons of sugar and a cup of water. You can put the paper towels in jars with several holes punched in the lid.