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Natural methods such as spraying orange oil, spreading diatomaceous earth, or spreading boric acid can help prevent termites from entering your home or damaging your garden. Place these solutions near termite entry points to deter them. Termites also dislike the smell of cedarwood, geranium, and tea tree oil, which can all be used to keep termites away.

Spider egg sacs are meant to last, so you can't crush them. One of the best ways to deal with them is to vacuum them up and then quickly dispose of your debris in the trash so the egg sacs leave your property permanently. Egg sacs surrounded by little spiderlings means that it has already hatched, but you may be able to catch many of these with a vacuum cleaner, too.

When it comes to keeping birds from doing their business on your porch rails, you have several DIY options and home remedies you can try: 

• Tie a fishing line from one end of the deck post to the other. Birds won’t be able to see the line across the railing, so they can’t land on it.  

• Hang wind chimes close by, which may scare birds away. 

• Apply a bird gel repellent to the railings, which contains smells that birds generally don’t like. Or, similarly, you can apply citronella or lemon oil around the railings, since birds don’t like strong smells.

While the spotted lanternfly’s favorite place to stay is the trees and plants they gorge on, they can occasionally congregate in large numbers on buildings and other structures. This may be for height, warmth, or other unknown reasons. However, rest assured that the insects do not do any structural damage to the buildings, and will likely move on within a few weeks or perish with the colder weather.