Ant Control And Lawn Maintenance

Yesterday while I was mowing my lawn, I had two unfortunate surprises. The first came when I stopped to breathe at one corner of the yard and found that I had my foot in an anthill that the mower had just demolished. The second came when I jumped out of that anthill and found that I had landed in the neighboring ant hill, which was also broken and covered in a sea of frantic insects. While working in this industry, one develops a degree of professional curiosity about the bugs that one encounters throughout the day. In this case, however, I found that I was not curious enough to risk an ant swarm going up my leg, and I set off mowing again at a brisk pace.

I know that I’m in danger of repeating myself too much, but this wet spring is really causing me to eye the peak pest months (which are approaching quickly) with great concern. The reality is that most pests, like ants, are extremely moisture dependent. Dry seasons are hard on them and make it difficult for them to expand their colonies. Wet seasons without too much heat provide an open invitation for a population explosion.

If, like me, you have found some ant hills in the yard, don’t panic yet. Ants belong in the yard, and you will be glad of the cleanup work that they do. They can also serve as excellent predators for other unwanted bugs, so we can appreciate their valuable place in the ecosystem of East Tennessee. But, we must accept their presence in the yard while recognizing that we would rather not share space with them in the house.

If you’re looking for a few easy tips to help you to avoid several thousand unwanted visitors, here they are. To begin with, do everything you can to avoid clutter in your lawn. Infrequently-used toys or lawn equipment can often turn into nothing more than a harborage site for many pests, including ants, mosquitoes, and rodents. This is particularly true if the item is often moist (either because it’s a water toy for your children or because it can collect rainwater). Setting up housekeeping underneath a moist object is good living for many pests, and you can greatly deter their presence simply by removing comfortable housing.

Additionally, make wise decisions about the kinds of plants you put near your house. Many ants, including the odorous house ant and the crazy ant that is gaining some notice from the press, are attracted to sweet-smelling plants that make a large supply of nectar. These ants will tend aphids that feed on sweet-smelling plants like foxgloves or roses. These flowers are beautiful, but they can attract ants to your home. If you want to have sugary plants in your garden, consider putting them in a bed out in the yard instead of right next to the house. This policy also holds true for hummingbird feeders, which always attract ants. If you want a hummingbird feeder, put it out in your yard instead of right by your window.

Finally, don’t go overboard if you decide to get some mulch this spring. Mulch is like a paradise for pests. It holds moisture well, but it’s also very warm since it’s full of decaying material. If you do get mulch, use it sparingly so that you don’t end up with enormous mounds that can be converted into ant or roach hotels. Try to avoid placing mulch directly against the house since that provides an access point for pests to get in without crossing through open ground. And, if you put mulch around your trees, do not mound the mulch up in a volcano around the trunk. If you leave a small, open ring around the tree trunk, you will save the tree from the diseases that some pests may carry to plants, and the pests will be less likely to damage the tree itself while foraging.

These are just a few tips to help you with ant control this spring and summer. Of course, a pest control prevention program is another very reliable way to make sure your home remains comfortably ant-free during these warm months. If you need to talk to a pest professional, I know where you can find one, or you can call us here at Russell’s at 865-584-8549.

The Sentricon System: Combining Termite Control And Earth Day Celebrations

Let us at Russell’s Pest Control wish you a happy, though somewhat belated, Earth Day (Earth Day is celebrated annually on April 22 in case you didn’t know). Lots of people think that the pest control industry and any event celebrating the earth and the environment are probably at odds with one another. We’re here to tell you that this is simply not the case. And, since it is termite season, let us give you the low down on why the Sentricon® Termite Colony Elimination System with Always Active Technology is such good news to Earth-lovers around the globe.

The Sentricon System has been given the Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Award, an honor presented by the Environmental Protection Agency for scientific developments that show a marked interest in changing old habits to help reduce the number of hazardous materials released into the world. In the past, the only way to treat a home for termites was to use hundreds of gallons of a diluted chemical around the entire foundation of a home. The Sentricon System completely turned the industry on its head by introducing a method where we can use very small amounts of bait to draw termites into the Sentricon Stations. This means that all of the bait that will be used to eliminate the termite colony is contained in one place, and those stations are equipped with a slide lock on the top so they can’t be opened by a child or by a digging dog.

However, my favorite thing about the Sentricon System is the bait that’s placed inside each station. Most of the time, when you think of a pesticide, you probably imagine that its box or bottle would come with a clear warning on it. We’re used to seeing things like that; in fact, most of us probably have several items in our homes with various warning labels saying things like CAUTION or WARNING. The most potent products get the high-level DANGER rating, which indicates that the ingredients in that item can be deadly if handled improperly. The bait used in the Sentricon System has no such label. Seriously. This means that the cleaner you use to scrub your shower is considered more dangerous to humans than the bait inside the Sentricon System! This is because the bait is specifically designed to target termites. Their digestion process breaks down the bait in such a way that it becomes deadly to them. No wonder the Sentricon System received that Green Chemistry Award!

I’ve got a whole list of reasons why the Sentricon System is an environmentally sound choice for termite prevention and elimination, but perhaps you get the idea already. You can hear more information by calling us at 865.584.8549 for a free termite inspection, or you can visit our contact page.