Ladybug Prevention Tips

Ladybug Prevention Tips

In the insect world the ladybug may be one of the most adored bugs, it is an insect that people ooh and ah over and say “oh look how cute, a ladybug”. Most people don’t mind seeing the occasional ladybug and may almost look forward to running into one. They are so beloved that they are often the theme of children’s birthday parties and are considered a cute option for a Halloween costume. But, before you go on about how cute ladybugs are and how you don’t mind finding them in your home, has your home ever been invaded by hundreds of these dome-shaped spotted insects? Have you ever had to deal with hundreds and hundreds of these “cute” insects living in your home’s attic, crawl spaces, or behind its walls? While ladybugs are helpful outside, feeding on
aphids and other garden pests, when the weather cools they gather together in very large numbers to find a safe warm spot to overwinter. If precautions are not taken, that overwintering spot, could be your home, and we can promise they will not be so cute then.

The good news when it comes to ladybugs is that they are not dangerous to people, they don’t bite or sting, and aren’t known to cause any health concerns. However, that doesn’t mean that anyone wants to or should have to have hundreds of these insects crawling through and living inside of your home. The following tips should help to prevent these cute, yet very annoying pests from finding their way into your home this fall season.

  • When creating garden areas on your property make sure to place them as far away from the exterior of your home as possible
  • Ladybugs live on plants, so before you bring outdoor plants inside for the winter, make sure to inspect them for ladybugs
  • Inspect your home’s foundation and exterior walls, caulking any spaces and gaps that are found to help prevent ladybugs from squeezing their way into your home as they climb its exterior
  • Check your home’s windows and doors, make sure that weather stripping is intact, door sweeps are in place, screens are completely intact, and that any gaps found around the windows and doors are caulked
  • Make sure that all vents have tight-fitting mesh covers over them, fill in spaces found around utilities entering into your home, and place caps on all chimneys

Stop ladybugs from overwintering in your home this winter season by following the above prevention tips. While we agree that ladybugs are adorable, we all need to work together to keep them outside where they belong. To help protect your home from being invaded by ladybugs this fall and other critters throughout the rest of the year, put into place a year-round pest control program from Russell’s Pest Control. Our residential pest control programs will provide the continuous protection your home needs to become and stay free of more than 30 common household pests! Contact us today to learn more about these beneficial programs!

Camel Cricket Prevention Tips

Camel Cricket Prevention Tips

When it comes to camel crickets there is good news and bad news; let’s first start with the good news, these crickets aren’t particularly dangerous and they don’t make annoying chirping sounds like their relatives the house cricket. Now for the bad news, these crickets are very creepy looking, invade in clusters, and spiders love to eat them. If you have camel crickets in your home, it will not be long before spiders are trying to get in as well. 

Let’s first, begin with a description of what camel crickets look like so you can better understand why these pests creep so many people out. Camel crickets have a hunched body, 3 pairs of legs with their back legs being much larger in size, and very long antennae. Camel crickets are wingless; adults range in color from a very light tan to dark brown and they often have dark bands of color on various parts of their body. Camel cricket tend to scare people not only because of their unattractive looks but because when they are startled and jump away in defense they can look very spider-like!

Camel crickets are also commonly referred to as cave crickets because they like to live outside in cool, dark, damp places, including you guessed it, caves! While they usually like living outside in dark, damp, cool places like under landscaping ties, mulch, stones, and logs they will move inside when the weather no longer suites them. If the weather becomes too hot or dry, they look to move inside homes and other buildings, usually congregating in damp basements, crawl spaces or other areas that provide them with the cool, humid environment that they are seeking. Camel crickets despite having the ability to bite, are generally considered to be nuisance pests. To help prevent these pests from becoming an annoyance to you and your family we suggest reducing humidity levels in your home by installing dehumidifiers in basement areas and making sure that crawl spaces are properly ventilated. Additional prevention tips include:

  • Repairing cracks in the foundation, placing door sweeps underneath of basement doors, and caulking gaps found around basement doors and windows. Seal all possible entry points found on the exterior of your home.

  • Reducing areas of clutter and debris is basement areas. The less “things” they have to hide in, the easier it will be to find and eliminate them.

  • Storing fire woodpiles a distance away from the exterior of your home.

  • Removing piles of leaves, grass, and other debris that camel crickets can live and hide under from your property.

The best way to prevent camel crickets, the spiders that eat the crickets, and other household pests from invading your home and becoming a nuisance is to put into place a year-round pest control program from the pest professionals at Russell’s Pest Control. All of our highly effective Power programs control and prevent infestations from annoying and damaging pests and protect your home, family and pets against 30+ common household pests. Call us today to learn more about camel crickets and how we can work together to keep camel crickets and other pests out of your home all year long!