Ticks are one type of insect you do not ever want in your backyard.
Dozens of types of insects inhabit your backyard. Most of the insects are harmless, but you need to treat the few that can harm you, your family, and your garden. Some insects that you should actively try to protect your yard and home from include mosquitoes, ticks, ants and Japanese beetles. Mosquitoes and ticks can transmit serious diseases such as West Nile Virus, and Lyme disease respectively. Ants will raid your home in search of food and Japanese beetles will devour your plants and garden. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
Mosquitoes
1. Remove all standing water in your yard. Empty any overflow water from any garden planters. Change the water on a bird bath every couple of days to prevent mosquitoes from laying eggs in it.
2. Check all of your outdoor faucets to make sure they are not dripping and forming pools of standing water. Repair any faucets that are leaking.
3. Keep swimming pools properly chlorinated to prevent mosquitoes from laying eggs in it. Check and trash cans and trash can lids for standing water after any rain storm. Empty any standing water.
Ticks
4. Spray your lawn with tick insecticide. Use a pesticide containing acaricide and apply it to your entire lawn according to the product directions.
5. Mow your lawn once or twice per week to keep the grass and weed lengths short.
6. Spread a layer of gravel between the edge of your lawn and any wood or treeline to prevent ticks from crawling into the yard. Trim any branches near any playground equipment in your yard.
Ants
7. Place several ant bait traps around any ant mounds in your backyard, especially the ant mounds closest to your home.
8. Allow the ants to feed on the bait traps for several days.
9. Soak the soil around the ant hills with a liquid pyrethroid insecticide if you still see large amounts of ant activity after a few days.
Japanese Beetles
10. Install a Japanese beetle trap in your yard.
11. Place the trap as far from your garden as you can to prevent the hoards of beetles from converging on your plants.
12. Apply milky spore powder to the soil in your yard to kill the Japanese beetle larvae living below the surface. Use the recommended amount of powder on the product directions.
Tags: your yard, standing water, your backyard, your lawn, bait traps, eggs Check, from laying