Imagine planting a beautiful garden, or decorating a gorgeous patio, just to find a few months later that some critters have claimed the space as their new home. Backyards are perfect for relaxation usually, but no one feels relaxed when there are bunny holes in the ground or termites infesting the deck. To enjoy your backyard fully, follow these tips to be free of pests!
Get Pest Treatments
If you are already experiencing a serious infestation, the first and best method of ridding yourself of pests is to enlist professionals. Pest control businesses can prescribe and give treatments on your property, according to your problems and circumstances. A good exterminator can diagnose the problem properly, giving you a good idea of just how bad it really is. Ultimately, they will know which type of chemicals to use and can do so safely. If you’ve tried the DIY method with no lasting results or just don’t feel confident you know what to do, find a good pest control company in your area.
Keep Your Backyard Clean
What attracts pests? Food, of course—they need to survive like the rest of us, so if anything in your yard is edible to them, they’ll go after it and even take up residence if it’s a continual source of food. This means any trash you leave around should be picked up quickly, and food never left out even if it seems inedible to you. Also, keeping yourself from making the backyard a storage area really helps you avoid the bigger pests like mice and even cats, who like tight dark spaces to burrow in. If you have a shed, these principles are even more important as it can be much more vulnerable to intruders than a normal fortified house.
Use Candles
Ever heard of citronella? This substance and other bug repelling substances have ingeniously been converted into candles that you can put in your backyard. Often people set these out not only for their repellent qualities, but also to enjoy the ambiance of a late night in the outdoors while not getting distracted by swatting at mosquitoes! In the summertime especially they’re a must have. Also consider bug repelling essential oils like lavender, eucalyptus, and even peppermint—scents you will find relaxing or stimulating, but makes mosquitos run away!
Use Potted Plants
The list of plants that can naturally deter pests is endless—really, it just depends on what kind of pest you need to get rid of! Lavender, basil, lemon grass, rosemary, and mint are just a few examples of plants mosquitoes avoid. Then to repel snakes, there are marigolds, onion and garlic, just to get you started. Cayenne pepper and garlic are effective against mice eating your garden, and hyssop and columbine are two that deter rabbits. Once you’ve picked the right plants for your circumstances, plant them around areas you notice them and even pot them on places like your deck and patio. Then, with your home free of pests, you can enjoy gatherings on your deck and personal nights of relaxation!
Use LED bulbs
Enjoying yourself on a warm summer night can be impossible, if you want to see and not have to be swatting at insects swarming around your deck lights. Even low-light, decorative bulbs can make your deck a target for bugs that like heat and a cool, bluish color. For this reason, it’s smart to switch out any fluorescent or halogen bulbs you may have in your outdoor lighting with warm-colored or off white LED bulbs. Not only will the color detract the bugs, but the lack of heat that LED bulbs give off will disinterest most bugs from their aptitude for swarming.
Install a Fence
Fences are often to keep kids and pets in, but they are just as useful for keeping bigger pests out. If you are experiencing problems with deer chewing on your garden plants or cats burrowing into your outdoor storage, consider putting up a fence that they can’t jump over. If it’s your garden you’re specifically worried about, even making a vinyl fence with wood posts around your plants can do a great deal to get rid of garden trespassers.
Place a Bird Feeder
Believe it or not, welcoming birds into your backyard is actually a great way to decrease pests! This has all to do, of course, with the main source of diet for most birds, which is bugs. If you’re noticing problems with creepy crawlers in your garden, deck or patio area, or even along the foundations and cracks of your house, enlisting the help of your fellow bird friends will lessen the problem significantly. How to get them to come? Install a bird feeder or a bird bath in higher up areas that will tempt birds to investigate, and put them above problem areas in your yard that you could use a bird watching over.
Dispose of Compost Carefully
One of the main reasons people discover a mice, rat, or wasp problem is because they had a compost pile! How to stop the rat and mice compost problem? The first thing to make sure of is that you’re burying food waste very deep in the ground. Also make sure there are plenty of barriers keeping critters from the pile—like putting compost in a bin and having a tight lid. To stop underground burrowing, put wire mesh under the bin, which will still give worms room to get in! And of course take out the completed compost at least every six months so pests aren’t tempted to nest there.
When your backyard is clean, beautiful, and free of unwanted visitors, it can be a literal extension of your home. When you are dealing with pests, however, it feels more like a battlefield. To avoid the infestations and problems that arise from pests inhabiting your space, plant some preemptive methods to deter the critters, and be on the watch to nip small problems in the bud before pests think they live here too!
If you do have a pest problem, we can take care of it! Contact us to schedule an appointment.