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In The Backyard

Horticulture columns and tips done on a timely basis

July 15, 2010

Foundation Sprays

The crickets, millipedes, earwigs, spiders, ants, and many others that find their way inside are a real nuisance. A foundation spray is the best line of defense, and you would select a material such as permethrin or bifenthrin to begin with. Then spray the foundation and the adjacent foot or two of soil or plant material with the spray mixture. Both these products are cleared on most types of plants. Foundation treatments should be applied every 7-15 days depending on the temperatures. The materials break down quicker in hot weather.

Foundation treatments won't prevent everything from getting in the house, and they certainly won't kill things already in the house. For insects already in the house, you have a few options. The first is mechanical control. This is fancy language for something like a flyswatter, shoe, vacuum cleaner, flypaper, or glue boards. The next is chemical control. This basically means aerosol cans inside the house. The most common ones are for flying insects or ants, although many of the flying insect killers now have permethrin in them and can last quite a while.

Posted by John Fulton at 9:16 AM | Permalink |