Your backyard is the place you garden, spend time with family and friends and let your kids run and play. It should be a place you are confident is pest-free too. Follow our tips for a pest-free backyard, then call us at American Rat Control for more information about pest control services in California and you’ll be sure this is your safe space in the great outdoors.
Consider Covers
There are a number of netting or covering options available that you can use if you have a garden ready to harvest. The netting will make birds, chipmunks and other pests less likely to terrorize your crops.
Be Careful About Feeding Pets
If you have a dog or cat that spends time outdoors it may be tempting to feed them outdoors too. This can be a prime attractor to pests like rats as the same food your cat enjoys would be tasty to a rat or possum too. Either move your feeding space indoors or only feed what your pet can eat right away and clean up the dishes right away.
Keep Things Clean
A neat, clean and orderly yard or garden is much less appealing to pests. Weed regularly, so small pests have fewer areas to hide. Spread clean mulch and use sand or gravel to eliminate mud puddles after a rainstorm. Not only will this help keep pests at bay, but it will make your yard much more appealing to humans.
Soap It Up
You may be nervous about using pesticides, but there are a number of safe insecticidal soaps that are gentle enough to use indoors, but powerful enough to keep aphids and other pests at bay. You can spray your plants, trees and even grassy areas where you see an abundance of bugs.
Don’t Leave Standing Water in Your Yard
Whether it is intentional, like a koi pond, or accidental, like a mud puddle, standing water is a breeding ground for bugs and pests. Be proactive about getting rid of standing water and you’ll see fewer mosquitos, flies and other annoying pests.
Add Friendly Insects
Ladybugs and other “friendly” insects can help you keep the annoying, harmful ones at bay. Most garden centers will sell ladybugs and sometimes other insects in small tubs so you can attempt to introduce them to your backyard ecosystem.
Cover Your Trash
Rats, raccoons, possums and other pests are attracted to easy-to-access trash. If you store your trash outdoors, keep it covered with a lid and latch it down. Also, make sure you keep your cans clean with regular sanitation procedures. If you can smell your trash, so can pests, so you may want to look at more frequent trash pickups if this is a regular problem.
While the tips above are all great ways you can work towards a pest-free backyard on your own, sometimes you need help from an expert in pest services. Here at American Rat Control, we are dedicated to pest control. We would love to talk to you about your backyard goals and set up a plan to help make your yard a great place to be.
