Venus Pest Company Blog-Category-Bee Green

3 Ways To Not Kill Fire Ants

service@venuspest.com — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 16:12:00 GMT

There was an article at http://fireant.tamu.edu/ recently where they debunked a new myth that is spreading on how to kill fire ants. Somehow it got spread across the internet, where everything is true right? Then it got picked up by news outlets and spread even more, all without a credible source or any testing of any kind. The claim…pouring club soda over a fire ant mound will eliminate the entire colony, including the queen, in 48 hours.

Ok, this one has already been debunked but it’s still included here for comedic purposes. Below are three common misconceptions on how to get rid of fire ants.

Club Soda

o The carbon dioxide in the soda is supposed to choke out all the oxygen and suffocate the ants in the colony, including the queen.

o If you’re lucky, you might drown a few ants with this trick, but otherwise you will achieve nothing more than some “impressive bubbling action.”

Soapy Water

o You’ll actually kill more ants with this one than club soda between drowning a few and the actual soap taking a few out as well.

o The soap will actually get you some mortality but its effects are very short lived and will have to be repeated many times. Not really worth the effort if you ask me.

Rice

o This theory suggests that fire ants will take in the rice, eat it, and die when their stomachs explode from the expanding rice.

o The problem is you have to trick the ants into eating the rice with a different ingredient, they are not naturally attracted to foods that will kill them.

o Finding the right way to make this work is not worth the effort when extremely effective baits are available.

We’ve written about a couple of these as well as other theories for natural and organic pest control in The Truth About Natural, Organic, or Green Pest Control. As previously mentioned, baits have been consistently proven to be the best form of fire ant control. It’s also been proven that broadcast treatments are more effective than individual mound treatments. Fire ants can forage several hundred feet away from the mound so they’ll pick up bait from a large area.

Lastly, please don’t pour gasoline on an ant pile and start a mini bonfire. Granted, you’ll probably kill the mound, but it’s never a great idea to pour gasoline in the ground. That’s all the Dr. Suess we have for this week.

If you need help with your fire ant control, call Venus Pest Company and ask us about the Texas 2-Step Program.

What Does Environmental Stewardship Mean To You?

service@venuspest.com — Tue, 23 Mar 2010 17:32:00 GMT

Founded as Venus Organic Company by Dr. Scott Lingren, BCE, our focus has always been on finding the most environmentally friendly ways of controlling pests in homes and businesses. Although our services have grown, and the name changed to Venus Pest Company to reflect that, our core values have not changed. Providing the most effective pest control services while minimizing harmful effects on the environment is still at the heart of everything we do.

We have partnered with the EPA through the Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program (PESP) to further strengthen our position as industry leaders in environmental awareness. PESP is the Environmental Protection Agency’s lead program reaching pesticide users in every sector where we live, work, play, or farm. Their goal is to improve management of pesticide uses, to chart sustained excellence in reducing risk, to educate others, and to achieve full implementation of every aspect of Integrated Pest Management (IPM).

As part of our commitment to PESP, we are subject to auditing and accountable for measurable results for the promotion of IPM and reduced risk pesticides. Our commitment includes:

Performance Tracking
- Annual reporting
- Must demonstrate measurable improvements
Education
- Public Outreach Programs
- IPM training and education programs
Responsibility
- Aligning our communications with PESP’s message of environmental stewardship
- Institutionalizing IPM across the organization
Participation
- Demonstrating involvement PESP activities and the IPM community

Our Environmental Stewardship Activities

All our services have always been based on the principals of IPM; our Bee Green^TM service takes that one step further by using only pesticides classified by the EPA for low environmental risk. To learn more, please visit our IPM and Bee Green^TM pages.

We have also overhauled our internal and external operations to ensure our minimal daily impact on the environment. Among other things, we have implemented a new recycling program, more fuel efficient vehicles, and energy improvements to our facilities to prove our dedication and commitment to sustainability.

The Truth About Natural, Organic, or Green Pest Control

service@venuspest.com — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 21:11:00 GMT

Our society's ever increasing environmental awareness has driven a booming desire for green products and services, and the pest control industry is no exception. A green product or service is defined as one that protects or improves the environment. However, green should not be confused with organic, which infers that the product or service is natural. Natural does not necessarily mean environmentally friendly either, especially if the end result of going organic is a greater use of energy. Venus Pest Company was originally founded as Venus Organic Company as Dr. Scott Lingren saw the growing need for environmentally friendly services. Although we have expanded to become Venus Pest Company with many options available, doing our part to protect the environment is still at the heart of everything we do.

You can find many theories out there regarding natural or organic pest control and some will actually work, although most will leave you scratching your head. Even still, remedies that will actually kill pests on contact often do not truly eliminate a pest infestation and offer no residual, or long term control of the pests. Here is a review of a few organic or natural methods of pest control that we have come across. We want you to know which methods can be effective, but would also like to leave you with some realistic things to consider about them. Our Bee Green^TM pest control service was developed to satisfy both the need to control pests in your home or business and the desire to protect your families, pets, coworkers, and the environment. For more information on each, read The Truth About Natrual, Organic, or Green Pest Control.

Plant Oils - Rosemary, Citrus, Thyme, Pyrethrum, Basil etc.
- We use citrus oils on occasion when we need a quick knockdown kill and cannot use any insecticides, like on an fire-ant mound at a day care while children are playing.
- There is no residual, or long term control offered and they usually have very strong odors.
- They act fast and dissapate fast. Spraying a wasp nest will kill any wasps currently there, but within minutes other wasps that were away from the nest can land safely.
Diatomaceous Earth - Made up of the remains of tiny sea creatures.
- This abrasive material is supposed to control insects by scratching their waxy under belly and causing dehydration.
- It claims 48 hours to 1 week to control cockroaches, but we haven't seen that. It is so slow acting that we would argue that it doesn't work at all.
- Don't waste your time on this one.
Spices - Cayenne Pepper, Cinnamon, Peppermint, Mint Tea Bags, Cucumber Peels etc.
- Some insects will avoid things like cayenne pepper and will not cross a line laid out in front of an entry point, like ants coming out of a wall into your kitchen for instance.
- It is nearly impossible, and probably not a good idea, to leave piles of spices or tea laying around if you have pets or children.
- The insects may avoid one spot, or multiple spots if you want to spread cinnamon all around your house. But you still did nothing to control them, they're still in your walls foraging for food. How long before they find a new entry point somewhere else? Don't forget insects are excellent climber
Soapy Water
- Soapy water will have similar benefits to plant oils or spices. You can achieve some mortality, and soapy water won't last in the environment.
- Moderate efficacy and no residual, or long-term control, meaning increased applications and energy use.
Rice for Ant Control
- The theory holds that if you spread rice around an ant mound they will take it in, eat it, and die when they're stomachs explode from the expanding rice.
- How do you get the ants to eat the rice? Ants are not naturally attracted to eat rice, so you have to somehow trick them with a different ingredient to eat the rice.
- Finding the right way to make this work is not worth the effort when extremely effective baits are available.

These methods of attempting to control pests naturally or organically will often lead to less than desirable results. But not to worry, there are other environmentally conscious options that are more effective. Below are examples of green pest control methods that we regularly practice and should be incorporated into a good pest management program. For more detailed descriptions of each of these, please visit The Truth About Natural, Organic, or Green Pest Control.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) - In this 2002 study, Green & Breisch described IPM as the central technological paradigm for achieving pesticide reform and demonstrated IPM strategies reduced pesticide use by more than 90%. Be sure that any pest control company you hire can clearly define IPM and how they use it.

Bait - Unlike cayenne pepper and other things that might repel insects from a particular location, baits will be taken back and shared throughout the nests, eventually gaining complete control of the pests.

Insect Growth Regulators (IGR) - Because they specifically target insects, IGRs are not harmful to other organisms. They are most often used against cockroaches, fleas, bed bugs, mosquitoes, and termites.

Boric Acid - Sounds scary, but this naturally occurring insecticide dust has been used for almost 100 years. It is slow acting, but has a very low toxicity to humans and animals, and is very long-lasting.

Indoxacarb / Dinotefuran - These are two recent synthetic insecticides that have received fast track registration from the EPA because of their low environmental risk. Showing great promise for the future of green pest management, we began using Indoxacarb in 2009 as part of our green service offerings.

Bacillus thuringiensis (B.t.) - Bacillus thuringiensis is an insecticidal bacteria that is so specific that certain strains of it only kill one species of insect. It is invaluable against mosquito larvae because it can be applied directly to water and will ONLY kill mosquito larvae, commonly called mosquito dunks.

Spinosad / Abamectin - Derived from bacterial fermentation, these two natural insecticides are used mainly in baits against ants or cockroaches and in animal applied products for controlling parasites. Spinosad is the active ingredient in some flea medications for your pets.

It can be difficult to filter through all the information floating around regarding natural, organic, or green pest control. After extensive research, field trials, and experimentation with various control methods, our Bee Green service was created. Bee Green^TM pest control service is the best solution available to protect your home or business from pests while reducing the reliance on pesticides and minimizing harmful effects on the environment.

Oh, and if you're one of those that the plastic bag full of water over the door works for warding off flies, you are lucky and in the minority!