Pest control aims to reduce pest numbers to acceptable levels where they don’t cause unacceptable harm. Prevention, suppression, and eradication are common goals in outdoor pest situations.
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Taking proactive steps toward pest control helps reduce the need for aggressive treatments and minimizes the impact on the environment. It also saves homeowners and business owners money. Sealing entry points, storing food properly, maintaining cleanliness, regular inspections, and removing attractive materials from the area can significantly reduce the risk of infestations.
Some of these actions can be done by the property owner, while a professional better handles others. The choice of treatment method depends on the specific pest and the kind of problem that is occurring.
There are a variety of tools, machines and methods that can be used to prevent or remove pests from an area. These methods include physical and mechanical controls, such as traps, screens, barriers, fences, wire netting, radiation, and heat. Chemicals, including fertilizers, insecticides and herbicides may be used to control pests or help with their removal, but they must be applied according to established guidelines, avoiding harm to people, beneficial insects, and the surrounding environment.
In addition, the conditions that lead to pest infestations can often be predicted and controlled. For example, many plant diseases thrive only under certain environmental conditions and can be prevented by proper cultural practices. Taking away the pest’s food, water and shelter also helps prevent them from spreading. Store all food in sealed containers, dispose of garbage regularly, and reduce clutter where pests might hide.
It is important to educate people about pests and their habits so that they can recognize the early signs of a problem and take appropriate action. For example, spider webs in corners and other places suggest a pest problem, as can the presence of bed bugs, which leave small rust-colored stains on sheets and skin, and shed skins that can be seen. Other indicators of a problem include a musty smell and wasps building papery nests under eaves or in attics.
Regular inspections of homes, offices and businesses can detect problems before they get out of hand, so that timely intervention can occur. Some pests, such as rodents, can cause serious damage to buildings and equipment, while other pests, such as flies, mosquitoes, and cockroaches, can create health hazards by spreading disease or causing allergic reactions.
Suppression
Pest control methods are used when signs of pest activity are observed and the threat to people, property, or plants is imminent. In these situations, prevention methods may not be enough to protect against damage and control the pests’ numbers. Control measures taken at this time are often more intense and aggressive than those of prevention. They can involve a combination of biological, cultural, physical and chemical controls.
The goal of suppression is to reduce the risk of harm from pests as quickly and thoroughly as possible. In addition to the usual physical barriers such as traps and screens, this can also include cultural practices like frequent picking of fruit or weeds, frequent cleaning of areas where food is prepared or eaten, and frequent sanitation (e.g. washing of dishes and floors in kitchens). Chemical control involves a broad range of products, including herbicides, insect growth regulators and other plant hormones, and fungicides. In general, these are less toxic to non-target organisms than the pests themselves and can be applied with a minimum of personal exposure risk, especially when they are incorporated into baits or traps.
Biological control methods, on the other hand, involve introducing natural enemies of pests to reduce their populations. This can be done in two ways: either by augmenting existing natural enemies of a pest, or by introducing new ones. In either case, a great deal of research must be conducted to ensure that the released enemies will breed and survive in a given environment, and that they won’t have unintended consequences (e.g., disease or competition with native organisms).
Whenever possible, it is best to use multiple techniques in order to achieve the best overall results. This approach also helps minimize the impact on the environment, public health and human well-being. Using multiple control techniques can also help you avoid the use of more toxic chemicals. When it is necessary to use more toxic chemicals, always follow product labels and safety warnings and make sure you have the basic personal protective equipment (PPE) of long-sleeved shirts, long pants, closed-toe shoes, face masks and rubber gloves.
Eradication
Pest control is the process of removing or controlling unwanted creatures, such as rodents, termites, cockroaches, bed bugs and mosquitoes. These creatures can cause serious health problems and damage property. Pest control professionals use a variety of methods to eliminate these creatures, including baiting, trapping, physical removal and spraying.
Chemical pesticides are the most common method of pest control. These chemicals destroy pests or prevent them from damaging plants, animals and soil. They may also repel them or affect their growth. Pesticides can be used for indoor and outdoor pests, including crops, gardens, homes, and pets.
Other types of pest control chemicals include nematodes, predators and parasites. These organisms kill or debilitate their hosts by attacking them directly, removing nutrients from them, or blocking their reproduction. For example, the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis produces a toxin that kills caterpillars without harming people or livestock. There are many different strains of this bacterium that work against specific insect species.
Biological pest control is the best way to avoid using harmful chemicals. Biological control organisms are close in size to their host, live only about as long as the pest and reproduce only inside their host. These organisms are naturally found in the environment and can be used to reduce pest populations by introducing them into the habitat where they are needed.
Overuse of pesticides leads to the development of resistance. The insects that survive the treatment become more resistant to the pesticide, which means it must be applied more frequently or with greater strength to be effective. This can be a costly process for growers and homeowners.
In general, the goal of pest control is to maintain a healthy ecosystem in which both humans and nature coexist. However, when a pest causes severe damage to a crop, garden, or home, it is necessary to take steps to eradicate the pests.
Pest control professionals should always try to find and correct the source of the problem before resorting to pesticides. Before hiring someone to remove pests, ask them what methods they use and the name and EPA registration number of any chemicals that they apply. This information will help you to determine whether or not the person is qualified to handle your pest control needs.
IPM
IPM (Integrated Pest Management) is a means of preventing pest control problems before they occur, or at least reducing their severity. It uses a combination of techniques such as biological control, habitat manipulation, modification of cultural practices, and use of resistant varieties. It also includes monitoring and identification of pests, setting action thresholds for economic or aesthetic injury, and taking timely corrective actions when necessary. Pesticides are used only when monitoring indicates they are needed according to established guidelines, and treatments are made with the goal of removing only the target organism. Whenever possible, chemical controls are integrated with nonchemical alternatives.
IPM programs are not limited to crops or gardens; they can be applied anywhere: schools, hospitals, apartment complexes, golf courses, landscapes, and other recreational areas. In museums and other cultural institutions, IPM is especially important for preserving valuable collections. The Museum Pests Working Group, an ad hoc group of conservators and collection managers, has created comprehensive resources for implementing IPM in these settings.
Educating staff to recognize and interpret pest damage can help avoid the need for pesticides, but when pesticides are required, they should be selected carefully with consideration of their risk to human health, beneficial and nontarget organisms, and the environment. Pesticides are typically selected from among those with the lowest risk to people and the environment based on their effectiveness, time of exposure, environmental persistence, toxicity, and potential for resistance development.
Reducing the need for pesticides through preventive measures can reduce costs, but they can be difficult to sustain over time. To be effective, IPM requires ongoing staff training, maintenance of records of pest populations and damage, and regular reevaluation of the plan. In addition, the deliberate release of predators and parasitoids may be needed to maintain a healthy ecosystem and provide a natural alternative to chemical control.
The benefits of IPM extend beyond cost savings to improve indoor air quality and create a safer learning environment. Children in the United States continue to contract diseases carried by biting insects, and they are exposed unnecessarily to pesticides that have been over-applied or misused in settings they frequent, such as schoolyards. In schools, they are at particularly high risk for respiratory illness associated with cockroach and rodent infestations, and from asthma triggers and allergens resulting from the spraying of chemical insecticides.