Declutter
Pests love nooks and crannies and fun places to hide among your clutter. The holidays typically bring a massive amount of clutter into the home and outside of it. From gift boxes to wrapping paper, packaging to recyclables to food waste, and more, your property can become a haven for pests of all types. Roaches and rodents love clutter, so getting rid of breeding grounds is key.

Inspect
Another way to facilitate holiday pest control is by inspecting things that come into your home over the holidays. From bedding to boxes, pests can hitch a ride straight into your house on lots of different things especially if those things were being stored outside before they got to you. Cracks, holes and crevices make perfect entryways for unwanted visitors. Be sure to check your home regularly for these passageways and block them or fix them to prevent pests from coming in. Don’t forget, doors, windows and chimneys should be checked as well.
If you happen to find a bug or other sign that your home has pests, it’s time to bring in the professionals. Call Southern & Sovereign Pest Control and take care of that pest problem now (833) 952-1599.

Organize and Repair
During the colder months, pests are seeking shelter from dipping temperatures. Some of the most bothersome pets in January are rodents, and cockroaches – none of which you want to take up residence in or around yours.

Store your garbage in sealed containers and dispose of it regularly. Don’t keep stacks of broken-down cardboard laying around garages as this makes the perfect home for an opportunistic pest looking to get in out of the cold. Also, be sure to store your firewood at least 20 feet away from the house or any structure and 5 inches off the ground to avoid an infestation.Store your garbage in sealed containers and dispose of it regularly. Don’t keep stacks of broken-down cardboard laying around garages as this makes the perfect home for an opportunistic pest looking to get in out of the cold. Also, be sure to store your firewood at least 20 feet away from the house or any structure and 5 inches off the ground to avoid an infestation.

Since rodents and other pests can enter your home through the smallest of spaces, be sure to repair fascia and soffits. If they’re rotted, pests can access these areas and enter your home quite easily. Once pests, like rodents, get inside your home, not only will they seek out food, rodents can also chew through wiring, insulation, sheetrock and many other areas of your home.

Benjamin Franklin famously advised fire-threatened Philadelphians in 1736 that “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Clearly, preventing fires is better than fighting them. As is the case with most things which is why the saying has stood the test of time.

It is more more cost effective to prevent an infestation. Southern & Sovereign Pest Control can help you eliminate an infestation or stop one before it starts.
Call SPC today! (833) 952-1599

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The NEW deal is the lowest price ever offered by Southern and Sovereign Pest Control.

• Preventative exterior and interior insect control treatment for residential, single-family homes.
• Helps eliminate ants, scorpions, roaches, spiders, crickets, centipedes, and many more annoying pests.
• Southern and Sovereign Pest Control’s state-of-the-art software scheduling system allows for clients to schedule on-the-hour appointments. No more sitting around waiting hours for a technician.

For more information please call Southern and Sovereign Pest Control at (800) 627-0577.

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Characteristics

• House dust mites don’t bite
• House dust mites are shaped like a bean
• House dust mites have evolved without sight
• Adult house dust mites’ body weight is 75% water
• The dust mite considers its dropping as food
• Exposure to dust mites’ excrement may cause asthma in children
• Active digestive enzymes, found in mite droppings, disintegrate leftover scraps turning them into nourishment
• The active digestive enzymes found in its droppings can kill delicate defense cells (human tissue) thus entering the blood stream of the human body triggering symptoms of asthma, rhinitis (hay fever), eczema and conjunctivitis
• Adult house dust mites have eight legs, each with a sucker and hooks
• House dust mites will hide from light and burrow deep into a mattress clinging on with powerful hooks and suckers on each of their eight legs
• Adult house dust mites measure 0.2 to 0.3 millimeters (0.008 to 0.012 inches) in length
• House dust mites travel by clinging to socks, soft toys, feathers, fur, pajamas or anything that will give them a place to hide while allowing them to be transported to a bed
• Due to the abundance of dander, the bed is the most common place to find house dust mites
• House dust mites may also be found in living areas especially carpet, furniture, and clothing
• Optimal conditions for a mite colony occurs at a temperature of 77°F and 75% relative humidity

Reproduction

• Carpets are a perfect habitat for dust mites to breed
• After 6 to 12 days the egg will hatch
• House dust mites can live for six to eight weeks
• House dust mites have five life stages: Egg, Larva, Protonymph, Tritonymph and Adult
• An adult female house dust mite may lay 1 to 3 eggs a day totaling 60 to 100 eggs in the last 5 weeks of her life
• Females lay up to 80 eggs and there are several stages of immatures. Populations can explode during humid months as mites are excellent at absorbing moisture from the air

Prevention

• Hardwood floors instead of carpets
• Changing the bed linen weekly reduces the risk of dust mites
• Dust mite mattress covers protect your bedding from dust mites
• Unmade beds allowing air flow/dry conditions have fewer dust mites
• Vacuuming a mattress will reduce some of the dust that mites consider as food
• A house dust mite colony will not thrive with the humidity below 54%
• Maintain humidity less than 45% with a dehumidifier during summer and a room temperature of 71 degrees
• Washing bedding weekly in hot water that is at least 140 degrees then place in a hot tumble dryer for 10 minutes kills dust mites
• Placing soft toys and infested fabrics in a plastic bag and letting them sit in the freezer for 12 hours will kill house dust mites

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Looking to protect your home, family and pets against those annoying pests? Consider the advantages of using a pest control service.

• Pest infestations can damage your property.
• Bees or wasps stings can trigger dangerous allergic reactions.
• Trained knowledgeable technicians who understand where to treat.
• Experienced licensed exterminators who know how to handle and eliminate infestations thus ensuring that bugs are eliminated and don’t re-infest homes.
• Rodents can cause fires by chewing wires and transmit disease organisms.
• The cost to hire a pest control company may even save you money over time.
• Pests can carry harmful diseases and hazardous bacteria that can expose your family members to illness.
• Cockroaches carry E coli and salmonella on their bodies causing or intensifying health problems related to allergies and asthma.
• Controlling pest infestations takes time, and using pest control products in a timely matter is key to successfully protecting your home.
• Pest control companies monitor and report every time they spray and know when to retreat before the product stops working.
• Contracting with exterminators to proactively treat your property at periodic intervals during the year will ensure your home remains pest-free.
• Tick bites can cause Lyme disease, which is a dangerous condition often associated with symptoms such as rashes, severe fatigue and extreme illness.
• Unless properly treated and eradicated, almost every house will get at least a minor infestation of bugs.
• Paying a licensed professional to eradicate the pest infiltration quickly and effectively can protect your property.
• Wrongfully treated pest problem (termites) may lead to thousands of dollars in property damage.

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• Blister Beetles are attracted to lights at night.
• Blister Beetles are usually seen during the day on flowers.
• Blister Beetles are attracted to alfalfa and weeds during bloom.
• The adult Blister Beetles feed on plants, while the larvae are predators on the eggs of grasshoppers.
• Blister Beetles are able to produce cantharidin, a toxin which can kill animals such as horses if they ingest hay that is infested with Blister Beetles.
• Cantharidin, a poisonous chemical that causes blistering of the skin, is also used medically to remove warts.
• The female lays eggs in mid to late spring just beneath the soil surface. Only a few of the young will survive. Eggs are laid by the female in protected areas, like under stones.
• Beetle infestation often occur at the edges of gardens or in surrounding vegetation. Keep grass, weeds and other growth trimmed around the margins of your garden to remove the places where they might get started.

The post Fun Fact Friday – Blister Beetles appeared first on Southern Pest Control.

• Fire Ants can sting repeatedly.
• Fire Ants look very much like ordinary ants.
• Fire Ants are reddish brown to black in color.
• Fire Ants feed mostly on young plants and seeds.
• Fire Ants are well-known for their venomous sting.
• Fire Ants are social insects, live in colonies and build mounds of loose soil.
• A Fire Ant mound may contain up to 300,000 ants.
• Some Fire Ant colonies have only one queen, whereas others have many.
• Fire Ants do not hibernate and are renowned for their ability to survive extreme conditions.
• Fire Ants were accidentally brought to the United States on a cargo boat from South America.

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• Chinch bugs in large numbers, can devastate a lawn.
• Chinch bugs flourish during summer months, with infestations peaking in July.
• Adult Chinch bugs overwinter in leaf litter and other dense thatch areas that offers them shelter.
• Infested lawns display discolored patches, which are usually circular in shape and found in sunny locations.
• Adult Chinch bugs rarely measure over 6 mm in length, are small, black bugs with white wings folded over the back. Nymphs are bright red after hatching, then darken as they approach maturity.
• Proper aeration, fertilization, irrigation, mowing, and pest control will reduce the potential of Chinch bug infestations.
• Chinch bugs will continue doing damage year round. Two generations typically occur each year, and a partial third generation occurs during years with long summers.
• Keep lawns well-watered, especially during hot summer months. Mow lawns at the recommended maximum height and apply insecticide to the infested areas.
• As they feed, Chinch bugs inject a toxin causing the grass to wither, turning from a healthy green color to a brown-yellow color, and finally dies. Damage typically occurs first in water-stressed areas along the edges of the lawn or where the grass is growing in full sunlight.

The post Fun Fact Friday – Lawn Pests that Destroy Your Lawn Part IV appeared first on Southern Pest Control.

• Mole Crickets are omnivores.
• Mole Crickets have front claws for digging.
• Mole Crickets have been known to bite humans.
• Mole Crickets’ diet includes grubs, roots, other invertebrates and grass.
• Mole Crickets cause a lot of damage to lawns in two ways: tunneling and eating.
• Mole Crickets are tough to locate because they are under ground and feed at night.
• Some of the Mole Crickets biggest predators are birds, raccoons, wasps, and small mammals.
• Male Mole Crickets serenade, in an attempt to attract females, for about an hour after sunset. Female Mole Crickets typically fly soon after sunset in search of the serenading males.

The post Fun Fact Friday – Lawn Pests that Destroy Your Lawn Part III appeared first on Southern Pest Control.

• White Grubs appear as fat white “worm-like” larvae.
• White Grubs have many life cycles throughout the year.
• White Grubs are hatched from eggs that are laid in the soil.
• In the spring grubs awaken from winter and begin feeding.
• White Grubs are immature beetles that like to feed on grass roots, causing extensive damage to the root systems.
• In the summer pupae turn into beetles, including Japanese Beetles, which emerge to feed on garden foliage and flowers. Beetles lay eggs in the lawn soon after.
• In the fall eggs hatch into new grubs which feed on the grass roots, thereby destroying your lawn. The destructive cycle begins all over again.
• It is impossible to see white grubs on the surface since they exist below the blades of grass in the root zone.

The post Fun Fact Friday – Lawn Pests that Destroy Your Lawn Part I appeared first on Southern Pest Control.

• Travel during the night.
• Cannot survive freezing temperatures.
• Armyworms chew the foliage of grasses and grain crops.
• Armyworm ranges in size from 1/16 inch to 1 1/3 inches.
• A stripe runs down the middle of the back while one stripe is present on each side.
• Armyworm caterpillar larvae have stripes running the length of their body during the fall.
• Armyworms are hairless caterpillars ranging from yellow-green in color to a dark brown or gray color.
• On the upper side of each abdominal segment on the Armyworm, you will find four dark circular spots.
• After exhausting their food supply, Armyworms travel and feed in large numbers from field to field in search of food.

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