For quality lawn care, as summer begins, finally, it is time to raise mowing heights to 3″ or higher, and try to leave the clippings on the lawn or turf. It is important to leave the clippings to reduce fertilizer use by returning nitrogen back to the soil. Leaving clippings can add as much as […]
We are in June, and starting to spend time maintaining our gardens. Moisture around a home is a sure way to attract insects. Integrated pest management and green pest management rely on making changes to the physical environment to reduce pest populations. Pruning vegetation off a structure is a great way to start. Try to […]
If you have been in your Boston area yard over the past week, you may have seen very, very small red insects on your home and plants. These are red clover mites, and may leave a small red mark when crushed. Clover mites do not infest homes, but can use structures to overwinter or avoid […]
Many Boston Area lawns have brown or yellow splotches and circles on them, after a week of mostly wet weather including rain days and cool nights in the upper 40’s and low 50’s. The suspects? Many customers rightly say the grass looks stressed or burned but they know water is not the issue. Other customers […]
To the left and right you see conical piles of sawdust and carpenter ant body parts (carpenter ants are cannibals) that piled on folding tables below a pair of skylights and outside a garage. This sawdust material with ant parts in it is called “frass” and when falling continuously from the same spot forms conical […]
In Watertown, this maple tree is covered in poison ivy. If you look at the green foliage in the photo, it is the poison ivy facing the sidewalk growing up the tree bark. If you are allergic, keep your eyes open, poison ivy is out and doing well. Remember the old saying, “Leaves of three, […]
You may have noticed Carpenter Ant foragers returning to the exterior of your home. Look out for foraging trails to see what lines the ants are using. This is useful for you or us to apply baits and other materials to the active areas. Carpenter Ants are most active after dusk, so inspecting at the […]
In New England, it is common that homes have a dehumidifier. Dehumidifiers are great appliances to remove moisture from air inside homes, usually in basements and crawl spaces. Controlling humidity is a great addition to a integrated pest management (or green pest control / green pest management) program. We sell, install and recommend high quality […]
Use the return of warm weather as a chance to open your composter and begin to use it again. Remember to add paper towels or other “browns” to augment the green material you are putting in. And use a hose to wet it down, it should be as moist as a wrung out sponge. -Lauren […]
A continued menace in Metro Boston. Since the time the first ships with settlers arrived. No fun to deal with in your home, either alive, or dead. Integrated or Green Pest Management Keys for rat control: 1) Sanitation: Remove and deal with trash effectively, metal cans or strong plastic, in a room with tight fitting […]