Quote:
Originally Posted by lisa360
Just wondering~~ by protected do you mean pesticides? Hate to beat a dead horse but I would like to know what people do there to deal with this.
I am currently living in Washington state, and except for a few spiders there is really nothing at all like what you deal with there.
Thanks.
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Lisa....there isn't any short answer to your question. It all depends on where you live and what might be problems. The townhouse community I just moved out of did not do any regular schedule pesticide control. I lived in two units during my stay there (four years!) I never had a problem with bugs in the first unit, but the second unit had ants. I used a product called "Terro" that is basically a mixture of corn syrup and borax.....both natural products. That being said, it can be poisonous to pets and children. There are other kinds of natural formulas for cockroaches with similar results, but that's after they get in your home. You can mix your own if you want, just make sure it's in a container that pets and children don't have access.
As far as scorpions IN the house....I don't know of a natural product other than a house cat that will get rid of them. Exterior barrier pesticides are the best defense, but still not fail safe. The more "lived on" the property is, (ie active gardening, landscaping, pools, playing....etc) all sort of discourage scorpions from setting up shop in or around your home. It's really NOT a huge problem in developed areas. That being said....the will always be an exception.
Other indoor pests really are not a huge problem here more than other areas of the country unless a property has become infested for what ever reason.
The best way to get answers is to contact some of the local pest control companies and ask about your concern for natural products. Keep in mind, they are in the BUSINESS and want you to feel that bugs ARE a problem. The more you're afraid of them, that fear will sell more products and services.
In a worse case scenario....lets say an abandoned property that has been neglected for years....the major concern indoor might be, cockroaches (Palmetto bugs and/or Japanese roaches), fleas, mice and possibly some scorpions and/or centipedes. There also might be spiders, but mostly they would be small. Other annoying bugs might be silverfish and pill bugs (roly poly bugs.) Maybe some gekkos, but they prefer outside.
If you had a neglected barn or out building, you may find more scorpions, cockroaches, bigger spiders, mice/rats, wasps/hornets, mud dobbers or paper wasps, and most likely some snakes.
Out in undeveloped country, wooded areas or any wilderness, all bets are off because you're on "their" turf. Just dress appropriately and know about the habitat.
I've lived other places, and I personally think people over react to Texas being more buggy.
Bugs might go dormant in colder climates, but there is a trade off in warmer months to what surfaces. Snakes live everywhere...and so do roaches, mice and fleas.....and bees, wasps, spiders, etc. But they just don't live WITH us!
I hope this helps.
(obviously the pest kingdom is bigger than my synopsis, but it's impossible to cover every kind of scenario and part of town or neighborhood.)
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