The Center for Disease Control and Prevention showed West Nile infected 2,469 people last year and cause 119 deaths. The virus is transmitted by mosquitoes that have bitten infected birds and then feast on a human host. September and October are the worst months for the virus and your highest chance to contract it. Be sure to keep using personal mosquito repellent and wear long sleeve shirts and pants when possible. Fortunately, only 1 in 5 people who contract the virus develop fever, and less than a percent develop anything serious. If you suspect you may have contracted West Nile, please see a doctor as soon as you can.

Fall creates a new need in pests, including rodents, cockroaches, and spiders. The changing weather lets them know to seek out a place to survive winter. A convenient place for them happens to be your home. Taking a few steps to pest proof your home now will reduce the chance of uninvited guest for winter.

Tips for fall pest proofing your home:

• Locate pest entrances and seal them.
  
• Seal gaps doors and windows.
  
• Store firewood at least 20 feet away from house.
  
• Keep shrubs well trimmed, at least 6” off home.
  
• Secure dryer vent.
  
• Repair damaged screens.
  
• Caulk gaps between trim and siding.
  
• Clean and seal off soffit gaps.
  
• Use metal mesh to in weep holes between bricks.
  
• Check pipes for moisture.
  
• Keep pet food sealed and out of reach.
  
• Eliminate clutter in cabinets.
  
• Remove debris and clutter from yard.
  

The weather is warming up and it is a great time to go outside and eat some good food. That is exactly what the mosquitoes are going to do. So before you head outside to cook with family, friends and pets, take the appropriate precautions against mosquitoes.

Below is a list of diseases transmitted by mosquitoes that affect people with links to the Center for Disease Control:

• Allergic Reactions
  
• Eastern Equine Encephalitis
  
• Dengue Fever
  
• Malaria
  
• Yellow Fever
  
• West Nile Virus
  

Below is a list of diseases transmitted by mosquitoes that will affect animals with links for more information:

• Allergic Reactions
  
• Eastern Equine Encephalitis
  
• Heartworms
  
• Rift Valley Fever
  
• West Nile Virus
  

Keep people and pets indoor during dusk and dawn. This is when mosquitoes are most active.
Use mosquito repellents. Use mosquito repellents labeled for pets on animals.
Eliminate standing water areas around your home.
Mosquito treatments in your yard will greatly reduce the number of mosquitoes.
A mosquito misting system will virtually eliminate the mosquito presence at your home.
Long sleeves and pants help, but no one wears either when it is hot.

Let GreenSeasons get rid of your mosquito problem. GreenSeasons is a professional mosquito control company servicing the greater Baton Rouge, greater New Orleans, Slidell, Prairieville, Walker, Denham Springs, Gonzales, Baker, Zachary, Hammond and Covington areas. If you think you have a a mosquito problem or just don't want to get bit anymore, just click here for a free quote  and we will give you a call or call us at (888) 353-1971.

If you would simply like some advice on DIY mosquito control, please contact us and we will help.  

We get rodent control calls from time to time about noises in the attic of people's homes. The general rule about which rodent you are messing with is based on what time of day you hear the noises. If you hear noises from your attic during the day, especially at dusk or dawn, you've probably got a squirrel problem. If you hear the noises at night, it is most likely a roof rat problem. If you see burrows, holes in the lower walls, or just see a rat in your home without attic noises, it is probably a Norway rat.

Signs of a squirrel:

• Acorns and nuts in their nest.
  
• Holes in your home near trees.
  
• Squirrels make a lot of noise running in your attic. They also squeal or bark.
  
• Squirrel droppings are usually isolated to a pile in one area.
  
• Squirrel droppings usually are away from their nest.
  

Signs of a roof rat:

• Rub marks
  
• Prefer fruit and snail diet
  
• love false ceilings and nest in roof tops
  
• Travel up to 300 feet to feed
  
• travel along telephone wires, fences and trees
  
• Eat small amounts at a time in different locations.
  
• Usually just scratches will be heard.
  
• Rat droppings will be sporadic and all over the place.
  

Sometimes what is thought to be a rat or a squirrel problem turns out to be something much bigger. If you hear something in your attic and find large droppings the size of a small to medium size dog, you have a bigger problem on your hands. 

• You will have a large opening to your attic. 
  
• The large opening does not have to be near a tree. 
  
• Outdoor trash cans may be getting knocked over.
  
• Dog or cat food goes missing when animal is not near it.

Let GreenSeasons get rid of rats, mice, raccoons, snakes, squirrels etc. GreenSeasons is a professional rodent control company servicing the greater Baton Rouge, greater New Orleans, Slidell, Prairieville, Walker, Denham Springs, Gonzales, Baker, Zachary, Hammond and Covington areas. If you think you have a rodent problem, just click here for a free quote  and we will give you a call or call (888) 353-1971.

If you would simply like some advice on rodent control, please contact us and we will help.  

At GreenSeasons, we kill bugs everyday, but we know pest control in Baton Rouge, Louisiana can be a real problem in some homes and businesses. Sanitation should always be the first step in both home pest control and commercial pest control. The methods below are what every property owner in Baton Rouge should know about keeping pest out of their house or business. 

GreenSeasons is the professional pest control provider for Baton Rouge, Louisiana. We provide pest control services in the greater Baton Rouge, greater New Orleans, Slidell, Prairieville, Walker, Denham Springs, Gonzales, Baker, Zachary, Hammond and Covington areas. If you need pest control service, just click here for a free quote  and we will give you a call. 

If you would simply like some advice on bugs, please contact us and we will be more than happy to help.  

One day you come outside and notice the oak tree in your yard has white webbing covering most of its trunk and some branches. Your first reaction is, "What is this on my tree and how do I get rid of it?" Well most people would have that reaction, but the good news is it is an overreaction. What you are seeing is the protective webbing of psocids, commonly referred to as bark lice. Believe it or not, this is a good thing.

Bark lice show up on trees during the summer and early part of fall. Tree cattle eat algae, mold, fungi, lichen and dead insects that are in and on your tree's exterior. Most of these food sources are plentiful when given heat and excessive humidity which is why southern Louisiana is home to large invasions of psocids. They typically feed on hard wood trees and palms. I personally believe their tree of choice is an oak tree since it is what I have seen bark lice on the most. The good news is bark lice does not do any damage to the tree. By eating these foreign objects on the hard wood trees and palms, they are actually cleaning the tree. Be sure to thank them.

Bark lice will go away on their own. After they have gone, the bark lice webbing will dissolve over the next few weeks. If you just can't stand the sight of the webbing in your tree, a soapy water solution may encourage them to move along. Mix three tablespoons of dish soap per gallon of water and apply it to the infested area. If this does not work, you will have to learn to live with the tree cattle until they move on to their next tree.

GreenSeasons is glad to help with any concerns regarding your trees you may have. If you would like for us to come out and perform a tree inspection, tree pruning, tree fertilzation, tree removal, or any other tree work, just click here and we will give your a call.
If you would just like some more advice on trees, please contact us.

I guess you have ants in your home if you are reading this. A small spill of something sugary or some missed crumbs gave the ants all the reason they needed to search your home for more food. Now there are ants going as they please. How do you get rid of them and get back to normal life?

GreenSeasons is glad to help with any pest control or landscaping needs you may have. If you want help, please contact us.

Aphids can become a problem before you realize what has happened to your once healthy garden. These tiny bugs sneak into your landscape and basically have a party. They eat and breed like crazy and decide they love the place so they stay. Aphids will suck the sap from your plant while also transmitting pathogens that infect your plant. Additionally, they secret honeydew which grows sooty mold all over your plant and will stop it from photosynthesizing.

Look At Your Plants
A big part of prevention of any pest is inspection. This should not be a problem since if you are frequently in your garden, you are undoubtedly looking at it. If you notice a little problem, do not let it become a big problem.

Fertilize Properly
Aphids love new growth, so do not over fertilize. Use an appropriate amount of slow release fertilizer. Quick release fertilizer will promote a lot of new growth which generally isn't what you would want in your plants anyhow.

You have aphids on your plants, now what?

Remove
Completely prune away heavily infested areas. Discard them into a bag you can seal and throw away.

Water
Spraying your plant with a water from a pressurized nozzle will knock off a good number of the aphids. Aphids usually will not climb back up the plant after this. Be careful when doing this. You do not want to wash an aphid onto a nearby healthy plant.

Soap
A tablespoon of dish soap and a gallon of water will affect the aphids breathing and help fix your problem. If you have a lot of plants, there are water hose attachments that will mix a concentrate like dish soap with water for you so you can just attach it and spray your plants. Make sure to spray under the leaves since that is where most of the bugs stay.

There are a lot of different products that can treat aphids. These can be found at any hardware store or the internet. I recommend using insecticidal soap or horticulture oil. These products are less risky than other control products. This is important to think about if you have young children or pets that frequent your garden. Another good control product are ones containing pyretherin or pyrethroid. These will work to kill the aphids on contact.

If you have ever seen something like this on a plant, you've encountered whiteflies. They are very small insects that are not actually flies at all. They are relative of aphids and mealy bugs. The problem with whiteflies is they spread easily and damage rapidly. The adults whiteflies drain the sap from your plants and excrete honeydew. The honey dew attracts other insects the both damage the plant and protect the whiteflies. Then to make it worse, the honeydew usually begins to grow sooty mold. Sooty mold is a black coating to the leaves and stops light from reaching the plant.

While the flies are feasting on your plants, they are also laying eggs. They are laying a lot of eggs. Fly eggs all over your plant. These eggs will hatch and the nymphs will begin feeding on the same plant. This is why it is important to target both the adults, nymph and eggs when treating an infested plant. Now you have developed a deep and growing disdain for these pest and you want to know how to get rid of the whiteflies? Well read on.

First, remove any infested areas completely. Be sure to cut into a healthy part of the plant, just before the dead area. Throw away any infested material into a trash bag and seal it. Dissolve a bar of soap in up to a five gallon bucket of water overnight. Use a sponge or washcloth to soak the soapy water up and white down the leaves and stems of the plant. Make special care to do this on both the top and bottom of the leaves. Spray a soapy solution on the plant for the next one to two weeks to prevent eggs from being attached again. Buy and release natural predators for whiteflies. Delphastus pusillus eat a lot of whiteflies per day and can stop whiteflies in their tracks. Order them on the internet or try a local college. Finally, sticky yellow traps will catch whiteflies much like fly paper does for house flies and gnats. Place a few sticky yellow traps as a sign to know when your whitefly problem is gone.

First, remove any infested areas completely, just like in the section above. Second, buy an insect control product containing either permethrin or bifenthrin which is also labeled for your target plant. These can be found at a local hardware store, some grocery stores or the internet. This will take care of the adult and nymph whiteflies. Buy and apply a horticultural oil mixture the affected and surrounding plants. Horticultural oil is great at suffocating insects that move very slowly. Be sure to follow all instructions on the label for the insecticides. These steps should solve your whitefly problem.

Mole crickets are a true pest for homeowners in the south. They are omnivores, eating grubs, earthworms, bermudagrass and centipede grass. They will not bite your if you hold them in your hand, but they will try to dig through you as if your hand were soil. In large enough numbers, they can devastate your lawn. Mole crickets are nocturnal and live mostly underground, so it is unlikely that many of you have seen a mole cricket. It is highly probably that you have seen the signs of them and not known what caused it. 

Mole crickets usually leave small mounds in the soil. They look like minature versions of a crawfish mound or like small mud volcanoes for those of you unfamiliar with mud bugs. There can also be trails of disturbed soil consisting of small pellets. This is from them moving around under the soil. If you see these, your can confirm your suspicions with a soapy water test. Mix 1-1/2 tablespoons of dish soap with 2 gallons of water and pour it over about four square feet of grass. Wait a few minutes and whatever bug is down there will rise to the surface so they don't drown. If it looks like the picture at the top of the page, you've identified the pest.

While the ugly bug shown at the top of the page is the most noticeable, it is their young that cause the most damage to your grass. Luckily, they are also the easiest to exterminate. Adult mole crickets can and will burrow deep into the ground at the first sign of danger from pesticides and wait it out for months. The young mole cricket nymphs aren't able to do the same. Usually early spring is when you will want to treat for these if you've ever had a problem before. This will be the most effective time. If you live in southern Louisiana, you are looking at a march application. 

Mole crickets usually mate in fall and can be seen flying (yes they can fly) to find a mate. Mole crickets also hibernate deep in the soil in winter. Since they are away from the damaged area, treating for mole crickets at either of these times is ineffective.

Pest control products containing imidacloprid or fipronil are good for preventing a population from growing. They also provide long lasting control which will help since mole crickets can evade danger for extended periods. If you have a large active mole cricket problem, you should use pest control products containing bifenthrin. As with all pesticides, follow the product label first and foremost.