Pests are rodents, birds, insects and other organisms that share our habitat, spoil crops or damage property and can cause human diseases. Typically, we control them through exclusion or quarantine, repulsion, physical removal or chemical means. In open environments, such as gardens and farms, eradication is seldom possible, but prevention and control are common goals. Eradication is a more realistic goal in enclosed areas such as dwellings, schools and office buildings, food processing plants, and hospital and health care facilities.
There are many natural and nonchemical ways to reduce pest problems. These include cultural practices (such as proper sanitation, removing decaying organic matter and reducing clutter), physical controls (such as traps and barriers, weeding, cultivation and soil solarization), biological controls (including plant resistant cultivars and companion planting) and horticultural manipulations (such as insecticides used sparingly or as spot treatments in high pest densities).
Some pests are simply too bothersome to tolerate: rats gnaw on wires, damaging furnishings and creating fire hazards; cockroaches can spread bacteria such as Salmonella, Streptococcus and E. coli; and mosquitoes can transmit diseases such as plague, typhus, and flea-borne spotted fever through bites. Other pests such as bees and wasps can sting, irritating or even poisoning humans.
Pest identification is the first step in any pest management plan. Then you can select the pest control method that is most appropriate.
Identifying your pest allows you to determine basic information about it, such as the time of year it is most active and how it reproduces. It also helps you decide whether to eliminate or reduce the population. It's important to understand that eliminating a pest usually has unintended consequences. For example, it may disrupt the balance of organisms that help control other pests (called natural enemies). This can lead to a die-off of those natural enemies and allow the pest population to get out of hand.
Preventing pests is the preferred method of controlling them. This includes reducing their access to food, water and shelter by removing rubbish, clearing brush and debris, storing food in tightly closed containers, cleaning garbage bins regularly, and using screens and barriers around buildings. Cultural practices are also useful for preventing jaipur pest control services, such as good sanitation, removing decaying vegetation and other materials that encourage their growth, properly watering and fertilizing plants, growing competitive plants, and avoiding the use of broad-spectrum herbicides.
Physical and mechanical controls include traps, barriers, nets, fences, radiation, and alterations in the amount or nature of light, water or heat. Some pesticides are harmful to people if handled incorrectly or if they come into contact with them. Read and follow the label directions when applying any pesticide. If you hire someone to apply pesticides, ask for their EPA registration number and name. This will help you look up their material safety data sheet if you have questions about the chemicals they are using.
Biological pest control is the use of beneficial organisms, called natural enemies, to manage a particular pest problem. This requires careful selection and introduction of natural enemies into the environment, followed by a thorough understanding of the biology of the pest and its life cycle. The natural enemy must be introduced at a point in the pest's cycle where it can most effectively control it, without disrupting other aspects of the ecosystem.
