Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service (AgriLife) entomologist Wizzie Brown suggests ‘exclusion’ as the best means of early control of a bug boom now that spring is in the air, according to AgriLife Today.
Brown said that exclusion tactics entails excluding the pests through removing potential sheltering and breeding areas and securing houses and buildings from their approach.
Prune overhanging trees and shrubs and move firewood, bricks, stone, landscaping materials and yard debris away from homes and other structures. Install or replace weather stripping around loose-fitting doors and windows and repair or replace brown window screens. Seal weep holes in outside walls and clean gutters of any debris.
Fire ants will be one of the pests that will soon once again bother residents.
Spring is also when mosquitoes reappear, Brown said, so it would be a good idea to remove or secure anything that can capture water and provide mosquitoes with an attractive breeding site.