We at Golden Hills Pest Control have compiled a guide to help you better understand the various methods of extermination and the history of these methods. We recommend that it is best to consult with a professional exterminator first before trying to eradicate your own pests in your yard.
There are many ways that you can choose the best pest control company in your area, we have provided this free guide to choosing the best exterminator for the job.
There are lots of pests in Sacramento, and at some point everyone will find themselves battling a pest problem. Pest can invade our garden, our home, buildings; the list goes on and on. Pests can be bugs, plants or animals. Just the mention of fleas, cockroaches, dandelions, mold, mice and rats can elicit strong emotions. Pests present a health hazard to your family, pets, and garden.
Mechanical pest control is usually the most cost effective and if implemented before a vast infestation takes place can produce desired results. Mechanical methods include hand picking (such as pulling weeds) and rodent traps (such as a mouse trap). Mechanical methods of pest control are usually the most environmentally friendly and are humane in the way in which it exterminates rodents or bugs. To better understand the type of infestation you have feel free to view or rodent identification guide as well as our pest identification guide, these will help you in understanding what type of rodents or pests your are up against.
Biological pest control includes insecticides that are derived from plants or other naturally occurring substances such as microorganisms. Biological control is first recorded around 300 AD in China, when colonies of weaver ants, Oecophylla smaragdina, were intentionally placed in citrus plantations to control beetles and caterpillars.
Also in China, ducks were used in paddy fields to consume pests, as illustrated in ancient cave art. In 1762, an Indian mynah was brought to Mauritius to control locusts, and about the same time, citrus trees in Burma were connected by bamboos to allow ants to pass between them and help control caterpillars. In the 1880s, ladybirds were used in citrus plantations in California to control scale insects, and other biological control experiments followed.
The introduction of DDT, a cheap and effective compound, put an effective stop to biological control experiments. By the 1960s, problems of resistance to chemicals and damage to the environment began to emerge, and biological control had a renaissance. Chemical pest control is still the predominant type of pest control today, although a renewed interest in traditional and biological pest control developed towards the end of the 20th century and continues to this day.
Chemical pesticides were first used around 2500 BC, when the Sumerians used sulphur compounds as insecticides. Modern residential pest control was stimulated by the spread across the United States of the Colorado potato beetle. After much discussion, arsenical compounds were used to control the beetle and the predicted poisoning of the human population did not occur. This led the way to a widespread acceptance of insecticides across the continent. With the industrialisation and mechanization of agriculture in the 18th and 19th centuries, and the introduction of the insecticides pyrethrum and derris, chemical pest control became widespread. In the 20th century, the discovery of several synthetic insecticides, such as DDT, and herbicides boosted this development.
The first step in pest control sacramento is to identify the type of pest problem that you are experiencing. Particularly when plants are involved, the problem may involve poor growing conditions instead of an attack from an invasive pest.
Sometimes identifying the pest is obvious, if you see a mouse scurrying across the floor it is obvious you have need for pest control. The next step is to identify how serious the infestation is, or is this just one mouse that has found its way into your home, or is there a family of mice that has taken up habitation in your home. One mouse can often easily be eradicated using a mouse trap or possibly the family cat. However if you have a large infestation of mice, you may need to resort to stronger chemical methods or find it necessary to hire a professional rodent exterminator to rid your home of the pest problem.