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Is there a good spider?

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Is there a spider that is good for my garden? Which ones are poisonous pests that I need to get rid of? We will look at some common spiders you will see around your home in Oklahoma.

Is there a good spider?

Chances are, you’ve run into a few spiders (and their webs) around your home. You will commonly find most spiders in cool darker places, such as attics, crawl spaces, closets, and under furniture. In this article, for simplicity, we will classify spiders as good and pests.

  • Good Spiders – The yellow garden spider  will build its web in your garden, as it attracts other bugs, and this spider will act as a natural pest control. These are non aggressive spiders, however if they do bite, it is comparable to a bee sting. Generally speaking, other garden spiders tend to set up shop in gardens for the same reason: to catch the bugs that can damage plants.
  • Pests – There are two spider species to be cautious of in the state of Oklahoma: The black widow, and the Brown Recluse. The Black Widow can be identified by its two red markings that form an “hour glass” shape. If you are bitten by a Black Widow, it is important to seek medical attention immediately. A Brown Recluse is a shy spider that hides out in areas with low activity. They are light or dark brown and recognized by their dark, fiddle-shaped marking that stretches from the back of their head to their rear. If bitten by a Brown Recluse, it is also important to seek immediate medical attention.

As always if you have any questions or concerns about spiders at your home, contact The Bug Guy, the best professional pest control service in OKC!

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Pest Control OKC: More Plants to help keep pests away

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Pest Control OKC: Some more plants to keep pests out of your garden

Last week, pest control OKC talked about some plants you can add to your home or garden to help keep away pests while adding some color and nature to your home. But those are just a few of the examples of what you can add to your garden. There’s still quite a few more options to help keep your home pest free!

Mint: Mint is best grown in separate pots. It looks nice and smells great but it also grows aggressively. Planting mint in your garden could mean you end up with a really nice smelling weed ravaging your garden. Mint leaves mostly repel mosquitoes but can work on other insects. And, much like basil, mint is a great plant for the kitchen. Use it to flavor iced tea and added to many recipes. The mulch of a mint plant is also great for vegetables like broccoli, cabbage, and turnips.

Rosemary: Rosemary is a much less invasive option to repel mosquitoes and a slew of other insects. It can be grown in pots but it does just fine in gardens or landscaped beds. The plant itself or it’s clippings both repel insects and it can even be boiled and turned into a repellent, making it one of the most flexible plants you can pick. And of course, Rosemary oil is great for cooking!

Alliums: Not one specific plant, but the family of plants known as Alliums are all effective natural insecticides. Repelling everything from slugs to aphids to cabbage worms. Putting an Allium near plants like tomatoes, peppers, potatoes, cabbage, broccoli, kohlrabi, and carrots can ward off many of they’re natural pests. Alliums also include small herbs like chives, leeks and shallots!

If your home has some uninvited guests, call The Bug Guy, Pest Control OKC, today at 405-973-5522!

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Pest Control OKC Discusses Facts About Gnats

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Pest Control OKC: A Little Bit About These Little Insects

Do you notice any swarming gnats around after your 4th of July holiday celebration? Gnats may not seem like a big deal, because of their tiny stature, but they can quickly become quite the annoying problem. Today, our pest control OKC team is going to share a little bit about these small insects.

Here are some facts about gnats that our pest control OKC team wanted to share with you:

  • Even as fully grown adults, gnats remain tiny. They are usually no larger than 33mm.
  • There are also a few different species of gnats; some that bite and some that do not bite.
  • Their diets vary from plants, other insects, or blood.

Some species of gnats are are helpful in pollinating plants as they eat other pests which seek to destroy crops such as aphids and scales. Others, like the Hessian fly, feed on the plants themselves.

The fungus gnat is well known for laying eggs in house plants that have been watered too much. They are attracted to soil, and the fungus in the soil. Furthermore, they enjoy feasting on roots and root hairs of plants.

The black gnat (also known as black fly) will feed on blood. These gnats have been known to carry parasites and transmit diseases to livestock and humans.

Our pest control OKC team hopes that by now you can understand that these little flying insects are capable of some destructive behavior. Moreover, due to all gnats being so small it may be difficult to identify which species you’re seeing.

If you have a swarm of gnats that just seem to hang around, the first thing you should do to help keep the situation under control is attempt to locate their food source and correct the problem. Second, it may be a good idea to schedule a pest control inspection if you struggle to get rid of the insects on your own.

Our pest control OKC team would be happy to help with your pest control needs. If you need us, give The Bug Guy a call at 405-973-5522.

Butterflies- Pest Control OKC- Ants

Pest Control OKC Eliminating Butterfly Eating Ants!

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Pest Control OKC Protecting Beautiful Butterflies

Since the earliest days of spring beautiful butterflies have fluttered back to Oklahoma. Flower garden owners and lovers from all over the state can admire these lovely creatures as they interact with nature. Our pest control OKC team would love nothing more than to make sure the butterfly population lives on, but it can be a struggle without proper pest control treatments as many predators like ants feast on butterflies!

It’s just sad and disturbing (even to our pest control OKC team members) to think that something so pretty could have any enemies at all, but the truth is that there are quite a few predators of butterflies. Many ant species find butterflies to be quite tasty whether the butterfly is still in the egg, as a caterpillar, in chrysalis, or an adult. Quite often ants that are found eating a butterfly will consume the body of the butterfly and leave the wings intact.

In case you need convincing to utilize pest control OKC services to eliminate butterfly eating ants, here are just 3 good reasons why preserving butterflies is important:

  • Butterflies represent a healthy environment and ecosystem.
  • Butterflies help pollinate plants.
  • Butterflies have an interesting life cycle worth studying and have provided many educational benefits for people all over the world.

While spraying to eliminate ants that eat butterflies may seem like such a small step to take (and it may in turn keep butterflies out of your actual yard) it will still be one that helps the butterflies live just a little longer. One may argue that many butterflies will become food for larger animals, like birds, later on. This may be true, but our pest control OKC team believes it’s worth a shot to give butterflies a chance to live a full life before they complete their “circle of life”.

To make use of our pest control OKC services, you may give The Bug Guy a call at 405-973-5522.