Rats!

A continued menace in Metro Boston. Since the time the first ships with settlers arrived. No fun to deal with in your home, either alive, or dead.
Integrated or Green Pest Management Keys for rat control:
1) Sanitation: Remove and deal with trash effectively, metal cans or strong plastic, in a room with tight fitting doors and concrete floors. Rats love to burrow, concrete will slow them down.
2) Exclusion: Exclude the rats from the structure by employing concrete instead of dirt or wood basement and crawl floors. Fill holes in the foundation walls with cement or metal. Use gravel in dirt areas inside and outside the foundation walls.
3) Harborage Reduction: Remove clutter inside and out to reduce areas for rats to move about undetected. Keep grass mowed and shrubs trimmed 18" off the structure. Remove debris around the structure. Inside stored items should allow access to all perimeter walls, so keeps stored items 18 to 24 inches away from the walls.

-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.

Pesky ants & simple steps to reduce them.

As it warms up into spring, remember these simple tips about ants.
1) They are primarily nocturnal, but driven by food and other factors in the spring, so you will see them active throughout the day.
2) They leave a pheromone (scent is closest definition) to tell other ants that this path leads to food. This is left by the ant rubbing or dragging its' abdomen on the surface. Cleaning and wiping down a surface will remove any pheromone trails, forcing the ants to forage for new feeding site and find the food resource again.
3) Ants love edges. They will follow line and edges, which can also be "soft spots" on the cleaning list, so spend some time during spring cleaning focusing on edges of counters, backsplashes, trim boards, etc.
4) Prune off brush and limbs. As ants follow lines, such as branches and limbs, don't let a destination be the soffit or worse, the window box outside your kitchen window. Prune vegetation off the structure and up to 18" from the structure.
This will help reduce the ants you see this spring.
-Lauren Greenhow, General Manager, GreenHow, Inc.
www.GreenHow.com. Effective Organic & Low Impact Solutions, Lawn Care, Pest Control & Termite Control in Newton and Metro Boston.