Pests can cause costly damage to homes and agricultural areas. They also contaminate food and daily-use items and may worsen health conditions like asthma.
A reliable pest control company will use a combination of techniques to eliminate and prevent infestations. Look for a treatment guarantee that includes re-treatment. Read reviews online and on social media to determine a company’s reputation.
Biological Control
Biological control uses living organisms that are natural enemies of the pest to reduce or eliminate the pest. These organisms include parasites, predators and disease pathogens. They can be imported, augmented or encouraged to occur naturally. Biological control can be used in gardens, greenhouses and farms.
Virus-based biopesticides are commonly used in vegetable crops to control caterpillars, such as the codling moth and gypsy moth. A caterpillar injected with a virus becomes infected, dies and releases resting spores that can then infect other caterpillars. This cycle continues until the pest population is controlled.
Biological control is less expensive than chemical pesticides, but it is more complicated and time-consuming to implement. The key to success is finding the correct enemy for the specific pest, and environmental conditions must be favorable. Also, since natural enemies are ALIVE and form dynamic populations, there are many more variables than with chemicals, and results are not immediate. New classical biocontrol agents must undergo extensive natural hosting and quarantine tests to ensure that they do not attack beneficial or native species (host shifting) before they can be introduced.
Physical Control
Physical Pest control in jaipur involves removing a pest, such as an insect, rodent or animal, from the environment. This can be done by putting up barriers, blocking entry points, trapping, killing or relocating the pest. Physical pest control is a popular option because it does not use chemicals, which can be harmful to the environment and human beings. However, this type of pest control may not be effective if the pest develops resistance.
Biological pest control includes the use of natural enemies such as predators, parasites and pathogens to limit pest populations. This can be achieved by conserving existing natural enemies, mass rearing and releasing natural enemies on a regular basis or manipulating pest mating or host-finding behavior such as with pheromones.
Biological pest control also involves using resistant varieties, cultural practices that reduce pest abundance or damage such as sanitation, avoiding overwatering and fertilizing, growing crops in the correct season and removing trash actively. The most important factor in a successful pest management program is accurate identification of the pest. This allows you to determine basic information about the pest such as its life cycle and time of greatest vulnerability to control.
Chemical Control
Chemical control involves the use of chemicals that kill or disrupt pests. These chemicals may be herbicides (weed killers), insecticides, nematodes, or other types of chemicals. These are generally very effective, but they can also damage other organisms and the ecosystem in general. They can be difficult and expensive to apply. People who use them must obtain a pesticide licence and carefully follow the instructions on labelling to minimise harm.
Chemicals used in pest control include plant growth regulators, fungicides, and rodenticides. These can affect a wide range of plants and animals, including humans.
The first chemical pesticides were derived from poisonous plants such as tobacco and chrysanthemums. They were ground up and mixed with water to produce a spray. Later chemists refined these organic compounds into more potent substances such as nicotine, petroleum, coal tar, and creosote. The effectiveness of some chemicals has declined as pest populations have become resistant to them. This is one reason why IPM advocates using multiple tactics in a system of pest control.
Other Controls
There are a wide variety of physical and chemical pest control methods that can be used. These can be used individually or in combination. They include ultra-low volume (ULV) fogging that spreads small amounts of pesticide, or fumigation which seals a room and fills it with gas to annihilate the pests.
Other controls can be used in conjunction with pesticides, such as pheromones that confuse male insects and prevent mating, or juvenile hormones that slow the growth of mature insects. These are especially useful in indoor situations where pests such as cockroaches can be difficult to eliminate completely.
It’s important to note that in most pest management situations, the goal is not eradication but prevention and/or suppression. Eradication is rarely the goal in outdoor settings, but it is sometimes the goal in indoor situations where a certain level of pests can’t be tolerated, such as in operating rooms and other sterile areas of health care facilities.
