With ticks in Ohio being so prevalent, it’s important that you find ways to protect yourself and your family (including the furry, four-legged members) from these disease-carrying pests.
In recent years, ticks have become a growing concern as their habitat has transitioned from less-developed areas to residential backyards. Because of this, there has been an increasing number of tick-borne disease cases in Ohio.
To help shield your family from these pests, we’ll talk about how to control ticks in your yard. Taking some proactive steps can go a really long way.
Yard Tick Control Begins by Making Your Property Unwelcoming
One of the first steps that you can take for tick control in your yard, is to make your yard unwelcoming to these pests. Ticks prefer hiding spots, so keeping overgrowth trimmed back and keeping your lawn mowed properly can make a difference.
“Border areas,” where a residential property backs up to a wooded area tend to be a thriving tick habitat.
One way that you can minimize ticks from crossing into your yard from these wooded areas is to create a barrier of wood chips or gravel. The CDC advises this barrier be approximately three feet wide. This will help to restrict migration from the woods to the lawn.
In the fall, be sure to rake up your leaves promptly as fallen leaves can also make a good hiding spot for ticks.
Keep Wildlife Away for Yard Tick Control
Oftentimes, ticks end up in homeowners’ yards by hitching a ride on the back of another animal (like a deer or a rodent). Animals that pass through or near your yard that might have pests, could drop them on your property.
Doing what you can to minimize wildlife in your yard can also make a difference in tick control for your yard.
While there’s no foolproof way to discourage all wildlife, you can make your yard less attractive by avoiding leaving food out and keeping trash can lids secure. Also, keep your wood pile stacked neatly and covered to prevent rodents from taking up habitat in the wood pile.
Be Diligent About Checking for Ticks
Preventing tick-borne illnesses means being diligent about checking yourself, your children, and your pets for ticks. Even if you’re taking steps to reduce tick populations on your property, you should still check that you haven’t mistakenly picked up a tick (maybe not even at your home, but somewhere else).
Areas to check include under the arms, in and around the ears, inside the belly button, back of the knees, in and around your hair, between the legs, and around the waist.
If you find a tick, remove it by grasping it with tweezers as close to the skin as possible, and pull it straight out.
Keep in mind that showering within a couple hours after coming indoors can help reduce your risk of getting Lyme disease. Showering may also wash off unattached ticks and provides you with a good opportunity to do a tick check.
You should also practice good tick safety when in wooded areas. When spending a long time outdoors in tick hot spots, wear long sleeves, pants, long socks, and boots to protect yourself from ticks.
In addition, we always advise following all recommendations that your vet recommends for your pets. You want as many layers of protection as possible when it comes to a pest as dangerous as the tick.
Utilize Professional Yard Tick Control Treatments
Even when you take all of these steps, you can still come into contact with ticks. That’s why we also recommend professional tick yard treatments.
When done by a professional, the materials used for tick yard treatments in Cincinnati can not only target ticks but also can provide help with ants and fleas on your property. These applications are timed so that you can enjoy a safer property with fewer nuisance pests all year long.
At Oasis Turf & Tree, our 4-step application program begins in the late spring and goes through early fall, when infestation often occurs. Our experienced technicians apply a surface insect control treatment on your lawn, targeted towards ants, fleas, and ticks.
These applications are timed perfectly so that you can be virtually pest-free all year long!
By implementing this program, you’ll be able to stop worrying about pests and get back to enjoying your yard.
If you’d like to find out more about tick control for your Cincinnati, Dayton, Ohio, or Northern Kentucky yard, contact us for a free consultation or give us a call at 513-697-9090 so that we can answer your questions.
Image sources: deer tick