Peninsular Pest Control is the Largest Family and Locally owned pest control company in this area and reporting on the latest Pest Control News is important to them. Serving four generations of families in Jacksonville, Jax Beach, St Augustine, Fleming Island, Orange Park and Amelia Island.
At Peninsular our well trained Citter Gitters kill ‘em with kindness, meaning we take care of your unwelcomed guests and lawn troubles, and always do it with a smile and with pride. If we can help with the extras, we will. If we get the chance to say hello, we will. We guarantee our services and we’ve been doing it this way in Northeast Florida since 1954.
Four generations of homeowners have trusted Peninsular Pest Control for their solution to their pest problems partly because they work around your schedule, providing regular service on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis. Peninsular also offers a one-time service for special problems.
Peninsular Pest Control offers a full range of residential and commercial services including pest control, lawn maintenance (fertilization and weed control) as well as termite treatment: (Termidor® and Sentricon®). Stay tuned for more Pest Control News.
According to the University of Florida IFAS Extension, the Southern chinch bugs can rapidly damage a lawn. The patchy areas of yellowing grass are usually the first indication of chinch bug activity. Uncontrolled chinch bugs will rapidly kill the grass which will begin to appear brown. Homeowners ofter mistake the damage for drought.
Damage
These damaged areas of the grass are generally circular in shape. They expand outward as the insects move from dying grass into healthier grass. These southern insects attack the open sunny areas first. Areas of the lawn that are under drought stress are also a target. Consequently, periods of drought cause elevated chinch bug abundance and damage. The thick thatch areas of the lawn provide refuge from natural enemies and environmental conditions.
Identification
t’s easy to determine if you have chinch bugs. Simply part the grass where the brown damaged lawn meets the green grass. Then look for small insects that are damaging the turf.
Although adults can fly, they preferentially walk from plant to plant, which also makes them easier to detect. Chinch bugs love the thatch area of the grass. But, when populations are high, you will see them resting on leaf blades or crawling across the lawn. Although these insects are small, there are a few easy methods for detecting them in a lawn.
Some causes for chinch bugs is mowing your grass too short or improper irrigation. This will dry your lawn out create the perfect condition for chinch bugs to begin their damage.
Chinch Bug Treatment
When we treat a lawn for these bugs it requires two treatments 14 days apart. This will break the lifecycle of this destructive insect.
Check out our Lawn Treatment Programs for more information. You will also see the different lawn insects in our area and the specific treatment for each.
Questions about Roach Treatment will be asked by most Florida homeowners at some point in their life. The weather stays relatively warm all year long, with the exception of one or two months, and the insect population really never does die off.
American cockroach
Cockroaches are a health hazard if they come in contact with humans or their food after they have been scouring unsanitary areas like sewage or septic systems. Even old trash or areas where garbage is stored can be a source of disease. They can carry salmonella into your kitchen, which can cause food poisoning and gastroenteritis. Cockroaches can also induce asthma attacks and cause pneumonia.
In our area there are four different species of cockroaches: American cockroach, German cockroach, Asian cockroach, Australian cockroach.
The American cockroach has three life stages: the egg, a variable number of nymphal instars, and the adult. The life cycle from egg to adult averages about 600 days, and the adult life span may be another 400 days. The nymphs emerge from the egg case after about six to eight weeks and mature in about six to twelve months. Adults can live up to one year and an adult female will produce an average of 150 young in her lifetime. Environmental factors such as temperature and humidity affect the developmental time of the American cockroach. Outdoors, the female shows a preference for moist, concealed oviposition sites (Bell and Adiyodi 1981).
Pest Control Services
Our highly trained pest control technicians carefully treat both the structure’s interior and exterior to control pests through various methods of spraying, baiting and extermination.
Peninsular pest control programs work with you to rid your home or office of roaches, silverfish, spiders, ants (including carpenter ants), earwigs, centipedes, scorpions and rodents, to name a few. We gladly work with your schedule to provide interior and exterior treatments on a quarterly or annual basis.
It’s the season for infant Lubber Grasshoppers that appear as tiny black grasshoppers. You may be seeing them infesting your yard. This is the time to get rid of these black grasshoppers before they grown into adults. The adult Lubber Grasshoppers will destroy your plants in no time!
The infant stage of the Lubber Black Grasshopper
Learn more about these invasive insects in this YouTube Video:
The Lubber Grasshopper Treatment is important. These colorful locust can grow from a tiny black grasshopper to an insect that is relatively large in size but, they are of no real harm to humans. Most of the damage they do is to the plants and landscape. If you find them in your lawn, you can either pick them out by hand. Another options is to mow the lawn while they are present. In more serious cases, a professional exterminator, like Peninsular Pest Control, will need to be called.
Removal of Lubber Grasshoppers
“If you opt not to call a professional for lubber grasshopper treatment you can take them off the leaf put them in a bucket and in the bucket we recommend to either have rubbing alcohol or soapy water,” Richardson said. The liquid will asphyxiate the bugs. But, remember, getting rid of these tiny black grasshoppers in their infant stage is much easier.
Peninsular Pest Control is the largest, family owned pest control and lawn service company in the Jacksonville Florida and surrounding area. Treating homes and lawns for insects like: Chinch Bugs, Sod Webworms, Mole Crickets and any type of inside pest you encounter. Serving four generations of families since 1954, the Critter Gitters of Peninsular are bonded professionals eager to provide a free estimate on any type of pest control issue you may face.
Peninsular Pest Control Earns 2021 Angi Super Service Award
Award reflects company’s consistent level of customer service
Peninsular Pest Control is proud to announce that it has earned the home service industry’s coveted Angi Super Service Award (SSA). This award honors service professionals who have maintained high service ratings and reviews on Angi in 2021.
“These outstanding businesses have helped homeowners not only maintain their homes, but also evolve them into spaces that can handle life, work, school and entertainment under one roof,” said Bryan Ellis, senior executive at Angi. “Our homeowners’ consistent positive reviews make it clear: these are the top pros in our network. Congratulations to this year’s Super Service Award winners.”
Angi Super Service Award 2021 winners have met eligibility requirements. Pros on Angi qualify for the award by obtaining 3 or more services-performed reviews in the previous year, maintaining a current and lifetime GPA of at least 4+ stars. The SSA winners must be in good standing with Angi and have undergone our verification/screening.
“My parents, Earl and Louise Dixon, started the company in 1954 and our foundation was built on providing excellent customer service.” said, Carolyn Richardson, President of Peninsular Pest Control. “It’s nice to be recognized by Angi each year and we appreciate the loyalty of our customers who take time to submit the reviews.”
Peninsular Pest Control has been on Angi since 2010. This is the 11th year that Peninsular Pest Control has received this honor.
Service company ratings are updated continually on Angi as new, verified consumer reviews are submitted. Companies are rated in multiple fields ranging from price to professionalism to punctuality.
For over two decades Angi has been a trusted name for connecting consumers to top-rated service professionals. Angi provides unique tools and support designed to improve the local service experience for both consumers and service professionals.
Rich Jones, Host of WOKV’s Morning Show, asks the question and George Richardson responds. George Richardson, Technical Director for Peninsular Pest Control, shows you how to determine if you have chinch bugs or mole crickets in your lawn.
Rich Jones from Jacksonville, FL, and The WOKV Morning Show will explain more in the Chinch Bug Video.
Chinch Bug Video
Early Chinch bug treatment in Jacksonville FL is important because these destructive insects affect all types of turf grasses and are extremely devastating. They can take out an entire lawn in a week.
Test for Chinch Bug
To test your lawn for chinch bugs, simply rake your fingers across the dead grass onto a white paper (or your driveway) and you will see them, if they are present.
These bugs naturally exist in our environment and there are some natural diseases that will keep them at bay. They prefer the moist grass but when the grass dries out, these natural diseases go away and the chinch bug population spikes.
Homeowners sometimes mistake Chinch Bugs for Mole Crickets so visit our Mole Cricket page to see the difference in our Chinch Bug Video. Treatment for Chinch bugs is described in this Chinch Bug video below:
To you, it looks like your lawn is drying out but, watering it won’t help at this point. When it’s hot, mowing your grass too short and improper irrigation will dry your lawn out, creating the perfect environment for chinch bugs to begin their damage.
There are products that will keep the bugs from spreading but it’s important that you begin Chinch Bug Treatment just as soon as you discover them in your lawn as shown in our Chinch Bug Video.
Early damage appears as patchy areas of yellowing grass that rapidly browns and dies if the pest is left uncontrolled. The turf may initially appear to be drought stressed, which is a common misdiagnosis and allows damage to progress, often beyond repair. These patchily damaged areas are generally circular in shape and expand outward as the insects move from dying grass into healthier grass.
Turf in open sunny areas or under drought stress is often the first attacked and most severely damaged by southern chinch bug. This pest also prefers areas that have thick thatch layers because the thatch provides the insect with a place to feed and seek refuge from natural enemies and environmental conditions.
Peninsular Pest Control is the Largest, Family and Locally owned Pest Control and Lawn Service company in the Jacksonville area.
The adult population of Spittlebugs are beginning to appear in the Jacksonville FL area. These colorful bugs love to munch on centipede grass and the damage is usually what causes a homeowner to notice them.
Les Harrison is the County Extension Director at the UF/IFAS Extension Wakulla County Office and he has compiled some helpful information for North Florida residents:
Spittlebugs hide themselves, deceiving the casual observer, by excreting a frothy substance from their abdomen. This insect usually passes unobserved until the damage is noticed and they are sought to account.
Spittlebugs are present throughout the entire state and are most abundant in northern and northwestern Florida.
Their propensity to attack turfgrass species is what commonly calls attention to their presence. Centipede grass is most susceptible to their damage, and this turf is commonly under stress due to soil conditions in coastal Florida not being favorable to this popular species of grass.
Adult two-lined spittlebugs are easy to identify if seen. They are about 1/4 inch long with black bodies, red eyes and legs, and have two orange stripes across their wings.
The mature spittlebugs are commonly active during early morning, but hide near the soil surface during the heat of the day. They are capable of a split second hop when a threatening situation is perceived.
The nymphs are yellow or creamy-white in color with a distinct brown head, but are rarely seen. They are cloaked by a mass of white frothy foam which they excrete for protection.
The foam has the appearance, at least to humans, of a projected expectoration or spittle from some uncouth trespasser. The opaque mass is not inviting and covers this insects hidden agenda.
During the nymph stage, this native pest is feeding on its plant host. Most spittle masses occur near the soil surface or in thatch making them observable, but only to those who are looking.
Some dried spittle masses may appear high on the host plant during adult’s emergence. High moisture and humid conditions favor their development and flourishing populations.
Spittlebug foam used for protection
There are usually two to three generations per year, depending on weather conditions. The life cycle requires about two and a half months. Eggs are laid in hollow grass stems or behind the leaf sheaths. The late season eggs overwinter and hatch the following spring, typically from late March to late April.
First generation adults are most abundant in June, with the adult population peaking again in August or September.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla.—Just looking at bed bugs is enough to get your skin crawling, but these creepy bugs can hitch a ride to your home faster than you can imagine.
George Richardson, Technical Director for Peninsular Pest Control, suggests that travelers keep all of their items in their luggage. Keep the luggage off the floor and in the bathroom, if at all reasonable.
He suggest that you check sheets and mattresses for small brown spots because that’s the trail bed bugs tend to leave.
“Any crack that the bed bugs can get in, they will do so in your home.” Richardson says. “One female can lay up to 12 eggs a day.” Richardson says that “bed bugs aren’t just attracted to furniture or other belongings, they’re also attracted to people. In fact, bed bugs like to be within eight feet of people.”
So if you come across a bed bug infestation, Richardson suggests putting all of your items in a clear plastic bag like so you can see the bugs.
He recommends that you wash clothes in hot water and place them in the dryer. It takes temperatures over 110 degrees to kill the bed bugs. And if you’re bitten, use an anti-itch cream If you have any questions about bed bugs and how to dispose of them, contact a professional.
Bed Bugs and Insects and Weeds, well they aren’t nice… but WE ARE!
At Peninsular our well trained Critter Gitters kill ‘em with kindness. Meaning we take care of your unwelcomed guests and lawn troubles, and always do it with a smile and with pride. If we can help with the extras, we will. If we get the chance to say hello, we will. We guarantee our services and we’ve been doing it this way in Northeast Florida and the Jacksonville FL area since 1954.
Like beach crowds and overgrown lawns, new crops of termites have been coming out for Jacksonville’s warm spring and spreading through neighborhoods across Northeast Florida. Spring and early summer are swarming seasons, when colonies of the wood-eating insects send out breeding specimens called “reproductives” to launch new colonies.
Clouds of tiny flying insects can fill a room within minutes, usually appearing when midday day heat settles in, especially after it rains. Piles of dead insects and discarded wings left from those swarms are how a lot of people learn they have termites in their homes. But that doesn’t tell homeowners how much wood the established colonies have already eaten, or where they’re camped inside the walls.
George Richardson, Technical Director
“The ones they find are not doing the damage… It’s the ones they can’t see,” said George Richardson, technical director at Peninsular Pest Control and one of the top exterminators in Jacksonville.
Shutting down those colonies has meant new business to pest-control companies for the past few weeks. A bitter winter that stalled the first swarms was followed by weeks of warm spring days that triggered a burst of activity among a common kind of subterranean termite. A second subterranean variety has been coming out lately. And yet another variety, a drywood termite that doesn’t need underground homes, will probably swarm through June, said Richardson, Technical Director for Peninsular Pest Control in Jacksonville.
People shipping lumber around the world have helped widen the territory of some species. “People move around and they move around. And we have more than one kind of termite now,” he said.
Near the end of a cul-de-sac of small homes in Arlington, Richardson pulls back bushes next to a wall with fresh vinyl siding and runs his fingers over the residue of an old termite infestation.
Exterminators in Jacksonville agree: Subterraneans headed for the home’s framing had built – and later abandoned – mud tubes that climbed up the edge of the concrete slab and beneath the siding. Pines are a favorite termite food, so lumber that wasn’t pressure-treated is inviting. So is pine bark mulch in some yards, but termites will eat wood furniture, picture frames, and even books, given the right circumstances.
The tubes shield the insects from sunlight and from predators like lizards and birds as they shuttle between their food source and the colony underground. Drifts of leaves and shade from overhead trees that hold in moisture help mark some areas as prime tube-building spots. He’ll use 60 gallons of Termidor, a long-lasting termiticide, on a 150-foot perimeter.
That substance, now in use more than a decade, has filled a gap in termite-protection created when older, more toxic substances were retired for safety reasons. “It has revolutionized the pest control industry,” Richardson said. “Once a home is treated, we have very few reoccurrences. … The success with Termidor is in the upper 90th percentile.”
Customers sometimes choose other treatments suited to their own concerns. For a smaller chemical footprint, for example, people often use Sentricon’s Always Active bait system, which spreads termite-destroying chemicals trough a series of stations baited with wood to attract the critters. Like the service, costs will vary by home and by the agreement with the pest company.
