Where are the worms in my garden?

I have a question:
When I was growing up and my father dug his spade into the soil we always use to have worms, I have dug several areas of my yard amd no worms.
Where have they gone?
Answer:
Chemicals! Fertilizers and nasty pesticides are responsible for destroying the habitat of worms amd micro organisms that produce healthy natural soil.
Nature designed a wonderful system but mankind decided to do 'better'. If you want to see worms, and bees STOP using chemicals. We have an abundance of natural materials that will not only keep the soil as nature intended but will also make your lawn look better, your veggies will taste better and your garden will be safe for you to enjoy.

Insects in my food cupboard

I have a question:
I found some insects in my rice which I bought about 3 weeks ago. I clean my cupboards out on a regular basis, I try to store grains in containers how can I prevent this from happening again?
Answer:
These are probably Indian Meal Moths. They almost always get brought into your home by coming in food packages such as cereals and dry pet food.
A quick cheap fix is to store grains, flour, cereal, rice and dog food etc in sealed plastic food containers.
We keep our parrot's food in the freezer to ensure any bugs are killed by the cold temperatures.

If you have moths flying around swat them and wipe our your cupboards with soapy cloth to remove any eggs that may have been laid.

Organic Lawn Care

I have a question:
My neighbor recommended you for Organic Lawn care. What is the difference in what you use to what I bought last year at the hardware store?

Answer:
Most fertilizers that are bought in stores are manufactured using chemicals and all sorts of added synthetic fillers. It is well proven that the use of such materials have damaging actions when they are washed into streams, lakes, ponds or any other are that they are not supposed to go.
They usually contain high amounts of nitrogen which cannot be used by your plants. So you are also wasting money.
Natural organic fertilizers are what nature intended, they cannot be formulated with artificially high amounts of Nitrogen.

Plastic Shower Curtains

I have a question, I know that you specialize on insects. I hate using those plastic shower curtains in my bathroom as they give off a very strong odor, I have opened it outside and left it there for a few hours and it still smells. Is there an alternative one?
Answer:
We use a cotton shower curtain with No Chemical Odors. They cost more but can be washed over and over so are probably cheaper in the long run and they don't smell. There are also organic shower curtains check them out online.
If you are getting alot of mold growing on your curtain or bathroom walls you should think about getting it checked out.
You could have other issues, which should be attended to.

Any treatments use Environmentally Friendly that are safe for you, your family and the environment. Be Safe

Woodpeckers

Question:
I have woodpeckers making holes in my garage, we had it shingled back in the springtime why are they doing this?

Answer:

Try my old remedy of installing shaving mirrors with the magnifying side pointed towards the woodpecker hole. It doesn't scare them every time but usually works very well.

Lyme Disease

Question:
My wife had lyme disease a few years ago, is it a good idea to get our yard sprayer for flea/tick treatment?

Answer:
I'm sure your wife would not want to take the risk of being bitten again. Prevention is much better than cure. With most pests it's important to reduce the adult breeding population as drastically and quickly as possible.
It's usual to repeat the process every six months to kill of invaders from surrounding areas.

Use a company that does Environmentally Friendly Treatments that are safe for you, your family and the environment.

Snakes in my wall

Question:
I have a place at a local lake. It has a 40 foot loose rock seawall. Some water snakes have taken up living in the rocks. It is disconcerting, if not dangerous, to swimming children.
Is there an environmentally friendly method, such as moth balls or other products, which might convince the snakes to leave?

Answer:
Thankfully yes. There are some great, safe products available now that will make almost all critters go away without harming them or causing any nasty side effects. We use small containers that allow the repellents to work over a long period of time with no environmental converns.

When is the best time to do my final fertilizing?

Question:
When is the best time to do my final fertilizing? We have many trees should I wait for the leaves to fall off before I do anything?

Answer:
Now is a good time, but remember most trees do not benefit from added nitrogen.

If your trees are weak nitrogen in fertilizers can often do more damage than good.
Email me for specific tree feeding.

Composting

Question:
We are cleaning up our yard pulling out the old veggie plants and I would like to compost them. My friend told me that we will get rodents eating the stalks she has a compost bin which is sealed off and still get rats please advise.

Answer:
Yours best defense against all rodents is a clean yard, but that's often easier to say than do. This weekend I cleaned up a lot and left a lot as soon as my back started to ache. You can only do your best. It's proven impossible to kill all rodents. Billions of dollars are spent annually to try and control them. I like to dig a deep trench to put my veggie waste into and I cover the layers with soil.
This will compost and it gives your garden a good start for next season. Most rats and mice are not going to spend too much time digging for veggie waste. They will move on to find easier pickings.

Ticks in my yard

Question:
Every year we get ticks in our yard, big ones little ones, all sorts. We want to use some kind of pesticide but I am afraid it might contaminate our well or hurt my dog.
Do you have any suggestions?

Answer:

At this time of the year we start our tick and flea program.
These horrible little creatures have already started to move around after their winter layover.
We use a plant based oil that kills them all without risk to you, your pets or your well. The treatment is in two parts one in the springtime to kill last year's adults and another in the fall to kill any juvenile that may have come in from other areas. The products we use are the same as those used by organic farmers so you know they are safe.
You will need to check your area for someone who does Environmentally Friendly Treatments that are safe for you, your family and pets.

Skunks in my yard

Question:
My neighbor tends to leave trash outside and now we are having a problem with skunks.
I have mentioned this to her but it has made no difference.
Is there anything I can do to stop them coming over into my yard?
I am also worried about attracting rats.

Answer:
Skunks are omnivorous; they will eat just about anything including garbage, carrion, mice and moles.
They actually do more good than harm. But it really is a matter of good house keeping to remove or securely cover possible food sources such as garbage, pet food, dead animals (birds etc.) and piles of leaves and yard debris which can harbor the things they like to eat.
If you can come into contact with them just keep quiet and they will probably go on their way.
Skunks will spray as a last resort.
Try again with your neighbor to get her to clean up.
Be Safe.

Trees right up against the house

Question:
We have trees right up against the house, last year we had black ants in the bedrooms, if I feed the trees will this stop the black ants?
Answer:
When ants start appearing in your house it usually means they are looking food, have set up a new colony or are going to start a new colony.
No matter what their reason is most people don't want them. The little black ants can be a real nuisance but don't really do much damage.
The big black ones could be Carpenter Ants and they can do a lot of damage by chewing to make tunnels in the wood of your home to make a gallery to nest in.
Look out for 'sawdust' with bits of black ants parts in it.
If you see this you need to get a full inspection.
Only use Environmentally Friendly Treatments that are safe for you, your family and the environment.

Rats running around my yard

Question:
I have just bought a house and have rats running around my yard, I never leave garbages or anything around to entice them, I am afraid that they will come into my house. What can I do?

Answer:
They are there to eat something. They are crossing your yard to get to a food supply.
Rats and mice do not normally venture into open spaces, they prefer the security of running up against the side of walls or hedges. A food source will tempt them to take risks.
As a precaution you may consider setting rat traps in an appriate place in your basement, away from easy pet access.
Remember that a rat trap will easily crush and break a finger of kill a cat or dog.
Take lots of care they can be dagerous.
If the rats are abundant you really should call a professional. Particularly someone who won't use poisons that put everyone at risk.