As mentioned, I am going to put information from my book on Safe and Effective Pest Management on FB. This will take several months, but I plan to post something on individual pests every day along with other information. It will also be available on Twitter @askthebugman. Here is the section on cockroaches in general and the American cockroach. Cockroaches You can help prevent cockroaches from coming into your home by inspecting all incoming food products, all boxes, and any used furniture or appliances for the presence of cockroaches or their egg capsules. Do not store paper bags anywhere in the kitchen. Seal any holes or crevices around plumbing under sinks and behind toilets. Regularly vacuum and clean floors under the kitchen appliances. Keep all of your drains closed at night to prevent them from coming up from the sewer system. Also, get your attic and crawlspace, if you have one, dusted with food-grade diatomaceous earth. There are a number of good baits available for controlling cockroaches. You can put equal amounts of baking soda and sugar out in flat containers and they will take it. Make a roach dough by combining ½ c. powdered sugar and ¼ c. shortening or bacon drippings. Add ½ c. onions, ½ c. flour and 8 oz. baking soda. Add enough water to make a dough-like consistency. Make balls of bait and put them wherever you see roaches. However, there is a very good roach bait available commercially. It is Niban Bait and it is made from boric acid. It would probably be easier to get this product and use it if you are in an area where roaches are very common. You cant buy Niban in stores, but it is available online. One good supplier is pestcontrolsupplies. When using Niban, put it under and behind appliances, around hot water heaters, inside lower cabinets, in the garage and other places roaches will hide. American cockroaches (Blattidae - Periplaneta americana) This common roach feeds on a wide variety of plant and animal material and it is commonly found in sewer systems. It will come up the drains at night and enter the living space of a home. It also likes the homes that have crawl spaces under them. In some parts of the country, particularly the southeast, they frequently live outside. The is the largest of the home-infesting roaches in the country. It will reach a little over 1 ½ inches in length. It is a dark brown with yellowish band around its thorax (section behind head). One beneficial aspect of this cockroach is that it will feed on bed bugs. Of course most people dont want roaches in their bed feeding on the bed bugs that are feeding on the humans. Niban Bait is a very good commercial bait that works well on controlling these insects. Other methods of control are discussed above. American roaches are called “Palmetto Bugs” in Florida. They can fly unlike most roaches.
Posted on: Mon, 01 Sep 2014 19:38:32 +0000
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