Even in parts of the country buried under snow, our gardens remain busy places in winter. Flower bulbs root in, and shrubs replenish their energies in preparation for glorious spring blooms. Wildlife forages for food, and overwintering insects employ various survival strategies. While some winter pests enter a state akin to hibernation, others are actively eating and growing, ready to produce huge broods when spring arrives. Let’s take a look at the most common overwintering pests and see what they may be up to in your garden.

Most Common Overwintering Pests

The most common overwintering pests vary by region, of course. And they behave a bit differently in snowy Wisconsin than in sunny Florida. But there are many that can be found throughout the country. We’ll explore the ten most common overwintering insects. See how many of your neighbors you can spot!

Aphids

Aphids are tiny, sap-sucking insects that feast on the moisture in our plants. They produce a sugary liquid waste called “honeydew” that is irresistible to ants who actually “farm” aphids! (Our entomologists really dig this kind of stuff). If your garden plants are plagued by aphids, you likely wonder what temps kill aphids. Or even if aphids can survive freezing. Adult aphids cannot survive when their bodily fluids freeze. This occurs between 5 to 23 degrees Fahrenheit. But they lay eggs to ensure the next generation of garden-suckers will be born in spring.

Squash Bugs

Squash bugs are the bane of squash, pumpkin, and cucumber farmers. The ⅝-inch long dark gray or brown bugs can sicken and even kill young plants. As adults, these overwintering insects hide under plant debris and under rocks or logs in the garden. Just one generation of squash bugs develops each year.

Whiteflies

Closely related to aphids, whiteflies are tiny, winged insects that suck the juices from the underside of a plant’s leaves. Despised by gardeners everywhere, these moth-like pests can transmit disease between plants and even kill grown plants. Whiteflies are killed by the winter temps that fall below freezing. They remain year-round pests in mild climates and overwinter indoors or in greenhouses in colder locations.

Colorado Potato Beetles

Despite their name, orange and black-striped Colorado Potato Beetles are overwintering pests throughout most of the U.S. They burrow 5 to 10 inches deep underground to hibernate for months during freezing weather. They awake hungry and ready to reproduce in the spring garden or potato field.

Mealybugs

Mealybugs are tiny oval insects covered in a wax-like substance that looks like white powder. They infest houseplants and citrus trees, with a marked preference for orchids, palms, and succulents. Mealybugs suck the juices from plants, producing honeydew that attracts ants. The nasty little winter pests overwinter as eggs or nymphs in tiny crevices like tree bark.

Scale Insects

There are roughly 8,000 species of scale insects, some with armored bodies and others that are soft. All suck the moisture and nutrients from plant leaves and stems. Hard-bodied scales overwinter as eggs, while soft-body scales cover themselves with protective waxy secretions. Typically, immature, fertilized female soft-body scales are dormant in winter, ready to lay their eggs in spring.

Thrips

These tiny, slender insects feast on the sap from flower buds, causing strangely deformed blooms. These overwintering insects hide dormant in leaf litter, bark mulch, and decaying plant debris. They wake up in early spring, ready to eat and lay eggs.

Spotted Lanternflies

These striking, damaging moth-like pests are highly invasive and do hundreds of millions of dollars in damage to our crops annually. Spotted scarlet flight wings are covered by translucent tawny wings at rest, looking pink. Spotted lanternflies lay egg masses that survive winter protected by a waxy secretion.

Cabbage Moths

These 1.5-inch-long moths do severe crop damage to a wide range of diverse fruit and vegetable crops yearly. The pupae, known as cabbage loopers, survive winter by staying in the soil or in cocoons attached to host plants. These damaging overwintering pests also migrate as adults to avoid the cold.

Stink Bugs

This brown-speckled, shield-shaped insect is invasive and found throughout the country. Stink bugs feed on fruits and vegetables, emitting a burnt-tire stench when they feel threatened. These foul-smelling bugs overwinter in our homes, finding small chinks in door frames and siding.

What Are the Signs of an Overwintering Pest Infestation?

With so many overwintering insects, winter pest control is crucial to an effective year-round strategy. Unfortunately, most people won’t notice any signs of overwintering pests unless the bugs move into the house! Dirty yellow or brown stains along your baseboards or furniture are a sign of stink bugs. If your houseplants develop a sticky residue on their leaves, look at the underside for whiteflies. Often, the clearest sign that you have pests overwintering on your property is robust populations of those insects come spring.

Things You Need to Do to Protect Beneficial Winter Insects

Beneficial insects are invaluable. They are made up of pollinating species and those that prey on pests. About 75% of flowering plants and nearly 40% of crops around the world depend on pollinators like bees, wasps, moths, butterflies, and ladybugs. For many reasons, our pollinators are in severe decline, and they need the support of home gardeners. Unfortunately, most of the care that supports beneficial insects in winter, like leaving leaf litter and weeds in place, also helps overwintering pests. One step you can take to control the pests and protect the beneficials is to hire professional pest control like Mosquito Joe®. Our service professionals take extraordinary care to leave pollinators and other beneficial insects unharmed while targeting garden pests.

Keep Your Winter Garden Pest-Free Without Harming Beneficial Winter Insects

Eliminating overwintering insects interrupts the pests’ life cycles, significantly reducing the springtime population. Mosquito Joe performs comprehensive pest control services, including winter treatments, each one conducted with sensitivity for beneficial insects.

Trust your property to Mosquito Joe. The Neighborly Done Right Promise™ and the Mosquito Joe Guarantee backs all our work because the job isn’t done until it’s done right.

Request a free quote today, or call your local pest control experts. We’ll get those overwintering insects to bug off!

Overwintering Insects — How Do Insects Survive the Winter?

Winter is a challenging time for all forms of life. We bring precious plants indoors to protect them from winter’s chill. Some people retreat to warmer climates, while others turn up the thermostat and bundle up in warmer clothes. Birds, animals, and insects face the same choices, with some migrating and others sheltering in place. Some even go dormant to pass the winter in slumber. Let’s take a look at overwintering insects to see how these winter pests survive the cold. (Spoiler alert: some of them come indoors to spend the winter in your home!)

What Is Overwintering?

Overwintering is the method a living organism employs to survive the winter. Your grandparents might overwinter in Miami. Many plants and animals overwinter by going dormant to sleep through the cold months. Your pets overwinter by spending more time indoors, where it’s warm. Insects also overwinter, and they do so by migrating, going dormant, or moving into your home and outbuildings.

When Insects “Hibernate”

Many overwintering insects enter a state akin to hibernation called diapause. In this condition, their metabolic rates slow dramatically to conserve energy. During diapause, insects don’t eat, grow, or reproduce. They are simply surviving until the return of warmer weather.

Overwintering insects typically don’t bite people or do property damage during winter. They focus entirely on surviving the winter chill. But winter can be an excellent time to use pest control methods against slower-moving pests that often cluster together to conserve body heat and moisture. Typically, the overwintering pests of greatest concern are those seeking out the warmth of our homes to ride out the winter. Imagine giving winter shelter to the same bugs that bite and bedevil you spring through fall.

Types of Overwintering Pests

Technically, all pests overwinter in that they have strategies to survive the season’s cold. But some are more likely than others to seek shelter in our homes. Overwintering insects that see your home as a cold-weather vacation spot include:

• Stink bugs
• Asian lady beetles
• Boxelder bugs
• Cluster flies
• Carpenter ants
• Spiders
• Mosquitoes

Of course, small mammals like mice and rats can also be considered overwintering pests. Most overwintering insects that shelter in our homes seek out warm, protected areas like the attic, crawl spaces, and the spaces within walls. Carpenter ants, however, prefer to nest in moist, decaying wood and favor spots with water damage or leaky pipes or in damp basements. Spiders will also make use of quiet corners inside the home, and mosquitoes seek dark spaces in basements and garages when they overwinter indoors.

Where Do Insects Go in the Winter?

While some insects migrate to warmer climates, and others seek shelter in our homes, most overwintering insects burrow deep into the soil, nest inside fallen logs or plant debris, or hide under the bark of trees. They seek out small niches in their habitat that are likely to remain undisturbed to shelter from the cold. Some overwintering pests lay eggs that survive the winter while the adults die off. These include some species of:

• Mosquitoes
• Aphids
• Grasshoppers
• Beetles
• Stink bugs
• Fruit flies

Others hide out as adults, larvae, or even pupae, ready to continue their growth and development when warmth returns in the spring.

While most winter pests hide as individuals, some species gather in great numbers to share and conserve body heat and moisture.

The following species overwinter in great clusters in or around our homes and outbuildings:

• Asian lady beetles
• Stink bugs
• Cluster flies
• Boxelder bugs
• Wasps

While certainly not considered a pest, monarch butterflies are the most extraordinary of overwintering insects. They migrate in enormous groups called “flutters” that fly a staggering 3,000 miles to key habitats in Mexico. There, they huddle together in such enormous clusters that they can weigh down the branches of trees as tall as 80 to 160 feet.

Ways to Keep Pests That Overwinter Out of Residences

There are a number of steps you can take to keep overwintering insects out of your home. Focus on securing entry points and denying the critters the habitat they seek.

Seal Gaps and Repair Screens

Overwintering pests enter the home through small tears in window screens and small gaps in attic walls and around the openings that allow pipes and wires to pass through walls. Look for these openings and seal them with screen, caulk, or expandable polyurethane foam.

Screen Chimney Vents

A well-ventilated chimney is essential for the safe operation of your fireplace. But it is also an inviting entrance to all manner of overwintering pests. Inspect your chimney screen and replace a vinyl screen with a metal one that won’t tear or be chewed through.

Store Firewood Away from the Home

Stacked firewood makes a cozy hideaway from many overwintering insects. If it is stored too close to the house, it serves as an easy entryway to your home. Instead, store it at least 20 feet away, up off the ground, to allow airflow underneath it. Plan to burn any wood you bring in immediately so if there are any hitchhikers, they won’t get a chance to settle into your home.

Turn of the Taps

In addition to warmth, overwintering insects need water to survive. It’s more important than food to them. Leaky faucets and spilled water can provide a lifeline to indoor insects and an invitation to others to join them. Repair any leaks and clear blocked gutters and any places where water collects. Don’t leave dirty dishes soaking in water, and squeeze out wet sponges.

Overwintering Pest Control Treatment

Trust the pros at your local Mosquito Joe® for effective pest control to keep your home free from overwintering insects and other uninvited guests like mice and rats. All our work is backed by the Neighborly Done Right Promise™ and Mosquito Joe Guarantee because we understand that the job isn’t done until it’s done right.

Request a free quote today and live pest-free from tomorrow on.

Walking around your property, you may spy little eggs on leaves and in your garden area. There’s a high likelihood you’re looking at insect eggs just waiting to hatch. Understanding some basic insect egg identification can help you know what types of eggs they are and when you should be concerned about their presence.

At Mosquito Joe®, we know all about insect eggs and the nuisance they can cause. Our tell-all guide will provide further insight.

Why Should You Care About Insect Eggs?

You should care about insect eggs because insects lay eggs in large quantities. The sooner you can remove the eggs, the more insects you can prevent from hatching. Understand what you’re looking at when you are checking your property for insect eggs by looking for some of the more common characteristics.

Common Insect Egg Characteristics

Color

Depending on the species, insect eggs come in various colors, such as:

• White
• Yellow
• Green
• Brown,
• Spotted/patterned

Shape

Some insect eggs can be round, oval, or barrel-shaped, while others can have a cylindrical or flat appearance.

Size

Insect eggs come in various sizes, ranging from specks to pellets. Mosquito eggs are about one millimeter in length, and wasp eggs generally are about the size of a sand grain. The largest known egg laid by an insect is actually from the Malaysian stick insect, estimated to be about half an inch long and bigger than the peanut size!

Arrangement

If you were to look at the finished product of an insect laying eggs, you would be impressed. Some lay their eggs in different forms, such as clusters, rows, or spirals. Other species will lay single eggs in various spots throughout an area.

Texture

We wouldn’t recommend touching them, but insect eggs have different textures. Some are smooth, while you may come across a hairy egg.

Identifying Specific Insects by Their Eggs

With over a million different insect species, it’s no surprise that insect eggs characteristics vary. We’ll dive into a few of the most common eggs you’re likely to find in your yard.

White Insect Eggs

Whiteflies: Adult whiteflies place their tiny white eggs on the undersides of leaves in concentric patterns from the bottom to the upper portion of a plant. These insects can produce as many as 200 to 400 eggs.

Cutworms: The cutworm’s white eggs show up on grass and weed stems and in the soil surrounding plants. The eggs tend to become darker right before hatching.

Yellow Insect Eggs

Aphids: Bright yellow in color, aphid eggs are often found on rose bushes, milkweeds, and other plants. Aphid-affected plants show stunted growth and puckered leaves and typically die without proper treatment.

Spider Mites: The adults lay up to 200 eggs on the undersides of leaves. They can infest over 180 species of plants, stunting their growth and potentially killing them. Fruits, vegetables, herbs, and landscaping plants are susceptible to spider mites.

The Verdict: What to Do Once You’ve Identified Insect Eggs

Once you’ve found and identified insect eggs around your yard, you can try DIY methods to keep eggs and insects at bay. You can also call pest control like Mosquito Joe to come and remove them for you. We are seasoned pest inspection pros. In addition to helping you tackle insect eggs, we can also help with spotted lantern fly control and other pest treatments.

Plus, our Neighborly Done Right Promise™ ensures complete satisfaction starting with our first project together.

Request a free quote today to find out more!

When fall rolls around every September, aren’t we able to bid farewell to all the creepy crawling bugs and rodents that have been invading our space all summer? Unfortunately, no. The fall season is the time that pests mate, hibernate, and take shelter from the cooler weather.

In this article, the pest control experts at Mosquito Joe® share information about the fall pests you’re most likely to find in your home and garden this year and some simple ways to prevent them.

Pests That Infest Homes in the Fall

Did you think mosquitos hightail it to Florida when the weather gets cooler? Unfortunately, that’s not the case. While they may be more prevalent in the summer months when doors and windows are open, they still hang around in the fall. In addition to mosquitoes, here are the top seven fall pests that may cause you problems this fall:

1. Ants: Like people, ants look for a warm place to go in the cooler months. Unfortunately, the place where they often find shelter is your home. Ants particularly love sugary or greasy substances, so to prevent them from taking up permanent residence in your home, keep areas where food is stored and prepared clean, and seal any entry points (no matter how small they seem).
2. Spiders: During the fall, spiders are out searching for mates and nesting sites. This is why they seem like they may be taking over your home from September to December. Regular cleaning and decluttering can help reduce their presence.
3. Centipedes: These creepy crawly creatures with all the legs look scary, but they aren’t necessarily our enemy. While you may not want them hanging out in your house, they do make themselves useful by hunting other insects and spiders who have also invaded your personal space in search of food, water, and a warm bed.
4. Cluster Flies: Cluster flies hibernate in the winter season, so around fall, they are looking for somewhere warm and dark to sleep for the winter. Seal cracks in the walls of your home, and make sure all of your doors and windows have screens to keep these flies out.
5. Stink bugs: No one wants this common fall bug lurking around their house. When threatened, stink bugs let out a smelly odor that contains a chemical that attracts other stink bugs. Unfortunately, stink bugs tend to be highly resistant to pesticides, so removing stink bugs can be challenging.
6. Mice and Rats: As temperatures drop, rodents find warmth and food inside homes. They can damage wiring and may carry diseases, so it’s crucial to eliminate any potential entry points and maintain a clean environment.
7. Mosquitoes: As mentioned, mosquitoes can still be active during the fall, depending on the climate. Some species can survive cooler temperatures, and some mosquitoes can even make it through winter, so it’s important to take measures to prevent breeding, such as removing standing water.

Keep Pests Out of Your Home When Temperatures Drop

How to prevent pests and rodents from taking over your home as temperatures cool down requires a combination of preventive measures.

Here are some fall pest control tips that will help:

• Seal Entry Points: Look for gaps around windows and doors and check for cracks in the foundation. Use caulk or weatherstripping to seal these openings and prevent pests from finding their way indoors.
• Maintain a Clean Home: Keep countertops, floors, and other surfaces free of crumbs and spills. Empty trash cans regularly and keep garbage in sealed containers.
• Store Food Properly: Keep food in airtight containers to prevent pests like ants or pantry beetles from accessing it. Don’t leave pet food out overnight, and clean up spills promptly.
• Remove Clutter: Pests love the cluttered areas in your home for hiding places and nesting sites. Declutter your home, especially in storage areas like basements and attics.
• Maintain Outdoor Areas: Trim vegetation and shrubs away from your home because they can act as a pathway for pets to enter. Remove any standing water from gutters, flowerpots, or other outdoor containers to prevent mosquito breeding.
• Regular Pest Inspections: Regularly inspect your home for signs of pests. If you see droppings, gnaw marks, or damaged materials, call Mosquito Joe! If you find that preventive measures are not effective or the pest problem persists, it’s time to call in the experts.

Fall Pest Control Treatment

Don’t let fall pests put a damper on pumpkin and apple pie season. With Mosquito Joe’s expertise in fall pest service, you can protect your home and property from these damaging pests. Our service professionals understand the unique behavior of pests during all seasons and implement targeted strategies to manage their population effectively. And with The Neighborly Done Right Promise™ and Mosquito Joe Satisfaction Guarantee to back every treatment, your satisfaction is guaranteed.

With locations across the United States, Mosquito Joe provides comprehensive pest control services tailored to your specific climate and local pest behavior.

Call on Mosquito Joe pest control and breathe easy. Request a quote today!

When you are in the pest control industry, sometimes you find yourself searching for odd things on the internet. My browser history is full of things like “How much blood can a mosquito consume in one meal?” or “How many times do a mosquito’s wings beat per second?” This week as I was doing some online research, I came across an article about DIY pest control sprays that included things such as vinegar, active yeast, and detergent.

Now, don’t get me wrong, I am a huge fan of DIY projects for the house. The aforementioned products are harmless, but this did bring up a great question. Should pest control be something that gets added to your “things to do” list around the house? Is do-it-yourself mosquito control or really any DIY pest control a good idea? The short answer is — No! It’s definitely something you should leave to the professionals. There are a few reasons why. Let’s take a closer look.

Risks of Using Unproven Chemicals and Sprays

When you schedule a professional barrier spray application, you are assured of several things. First, the chemicals used are legal in your state. Second, they will be applied in a way that most effectively addresses the specific pests you are dealing with. Did you know that there are over 3,000 species of mosquitoes and some are better targeted by certain chemicals than others? No single pesticide or DIY pest control formula is effective against all mosquitoes. A local pest control expert will know the specific species you’re battling and how best to control them. Third, you can trust that a pro will apply the correct amount of treatment to kill pests effectively without harming the local environment.

Remember, effective pest control makes use of substances that can be toxic to pests. Therefore, it must be done carefully, with experience, knowledge and skill, to ensure that only the targeted pests are affected. All too often, when DIY pest control fails to deliver relief from pests, people get desperate and seek out illegal sources for potentially harmful do-it-yourself extermination. It’s important to note that these compounds are regulated to protect you, your family, your pets, and the environment. Working outside of such parameters could easily do serious damage.

Lack of Knowledge of Pests’ Biology and Behavior

Effective pest control is about far more than just dumping a bunch of treatment on your property. The proper treatment must be chosen to address your environment and to meet your needs for the specific pests you’re battling. Furthermore, the timing, location, and method of application are critical to success. For example, did you know that the pupal stage of fleas is impervious to the same chemicals that kill adults and eggs? Or that mosquitoes can go dormant in winter? Spraying do-it-yourself mosquito spray at the wrong time or in the wrong place can threaten your property and pets without ever affecting your intended target.

Pest control professionals recognize insect habitats and the telltale signs of nests and eggs, so they can concentrate their efforts where they will produce the best results. Some pest control solutions are designed to exploit the insects’ natural behavior. Effectively applying them requires both training and experience. Too many do-it-yourself mosquito sprays spread toxics with little rhyme or reason, and limited results. This can also harm beneficial insects and the environment.

Incomplete Coverage and Unreliable Results

DIY pest control can not only be ineffective, but it can also actually worsen your pest problems. Most likely your property has predator bugs that kill and eat the biting pests you want to eliminate. You could end up killing the predators, allowing the fast-breeding pests to survive, which can lead to a population boom. A pest-control professional will know what to apply, where, and how much to effectively eliminate pests without eliminating all the beneficial predators, too.

DIY home pest control can also present a problem when it comes to resistance – similar to the overuse of antibiotics. Insects, just like bacteria, are fast to reproduce with exceptional adaptation and survival mechanisms. This means they can eventually develop a resistance to the compounds used to control them. Just as the overuse of antibiotics can lead to highly resistant infections, indiscriminate use of do-it-yourself extermination can cause local pests to become more resistant to your DIY pest control methods.

Why Professional Pest Control Is the Best Choice

Mosquito Joe^® pest control service professionals undergo extensive training to identify and target specific pests in your community with the most effective methods available. We do so swiftly and efficiently without the wasteful use of ineffective substances. Unlike DIY pest control efforts, our work is supervised by certified entomologists – real bug nerds. This ensures we always use the best pest control practices and have the most up-to-date information to alleviate your pest problem.

Professional pest control offers the following benefits compared to DIY pest control:

• It’s cost-effective based on better long-term results.
• It’s efficient at eliminating problem pests.
• It targets the specific pest in your area, based on your unique conditions.
• It’s environmentally conscious.

The Advantages of Working with Mosquito Joe

Our professional pest control services are available in locations across the country. We study the specific pests that inhabit areas where you live so we can tailor our pest control efforts to the problems you face.

Unlike DIY pest control efforts, all our work is backed by the Neighborly Done Right Promise™ and our Mosquito Joe^® Satisfaction Guarantee. So, you can count on us to do the job right the first time. Request a quote online today! We’re not only studying bugs; we’re also making the outdoors fun again!