According to the Tick Borne Disease Alliance, in the fall, as the daytime temperatures begin to drop and the days get shorter, ticks like the American Dog Tick and the Lone Star Tick slow down their metabolism and stop looking for a host to feed on. They wait out the cold winter months in the refuge of the leaf litter or other fine litter, and generally do not become active again until the following spring.

The exception is the deer tick. Do not make the mistake of thinking you are safe from having to worry about ticks and the tick-borne diseases they carry in the colder winter months. Anytime the temperature is above 32 degrees Fahrenheit, these nasty members of the arachnid family become active searching for a host to feed on.

When the preferred host isn’t available, deer ticks will seek another mammal. Our children and family pets might be in the wrong place at the wrong time and become such a host. After a blood meal, female ticks can lay over 2000 eggs in the spring.

It is not just the deer that should share the dirty rap when it comes to carrying these pesky parasites. In fact, all rodents (including mice, chipmunks, and squirrels), raccoons, birds, opossum, skunks, groundhogs and other mammals all carry ticks.

To reduce the tick activity in your yard, add a tick maintenance routine to your spring clean-up and you will see fewer ticks throughout the year. We recommend the following, do-it-yourself tasks:

• Since ticks like to harbor in moist places, remove all leaf and pine litter from your yard.
• Since ticks like to lay eggs in leaf and pine litter, try to cut back on the amount of ground cover close to your home (i.e. ivy, pachysandra).
• Use a leaf blower to get rid of stubborn leaves and winter birdseed.
• Move all play units, basketball hoops, sandboxes and dog runs at least 20 feet away from brush lines. According to studies by Kirby Stafford, chief entomologist at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, 82% of ticks are found within the first 3 yards of your properties brush line.
• Consider only feeding birds in the wintertime and keep feeders away from the house. Seed attracts rodents and birds.
• Stack firewood away from the house. Covering it prevents moist places for ticks to lay eggs. Mice build nests in woodpiles and their nests can be full of ticks.
• According to studies by Kirby Stafford, chief entomologist at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, just one application of a miticide can kill 68-100% of ticks in your yard. Remember, ticks are transient and can hitchhike their way back into your yard.
• Since all landscape environments are not the same, consider having a business that specializes in tick remediation like Tick Tackler, identify the problem areas in your yard.

Tick Tackler products are approved by the Organic Materials Review Institute (OMRI), the National Organic Program (NOP) and listed with the EPA. Each of the products are gentle on the environment and beneficial bugs. The company is licensed in NJ and PA.

For more information contact 908-612-4736 or [email protected]. TickTackler.com.