My coworkers and I were swapping stories yesterday about kids and bugs and I was reminded of how fascinating these little creatures can be – not only to adults, but especially to children. Unlocking the door to a miniature universe of wonder can be as simple as just poking around under a rock or in the grass.

You and your little explorer can try these fun ideas, courtesy of Scholastic:

1. Plant a butterfly garden. In a sunny spot out of the wind, plant blooming varieties like geraniums and hydrangeas, plus plants that provide food for larvae such as Mexican milkweed. Find out what else the butterflies in your area need at butterflywebsite.com.
2. Listen! Catch a non-stinging insect that makes noise in a paper cup. Crickets and flies are good candidates. Cover the cup with waxed paper and hold it on with a rubber band. Now place your ear against the paper and listen.
3. Do the worker-bee waggle! Honeybees “dance” to communicate the location and distance of a nectar stash to the other bees. Talk with your kids about this fascinating communication, and then make up your own version.
4. Take an umbrella out on a sunny day. Place it open upside down under a leafy, low-hanging branch. Shake the branch like you mean it — then identify what lands in your umbrella with an insect book or online.

Tools for the Trade
These items will make your child feel like a real scientist:

• Butterfly net
• Tweezers (only for dead specimens)
• Observation jar (punch holes in the lid of a clean jar)
• Magnifying glass
• Notebook for recording thoughts and sketches
• Bug and spider identification book like Simon & Schuster Children’s Guide to Insects and Spiders (Simon & Schuster, $23; ages 9 to 12) or Don’t Squash That Bug: The Curious Kid’s Guide to Insects (Lobster Press, ages 4 to 8, $15)
• Click here to visit Massey’s bug database 

Massey provides pest prevention services for residential and commercial properties, but not all insects are harmful! Have fun exploring!

Fall is settling in and that can take on many meanings. Usually it’s cooler weather and crisper air (although Naples and South Florida probably won’t see temperatures below 80 this season).

But, in my opinion, the best part of Fall, no matter where you live is Halloween! Being a person in his mid 30′s, I get to take a step back in time and be a kid again. That’s because Halloween gives anyone an excuse to dress up and attend all the fun events designed to spook and scare us.

Funny part is, though, living here this time of year, getting a scare is as easy as a night trip down the hall in your home when you turn on the light and find a roach, spider or other creepy insect hanging out waiting for you. And, no, I don’t mean the plastic Halloween versions.

Personally, I’m used to this occurence, but when my friends and family come down from up North, it’s pretty clear they would prefer getting scared by a person in costume!

Take my uncle, for example, decked out in his usual day-glo track suit. He’s generally enough of a sight to elicit a good fright all on his own up North, but down here he’s known to come screaming like a banshee out of the bathroom at the slightest hint of a silverfish.

So for all the great things that Halloween and Fall bring – remember to watch out for those unexpected scares.

Trick or Treat and Happy Halloween!

When most people see a spider, they cringe. Is it a good spider or a bad spider? Will it hurt me? Is it harmless? Just the way spiders walk with their eight legs looks creepier than their six legged relatives, the insects.

It doesn’t help that spiders are constantly being shown as creepy and gross through Halloween props. TV shows and movies have made spiders synonymous with screaming even though most spiders are completely harmless. That’s right, completely harmless.

Stop Spiders on Your Property

What the movies and Halloween props don’t tell you is that the majority of spiders are actually beneficial. They feast on small insects such as flies, mosquitoes and tiny moths. Truth is, most spiders can’t even bite through human skin.

In the southeast, the only venomous spiders are the widow spiders and the recluse spiders. In Florida and east Georgia, brown recluse spiders are for the most part, non existent. The brown recluse thrives from Atlanta to the east half of Texas, up to southern Iowa.

In most cases, the spider you encounter around your home will be a southern house spider, a wolf spider, a jumping spider or an orb weaver. All of these are completely harmless. However, just in case, take care if you try to grab or provoke them. When you spot a spider in your home, it’s a good idea to find someone brave enough to nudge it into a cup or jar and release it outside.

Massey Services Pest Prevention program includes sweeping around the outside of the home to keep spiders from building webs.  This is harmless to the spider, yet a good way to keep them out of your home.

Now that Spring has sprung and warmer weather is on it’s way, its good to prepare for an increase in pest activity around your home. Here are some tips to keep the pests on the outside of your home:

• Look for leaf litter that may have built up in the garage during the winter. Spiders love to hide in this kind of debris. Take an afternoon or weekend to clean up leaves behind stored items in your garage, back patio or shed.
• Ants are going to begin to build their colonies outside, make sure to prune all vegetation at least 6 to 12 inches away from your home to prevent them from getting inside.
  

  Tips to prevent pests this Spring

• Check seals around all of your doors. As doors age, grommets can be damaged or may shrink. Regular inspection, resealing and repair will go a long way toward preventing pest entry into your home. Seal all obvious gaps around your home.
• Clean up any food, crumbs or mold from around your dishwasher and compactor, under your sinks and around your home. This will prevent residues from attracting crawling pests or small flies.
• Inspect your air conditioner and replace the filter. Make sure your system is regularly maintained and is prepared to handle the increasing temperatures.
• If you feed pets outside, bring the food inside until next winter to prevent attracting roaches and ants. If you must feed them outside, bring everything in at the end of the day, clean up the area and place fresh food out the next morning.

If you have any questions, schedule a Free Inspection, or call us at 1-888-2MASSEY (262-7739).

Spiders can become an annoyance when they create webs in various corners and crevices of the home. Eventually, abandoned webs collect dust and debris, which create cobwebs. In reality, spiders are considered beneficial because they feed on insect pests and other spiders. If you see small pod-like structures in the webs, they are likely spider eggs. When spider eggs hatch, the tiny spiders easily enter homes through screens or around loose fitting doors and windows. Keeping your window screens secure and patched (if necessary) will keep larger spiders out of homes. If the insects they eat are not plentiful, spiders are less likely to infest a home.

When you see spider webs developing, contact Massey Services. We’ll provide a thorough, free inspection and a plan to spiders, plus other pests, out of your home.