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Pest Files

One reference page per pest: identification, the damage it does, what treatment involves and how long it realistically takes.

Articles

Clean apartment kitchen counter beside a window with sealed glass food jars and a fruit bowl in afternoon lightAnts

Pharaoh Ants: Why Spraying Splits the Colony

Tiny yellow pharaoh ants split into new nests when sprayed. How to identify them, the hospital studies, what a lab test of sprays showed, and the...

November 1, 2026Sunlit California kitchen counter with a sealed sugar canister, a fruit bowl and a window over the sink after rainAnts

Argentine Ants: The Supercolony Ant and Why Sprays Backfire

Tiny brown trailing ants whose nests cooperate as one colony with hundreds of queens. How to identify them, why sprays fail, and how to bait them...

November 1, 2026Sunlit garden border of shrubs and a small magnolia tree in late summerLawn and garden

Scale Insects: Armored vs Soft Scale and When to Treat

How to tell armored from soft scale, why sprays miss settled adults, when crawlers hatch by species, why systemics fail on armored scale, and what to...

November 1, 2026Sunny backyard vegetable bed of staked tomato plants with green fruit and a watering can on the pathLawn and garden

Whiteflies: Why They Explode on Tomatoes and Houseplants

Whiteflies are tiny sap-sucking relatives of aphids that breed fast on tomatoes and houseplants. How to identify them, the damage they do, and the controls with...

November 1, 2026Brick house wall with a lit window and porch lamp at dusk beside a lilac bushWasps and bees

European Hornets: Night Flyers, Bark Stripping, Nests in Walls

The European hornet is the only true hornet established in the US. How to identify it, why it comes to lights at night, how bad the...

November 1, 2026Sunlit spring garden with a blossoming apple tree and a small wooden bee house on a fence postWasps and bees

Mason Bees: Gentle Pollinators, Nest Tubes and Bee Houses

Mason bees rarely sting, make no honey and cannot drill wood. How to tell them from carpenter bees, the nest tube sizes that work, and why...

November 1, 2026Leaf strewn woodland path and roadside verge on a bright October afternoon with yellow and brown leavesLawn and garden

Woolly Bear Caterpillars: Poisonous? Can They Predict Winter?

The banded woolly bear neither stings nor predicts the weather. How to tell it from caterpillars that do sting, why October brings so many, and how...

November 1, 2026Coastal southern lawn of bahiagrass in early morning light with dew, a coiled garden hose and palm trees behindLawn and garden

Mole Crickets: Lawn Damage, the Soap Flush Test, When to Treat

Three invasive South American mole crickets tunnel through southern lawns. How to tell them from the native species, run the UF/IFAS soap flush, time treatment to...

November 1, 2026Two cars parked in a dim suburban garage seen from behind, with storage shelves along the wallRats and mice

Mice in Your Car: Signs, Wiring Damage and Getting Them Out

Where mice nest in cars, what wiring repairs cost according to court records, how the soy wiring lawsuits really ended, CDC cleanup steps for vents and...

November 1, 2026Tree lined residential street in early summer with large ash trees, one with a sparse dying upper crownLawn and garden

Emerald Ash Borer: Signs, Spread and Whether to Treat Your Ash

How to spot emerald ash borer, which states have it, and the canopy-loss thresholds extension guides use to decide whether an ash is worth treating or...

November 1, 2026Damp, slightly patchy suburban lawn in soft early autumn light with a garden fence and a hose reelLawn and garden

Crane Flies: Mosquito Hawks Don’t Eat Mosquitoes

Crane flies are harmless adults that barely feed, but two invasive species' larvae eat lawns in the Pacific Northwest and Northeast. Counts, timing and fixes.

November 1, 2026Summer cottage garden bed of bee balm, phlox and petunias at dusk, seen from a lawn with a wooden benchLawn and garden

Hummingbird Moths: Clearwing, Sphinx and the Hornworm Link

The moth hovering at your petunias is a clearwing or a white-lined sphinx, not a baby hummingbird. Identification, host plants, season and state data, and the...

November 1, 2026