Integrated Pest Management and Why Your Business Needs It

While most people have heard of pest control services, not everyone has heard of of integrated pest management or IPM. IPM is a push back against the era of insecticides when so many insecticides were indiscriminately used on our crops that the entire food chain was affected by these poisons. Integrated pest management is an alternative approach that instead focuses on eliminating pests in a way that minimizes the risk to plants, animals, and humans.

PestLock, a Top Rated Local® control company in the Pacific Northwest, offers IPM services to both homeowners and commercial businesses alike. IPM is especially useful for businesses that tend to have a lot of traffic and/or deal in a lot of items that attract pests, such as food or crops. Continue reading for more, and call us today for commercial pest control services!

WHAT IS INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT (IPM)?

The IPM approach aims to minimize the risk to humans, plants, and animals through responsible, eco-friendly pest control methods. It focuses on the long-term prevention of pests and uses such techniques as biological control, habitat manipulation, cultural practices, and superior crop varieties. If and when pesticides are incorporated into a commercial integrated pest management program, the pesticides chose specifically target only the pest you want to get rid of. Every action that is taken is first evaluated for its impact on the environment and on the food chain. IPM can be used anywhere, from homes and businesses to natural areas.

HOW DOES IPM DEFINE PESTS?

We tend to think of pests as any organism that annoys us. Well, pests are really any organism that damages desirable plants, crops, orchards, wildlands, homes, or commercial buildings, or an animal that can spread diseases or harm the quality of important resources like water.

HOW DOES IPM WORK?

• Environmental management. IPM focuses on the environment of the pest as a whole and not just the pest. This can mean planting crops that resist disease, plugging holes where rodents live, or eliminating what the pest eats from the environment. It’s a holistic view.
• Biological control. This method of pest control uses other animals or insects –  natural enemies of the pest in question –  to drive them from the targeted environment. Every pest has something that eats is — a classic example is releasing ladybugs to eat aphids that are harmful to crops.
• Cultural control. This method of pest control institutes environmental changes to impact the pest’s reproduction and survival mechanisms. One example would be decreasing the amount of water in an environment, since too much water can cause root disease and weeds.
• Mechanical and physical controls. This method of pest control involves targeting the pest directly. For example, mechanical control can mean trapping rats and removing them, while physical control can mean instituting barriers to keep out birds.
• Chemical controls. This method of pest control uses pesticides in a limited manner and always in combination with other means. Pesticides are applied very carefully and are as innocuous as possible in regards to their chemical impact on the environment.
• Soil preparation. This method of pest control focuses on making the crops as resistant as possible to attack by pests by giving the crops the best start possible. This means following good crop management techniques, such as crop rotation, soil testing, and fertilizer.
• Planting times. This method of pest control looks at alternative times to plant crops in order to miss the peak times of its predominant pest.
• Forecasting. This method of pest control tries to predict if pest outbreaks will occur and when. This allows for planning of the crop cycle.
• Monitoring. This method of pest control calls for just watching an area for pests and taking action only when the pest levels can lead to damage.
• Thresholds. This method of pest control takes monitoring, where farmers merely watch their crops for signs of pests, to the next level. When working with thresholds, pest controls monitor for a specific number of pests that has been scientifically calculated to threaten economic damage to crops.

IPM AND PESTLOCK

PestLock uses IPM in our pest control services. When you call us for a free pest inspection, we take a look at the whole picture, not just at the pest itself. We’ll evaluate the environment, discover the source of the pest infestation, and then determine the best way to eradicate the pest from your home or business.

We most often apply IPM practices to the areas where you live and work. We always look for the most environmentally friendly pest control solution before resorting to pesticides, and then we use the lowest possible dosage to minimize its impact on the surrounding environment. PestLock believes in protecting our environment for years to come, and we do this through responsible use of chemicals.

PARTNER WITH PESTLOCK FOR COMMERCIAL IPM SERVICES

PestLock is passionate about helping our local community thrive. Our mission is to help your business grow by handling your pest problems. Whether you have an infestation of spiders in your rarely used storage space, or you have mice in your pantries that get in your food, we can help. Our top-notch pest control technicians know how to evaluate your business using IPM standards and how to implement a pest control solution that will prevent a recurrence.

PestLock wants your small business to grow and prosper. Call us today for all your commercial pest control needs!