First things first, what is bagging vs. mulching grass? Simply put, bagging allows the lawn mower to fill the bag with grass clippings, thus reducing allergies and preventing pests and diseases from spreading. On the other hand, mulching is a technique where the mower shreds the grass and is released back into the lawn for natural fertilizing. 

This blog will discuss the pros and cons of each bagging and mulching and when they are a good option—looking for greener pastures? Read on!

The Pros and Cons of Bagging 

Bagging grass is a lawn care method with pros and cons. On the plus side, bagging grass clippings can help neaten a lawn and make it look more well-kept. It can also help with lawn pests like grubs and chinch bugs. Bagging grass clippings can also help to reduce thatch build-up. 

On the downside, bagging grass clippings can be time-consuming and labor-intensive. In addition, bagging grass clippings deprives the lawn of valuable nutrients when recycled back into the soil. As a result, it’s essential to weigh the pros and cons of bagging grass before deciding whether or not it is the proper lawn care solution for you.

The Pros and Cons of Mulching 

Mulching grass also is a lawn care practice with pros and cons. Conversely, mulching lawns can prevent weeds and improve lawn drainage. It can also promote healthier grass. 

However, mulching also has some potential drawbacks. For example, if too much mulch is applied, it can smother the grass and prevent it from getting the oxygen it needs to thrive. In addition, mulch can also provide a hiding place for lawn pests, which can lead to infestations. 

Which One to Choose, Bagging or Mulching? 

Lawn care services can offer homeowners a way to enjoy their lawns without worrying about lawn pest solutions. If you’re searching “lawn care services near me,” some businesses will provide you with lawn mowing, lawn fertilizer, and other services that will help keep your lawn healthy and green all year long. Many lawn care services also offer mulching or bagging of grass clippings, which can help reduce the time you spend raking leaves in the fall. 

When choosing between mulching and bagging, consider the following factors: cost, convenience, and appearance. If cost is your primary concern, mulching may be the better option; however, if you value comfort and aesthetics, bagging may be more worth your while. Ultimately, the decision between mulching and bagging comes down to personal preference.

Professional Experts for a Beautiful Lawn

At Lawn and Pest Solutions, we understand that every lawn is unique. Whether you’re dealing with weeds, grubs, or troublesome insects, we will tailor our services to meet your needs. We offer a wide range of lawn care services. We also provide pest control services to keep your lawn looking its best. With our personalized attention, you can be confident that your property will be healthy and beautiful all season long. Contact us today to learn more about our lawn care services. 

GET A BEAUTIFUL LAWN 

You may not think about termites being a danger or a risk, but they are to ALL homes and businesses. 

Much like high blood pressure is called “the silent killer” because for some, once the signs are evident, it is too late. Termites can thrive inside your home, feasting upon it without you seeing a single sign. If you ignore the signs, it might be too late. 

Termite risks

If you wonder about termite risk in the South, refer to Sentricon, the number one brand in termite protection. “Unless you call Alaska home, your house is not safe from termite damage.” That sums it up for us!

Termites are found in over five million homes per year and cause homeowners over FIVE BILLION dollars per year. That’s a lot of termite damage, so yes, termites ARE a risk for this area.

What are the dangers of termites?

Termites are very organized, and efficient and are a danger to your home or business. Don’t “wait to see” signs of termites, or you could be facing a situation like this couple. 

While this is a worst-case scenario, just a fraction of the damage would be very costly to repair. Not only are repair costs costly, but you are also putting yourself and your family or your employees at risk. Damaged wood is weakened by termites and will eventually rot and fall away.

Signs of termites

Other than the obvious discovery of living termites, these signs may suggest you have a termite presence in your home or business.

• Swarming: look for lots of discarded and broken wings. Windows, doors, vents, bathtubs, and sinks are common places to find termite wings.
• Mud tubes:  look on foundation walls, inside walls, and plumbing pipes. Mud tubes (also called “termite highways”) provide moist places and safety from ants. They are made of moist soil and excrement and start around the diameter of a pencil.
• Damaged wood: knock on wood and if it sounds hollow and gives away easily, look closer. Termites are eating from the inside out and following along the grain of the wood. Many times you will find more mud tubes inside the wood along with living termites.

Prevent and rid your home or business from termite dangers and risks

Termites ARE a risk and a danger to your home. Whether you suspect you have termites or want to prevent termites from ever entering your home or business, we have options.

Our Sentricon Specialist pest technicians at Lawn and Pest Solutions have been highly trained by Sentricon. Not every pest control company qualifies to be able to provide Sentricon service. Sentricon is the number one brand in termite protection and there is a reason that Lawn and Pest Solutions is qualified to be a provider. Contact our office to have your home or business inspected by our specialists. Our licensed technicians serve the North Mississippi and Memphis, Tennessee areas. 

Spray foam insulation is a cost effective way to insulate your home. The foam is sprayed on as a liquid and it hardens to fill in the spaces between the wood framing of your home. Your walls and ceilings have a hard, waterproof barrier that effectively keeps heat and cold in or out. Many builders prefer spray foam insulation for all of these reasons.

Termites are tiny little pests that eat just a little bit of wood at a time, but they never stop eating. Termites can destroy your home or business if left untreated. Termites thrive in high humidity environments where they travel in mudtubes or stay underground. Termites are a fact of life for us in the South.

When spray foam insulation is present, termites can travel quickly through that and not go to the trouble of building mudtubes. Spray foam insulation provides what some call a “superhighway” of travel for termites in your home.

Spray foam is a great insulator, but it’s too good for the South

The hardened foam can trap moisture between the wood in your walls and frames. Moist wood is the preferred meal of all termites. In our high humidity South, moist wood which can’t breathe due to the highly effective waterproof barrier of spray foam insulation becomes an easy target for termites.

Because it can hold a tremendous amount of water, spray foam insulation can hide water leaks for years. Hidden leaks and water damage plus the presence of moisture creates a perfect environment for termites to thrive.

When conventional insulation is in place, water leaks are more easily detected. These types of insulations can be easily removed and replaced which is not the case with spray foam.

Termites are not drawn to, nor do they eat spray foam insulation. 

Termites like to eat wood. Termites are drawn to moist wood. Termites are not attracted to spray foam and they don’t like to eat it. They DO use the foam as a way to move faster than ever between the wood framing of a home. Spray foam does make termites much harder to detect. 

Even the most trained and experienced technicians have a very hard time finding termites in a home insulated with spray foam. Sometimes by the time that termites are discovered, it is too late.

Homeowners insurance does not cover termite damage.

Termite damage is considered to be preventable. Read that again. If you aren’t protecting your home or business from termites, they are eventually going to get you. All structures including metal buildings are at risk for termites. We all have cabinets, sheetrock, flooring, papers, trim and wood to protect.

If you have a home that is not insulated with spray foam, Lawn and Pest Solutions can help you to stop current termite troubles, or to prevent inevitable termite troubles. We are located in New Albany, MS, and cover Memphis, TN, and the entire North Mississippi area. Our licensed technicians can come and inspect your home for the termite program ​and advise you on a plan of treatment. Contact us here to get a very fast and efficient response to your needs.

When it comes to choosing a termite professional, you should first consider this…Termites cause $5 billion in damage annually to homes in the U.S., but homeowners insurance rarely covers termite damage. Termite damage is considered preventable through home maintenance. In the simplest of terms, if you could have prevented it, you should have.

Careful selection = good results

Before choosing a termite professional you should do a little research. While the state regulates and requires that termite technicians be licensed, some companies do the minimum required to satisfy those regulations.

At Lawn and Pest Solutions, we constantly train our techs. Weekly meetings and occasional class settings provide our techs with the most up to date information and training available. This additional training is something we choose to do in order to provide the safest and most effective termite protection to our customers.

In addition to training our technicians, our licensing requires ongoing training for management. Being a select provider of the Sentricon System requires even more training and in-depth knowledge of termites. 

Get references. 

It’s not that hard these days to find a Google review on just about any service imaginable. You are just a few clicks away from being able to know what the general consensus is on any service provider. Read those reviews! People are more than open and honest about how they REALLY feel when writing online reviews. Just type in “choosing a termite professional” and see what you find!

Read the fine print.

Before you sign a contract, make sure you fully understand the details and pricing. Don’t be afraid to ask your technician lots of questions. Remember that your home is at stake here and you want the best protection. 

At Lawn and Pest Solutions, a termite contract includes:

• An interior and exterior inspection of your home.
• A full treatment as defined by state regulations.  This can be a liquid application that is trenched and injected into the soil around your foundation, or a bait station application around the perimeter of your home.
• Issuance of a termite contract that states what type of application is performed, the products used, a diagram of the structure treated and the cost for the initial treatment and ongoing annual inspections.
• Annual inspections must include both an interior and exterior inspection of your home.  If your current provider comes by and hangs an invoice once a year, you have not received a proper inspection. 

Prevention is the best medicine. 

When choosing a professional termite exterminator, we make it pretty easy. Avoid the costs and headaches of repairing your home with a Termite 360 program from Lawn & Pest Solutions. Contact our office any time of day or night and let us schedule a visit to your home or business. Our company offers the best termite and pest control services! We are ready to help you out. Lawn and Pest Solutions serves the North Mississippi and Memphis, Tennessee areas. 

Termites ARE a danger to all homes. Termites can be thriving inside your home, feasting upon it without you seeing a single sign. If you are of a certain age, you are familiar with high blood pressure. They call high blood pressure “the silent killer” because some times, once the signs are evident, it is too late. The same can be said of termites. If you wait too long, it might be too late. 

Are termites a risk for this area?

Sentricon, the number one brand in termite protection says this, “Unless you call Alaska home, your house is not safe from termite damage.” That should sum it up for most of us. Yes, termites ARE a risk for this area. Termites are found in over five million homes per year and cause homeowners over five BILLION dollars per year. That’s a lot of termite damage…

How can one little pest cause so much damage?

This very easy to follow  is the fastest and best lesson in termites. Yes, it was created to promote the brand Sentricon, but it makes termites easy to understand. The way that termites work is very organized, very efficient and very harmful to your home. If you are waiting to see signs of termites, you could be in a situation like this couple. It is 100% worst case scenario, but even just a fraction of the damage would be very costly to repair. Not only would repair costs be costly, but you are also putting yourself, your family or your employees at risk. Damaged wood is weakened by termites and will eventually rot and fall away. 

What are the signs of termites in my home?

Whether you can identify a termite by looking at it or you just have a bad feeling about this, there are indicators of termites. Other than the obvious discovery of living termites, these signs may suggest you have a termite presence in your home or business.

• Swarming: sometimes you find evidence of swarming by finding lots to discarded and broken wings. Windows, doors, vents, bathtubs and sinks are common places you might find termite wings.
• Mud tubes: these are usually found on foundation walls, inside walls, and plumbing pipes. Mud tubes are also called termite highways because they are a way for termites to stay in moist places and stay safe from ants. Mud tubes are made of moist soil and excrement and start around the diameter of a pencil.
• Damaged wood: if the wood sounds hollow and gives away easily, you can see how the termites are eating from the inside out and following along the grain of the wood. Many times there will be more mud tubes inside the wood along with live termites.

What do I do now?

Termites ARE a risk and a danger to your home. Whether you suspect you have termites or want to prevent termites from ever entering your home or business, Sentricon is the system to choose. Our Sentricon Specialist pest technicians at Lawn and Pest Solutions have been highly trained by Sentricon. Not every pest company qualifies to be able to provide Sentricon service. There is a reason that Sentricon is the number one brand in termite protection. There is a reason that Lawn and Pest Solutions is qualified to be a provider. Contact our office to have your home or business inspected by our specialists. This is a service you want to consider before it is too late. Our licensed technicians serve the North Mississippi and Memphis areas. 

Let’s first look at the definition of the word “infestation”.

 in·fes·ta·tion

/ˌinfəˈstāSHən/

Learn to pronounce

noun

noun: infestation; plural noun: infestations

1. the presence of an unusually large number of insects or animals in a place, typically so as to cause damage or disease. “infestation with head lice is widespread”

Why did they have to bring head lice into this?

An infestation of any kind of insect, animal, pest can’t ever be a good thing, right? Butterflies, maybe? There are multiple signs of a termite infestation, and the easiest one to spot by the average person would be flying termites. Also called, “swarmers”, these are termites that have left their nest and are flying around looking for a mate and to start a colony. Once a swarmer has found a mate, it loses its’ wings, and these are yet another sign of an infestation, discarded wings. You don’t have to be a pest specialist to see either of these signs.

What was that noise?

Another sign of termites (and this is a bit creepy) is the sounds they make. If your home or space is infested with termites, if you get really quiet and put your ear up to the wall, you might be able to hear them chewing. Crazy, right? Those loud chompers are the worker termites, chewing away on the wood inside your home. But they aren’t the only ones making noise, listen for the soldier termites. They bang their heads against the wall to warn others of danger to the colony. Here’s a link for you to listen to the sound of termites. Who knew termites loved rock and roll?

Mud tubes, that’s a nice way of putting it.

Mud tubes are easy to spot, they provide moisture for termites and are also made of termite droppings and soil. Termites like to move around inside the walls of your space, but when the space is harder to navigate (not wood, for example) a mud tube gives them a quick and easy tunnel or tube to move from space to space. This video ,titled “Termites turning your house into a poop palace” is just a charming as it sounds. But it does help to encourage the viewer to look for these signs of infestation! Who wants to live in a “poop palace” ? 

This. Door. Won’t. Shut.

Yet another sign of termites is when doors and windows become difficult to close. This is because when termites are eating their way through the wood in your home, windows and doors, it causes excess moisture to build up. Excess moisture causes doors and windows to warp and that makes them hard to close. Who would have ever thought a “wonky” door could be a sign of termite infestation? In addition to difficult doors, paper thin doors, walls and baseboards are a sign that termites have been feasting. Try knocking on walls to see if they sound or feel papery or hollow. 

Termites are active, devastating and costly.

Termites are active all year long and cost homeowners in the US an estimated $50 BILLION in repair every ten years. Termite damage is rarely covered by homeowners insurance because it is considered to be preventable. Here’s where you come in. You need to prevent termite damage. Don’t wait for paper thin walls, jammed up windows and doors, please don’t live in a “poop palace”. Get help from the professionals at Lawn and Pest Solutions. We are licensed to treat with the Sentricon System which gets ahead of the attack and protects your home. Contact us today to ask about our ultimate pest protection program. We can assess your situation for free. We treat homes and businesses from Memphis to all over North Missississipp including New Albany, Oxford and Tupelo. 

If you find yourself wondering “do I have termites”, googling images of termites, or you just know you have evidence of termites inside your home, don’t put off calling a professional. If you don’t see evidence of termites in your home, that doesn’t mean they aren’t there. I know, that’s scary. Often, you don’t know you have termites until they have caused extensive damage.

Don’t miss this.

Here’s one other really important piece of information…termite damage is RARELY covered by your homeowner’s insurance. It is considered preventable through proper home maintenance. This means you have to do your part, and termite treatment is not a do it yourself project. 

Ok, I have termites. What’s next?

Did you know termite treatments are regulated by your state? That’s pretty serious. Here are three steps to properly treat for termites and protect your home against further damage:

1. An interior AND exterior inspection of your home.
2. A full treatment (this can be a liquid application that is trenched and injected into the soil around your foundation, or a bait station application around the perimeter of your home.
3. Issuance of a termite contract (this includes type of application, products used, a diagram of the structure treated, cost for the initial treatment AND ongoing annual inspections).

Did you catch that?

An annual inspection inside AND outside your home. Are you sure that your current termite technicians are inspecting inside your home once a year?  We will do that.

What we can do to help you

Lawn & Pest Solutions provides both liquid treatments and bait station treatments.  Our liquid applications are performed using Termidor®, and our bait station applications utilize the Sentricon System®.  Sentricon is only available to Certified Sentricon Specialists who have been trained in the proper installation and inspection techniques for this system.  Click here for information on our Termite 360 program. Both of our termite treatment methods are backed by a contract that clearly states all of our pricing and what you can expect. 

Have more questions?  Reach out to us on our contact page.  At Lawn and Pest Solutions, we are serious about pests including termites.  We would love to have one of our certified technicians stop by your home and give you an estimate or just answer questions for you.