Talstar P Professional Insecticide - Questions & Answers

The Talstar manufacturer recommends that you wait one year before planting edible plants in a treated area or that you remove and replace the soil for immediate planting.

Talstar P (Talstar One) can last in the soil for up to 5-7 years, no edibles should be planted in an area treated with it for this reason.  It would be best to remove and replace the top layer of soil if just sprayed before doing so.

We would recommend doing the application of Talstar P before doing an application of horticultural oil or sulfur. This will provide the residual for the pests, and the other products will help with killing them as well. Spraying Talstar P over either one of these will likely decrease the effectiveness of the oil and/or sulfur.

Talstar P is a very safe product when used as directed on the product label. In fact, Talstar P is even labeled to be used in poultry houses where birds come in direct contact with the product.

Talstar P would be a great option for indoor spraying along baseboards and in cracks and crevices for general pests.

The best products for flea control outdoors would be Talstar P mixed with NyGuard IGR. The Talstar is the insecticide that will kill the fleas and leave a residual, and the NyGuard is the birth control that will halt the infestation from growing. Mix these in your sprayer together with water and spray any areas outdoors where you are having a problem with fleas or any other insect. For indoor control, you would use Ultracide which is a flea aerosol. It comes ready to use and has both the adulticide and igr (birth control) to provide you with the same type of control indoors as you have outdoors. You will need to go through and vacuum all flooring and furniture prior to using the product. Once vacuumed, use the Ultracide to spray down all carpets, hardwoods, baseboards, rugs, pet bedding and furniture to eliminate the fleas. After application you will leave the home until the product has had time to dry which normally takes about an hour or so. Once dry, all pets, children and adults can re-enter the home and resume normal activity. You will need to vacuum daily for 14 days and then do a second application of the Ultracide. You can see more tips for treating in our article How To Get Rid Of Fleas Indoors.

Our most popular general use product is called Talstar.  It is widely used by pest control companies because it is labeled for almost every insect you could have a problem with and you can use it outside the home as well as inside, it is odorless and very safe for use around children and pets.  It is a liquid concentrate that you mix with water in a one gallon hand pump sprayer.  It will last for 60 to 90 days outside in between treatments.  It is also labeled for lawn and ornamental use, and can be used on trees, plants, bushes and shrubs for all sorts of ornamental pests including Japanese beetles, mosquitoes, and other leaf eating pests.

Our most popular general use product is called Talstar.  It is widely used by pest control companies because it is labeled for almost every insect you could have a problem with and you can use it outside the home as well as inside, it is odorless and very safe for use around children and pets.  It is a liquid concentrate that you mix with water in a one gallon hand pump sprayer.  It will last for 60 to 90 days outside in between treatments.  It is also labeled for lawn and ornamental use, and can be used on trees, plants, bushes and shrubs for all sorts of ornamental pests including Japanese beetles, mosquitoes, and other leaf eating pests.

Talstar P mixed with an Insect Growth regulator such as Nyguard IGR would be a good choice for tick control. Talstar P would work to kill ticks that come into contact with treated surfaces while the Nyguard would work to help stop juvenile ticks from reaching sexual maturity. You should remember that ticks may be hidden in tall or dense brush so higher treatment volumes may be needed to treat the entire plant, not just the top side of the plant where it is easiest to spray. You should try to get the application on the underside of leaves and all the way to the bottom of the plant. We recommend treating the entire infested area (no spot treating). When you are dealing with an area that has a high tick population you may be required to treat once a month from spring through to the first frost, no matter what product you use. Be sure all pets are treated with a product labeled for tick control. The problem on your property may be that ticks are being reintroduced into the area on a consistent basis by wildlife such as deer, raccoons or birds. You will be required to use non-chemical means to reduce the tick population in addition to insecticides. As with most pests you can modify the environment on your property to make it less favorable to ticks. Keeping grass and weeds cut short in tick infested areas increases tick death during hot weather, discourages wildlife and will reduce the amount of vegetation which may need a pesticide application to kill ticks. Clear away yard debris such as old firewood or leaf piles. Remove old or abandoned bird nests and rodent nests. Patch fences where wildlife may be gaining access to your property. It may also be helpful to have the ticks identified. By identifying the type of ticks you can better understand what type of animals may be bringing them to your property and you can modify the environment to make it less favorable for that host animal. You can contact your local cooperative extension office to request an insect identification.