Talstar P Professional Insecticide - Questions & Answers

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 is also available in a granule formula called Talstar PL if you prefer to use granules.

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 is also available in a granule formula called Talstar PL if you prefer to use granules.

Ground bees, also known as digger bees, can be very difficult to control no matter what product you use and they most likely will come back to your property year after year unless you do your part to alter your property to make it unfavorable to the bees. Ground bees prefer dry soils with thin grasses so irrigating the area frequently and correcting any issue that causes your grass to be thin will help deter the bees from nesting. In areas where you do not have grass, a layer of mulch will help deter the bees from nesting. Ground bees are solitary bees and are not very aggressive and are known to be a beneficial insect which is why you will not find any products specifically labeled for this type of bee. Talstar P can help provide some level of control but it will not get rid of all of the ground bees on your property. You should use Talstar P at a 1 oz of product to 1 gallon of water for a 1,000 sq ft area ratio. This will give you the fastest knockdown and the longest lasting residual. Talstar P does not offer an instant knockdown but will kill insects that come into contact with treated areas over a short period of time.

The flies normally associated with potted plants will be fungus gnats, living in the soil and whose larvae feed on bits of molds and fungi they can find in damp soils. The easiest control for them is to allow the soil to dry out completely between the times you are watering them, which may actually be the best thing for the plants anyhow. The second option would be to cover the soil in these pots with some material that prevents the flies from getting to or from the soil, such as a thick layer of spagnum moss or some screening. The third option would be to use an insecticide such Talstar P. Talstar P is a concentrated liquid insecticide that is diluted with water and then poured onto the soil and sprayed onto the plant itself. We recommend starting with letting the soil dry out between watering as this offers the fastest control in most cases.

Talstar P is effective for fire ant control.  Per the product label, "Fire Ant Mound control is optimized by combining broadcast applications that will control foraging workers and newly mated fly-in queens with mound drenches that will control existing colonies. If the soil is not moist, then it is important to irrigate before application or use a high volume application. Apply broadcast treatments at 0.5 to 1 fluid oz. per 1,000 square feet. Use enough finished volume to penetrate thatch or sod. Treat mounds by applying 1 oz of Talstar P per mound in 1 to 2 gallons water by sprinkling the mound until it is wet and treat 3 feet out around the mound. Use the higher volume for mounds larger than 12”. Treat mounds with sufficient force to break their apex and allow the insecticide solution to flow into the ant tunnels. For best results, apply in cool weather (65 - 80 F) or in the early morning or late evening hours."

Talstar P is not labeled specifically for rat mites. The easiest method to control rodent mites that have entered your home is to physically remove them with a vacuum cleaner or wipe them up with a moist cloth. Mites are not automatically killed by a vacuum cleaner so freeze the bag to prevent the mites from crawling back out.

Locating the source and eliminating the hosts and nests is important to prevent further problems with these mites. Nests are usually located in attics, basements, or inside walls. If necessary, trap them with kill traps or glue boards. Spray the dead rat and its nest with a disinfectant.

Removing mites€™ source (dead mice, rats, and abandoned nests) is very important. Unless you remove their source, rat mites will continue to seek human host infesting your house.
 

Talstar P is NOT labeled for use in pastures containing grazing animals. Extinguish Plus is actually the product of choice in areas where horses may be kept or will be grazing (as long as the horses will not be used for feed or food). Extinguish Plus combines the power of hydramethylnon with an insect growth regulator (IGR) to kill fire ant workers and prevent queens from laying fertile eggs. The result is complete fire ant colony control. Extinguish Plus Fire Ant Bait is best used in the spring or early fall, or whenever fire ants are active. The ants will feed off Extinguish Plus and spread the bait throughout the entire colony, halting the infestation within weeks. You can use this product on pastureland, however you must remove all grazing livestock for at least 48 hours after application.  Then they can return to the land after 48 hours.

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 is also available in a granule formula called Talstar PL if you prefer to use granules.

Cicada Killers are actually benificial insects and will not harm you, your son or your dog. They are not aggressive insects just ominous looking because of their size, and you would literally have to take one and force it on your skin to get it to bite you. If you are wanting to eliminate them, the best way to treat is to use a dust in each hole in the yard. This may seem extremely time consuming and tedious but it is truly the most effective and thorough treatment method. Dusting the holes with something like Tempo 1% Dust will allow it to flow through the nest better than a liquid. You could also use the Talstar P or the liquid version of Tempo-Tempo SC Ultra-since it has a quicker knock down to control the surface areas they could land to help control new ones that enter the area. Dust the holes and treat plant/lawn surfaces with Tempo every 30 days through the season. Please let us know if you have any other questions.

Spring tails can be tough to eliminate because they reproduce very quickly. In almost every case where people have spring tails they also have a moisture problem such as a leaking or sweating pipe, poor ventilation in their crawl space, lots of wet mulch right up next to their house, etc. You must locate and correct the moisture problem to get rid of the spring tails, insecticides alone will not do the job. We do carry Talstar P for indoor and outdoor control which can help you to reduce the numbers of springtails. For indoor control be sure to spray along the baseboards, window frames, door frames, piping like under the bathroom and kitchen sink, etc. As for outdoor control you should spray 2 to 3 feet up the side of the house and 2 to 3 feet out on the ground. If you have mulch close to the foundation wall rake the mulch back away from the house and spray Talstar P under and over top the mulch. That will give you a 4 to 6 foot barrier around the exterior of your house. If you are on a crawlspace be sure to inspect that area for any moisture issues and spray accordingly.