Growing a garden takes work, but it is rewarding. Plowing the soil, planting seeds, water, and weeding pay off as you see the plants sprout, grow and produce fruit. As you stroll through your garden, you will notice the presence of many pests, including multi-legged centipedes in Fort Worth.
Centipedes are fast-moving arthropods that crawl over and between plants causing concern for gardeners. We have all seen the destruction some pests cause to garden plants, so there is an understandable concern regarding centipedes. If you are fearful centipedes are harming your garden or the ecosystem on your Fort Worth property, you need the award-winning Fort Worth pest control professionals from All-Safe Pest & Termite. We know about centipedes and how to eradicate them from homes and lawns.
What Are Centipedes?
There are over 3,000 types of centipedes worldwide, and some of them make Texas their home. Centipedes on your Fort Worth property have a one-inch segmented, flattened body with a pair of legs on each segment. The head of a centipede has a set of antennae covered with dense hairs, a small mouth, and a cluster of eyes; yet despite having up to 200 optical units, centipedes have poor eyesight. Centipedes possess venomous, large claws and can produce a strong bite.
The types of centipedes in Fort Worth you are likely to encounter in your home or garden are the house centipede and the garden centipede. The most common centipede in the United States is the house centipede. These primitive arthropods are identifiable by three long dark stripes on their greyish-yellow bodies.
Garden centipedes, also called garden symphylans, have long, worm-like, clear-colored bodies with many legs. However, they belong to the same subphylum (Myriapoda) and look like centipedes; they are technically not centipedes.
Will Centipedes Damage My Garden?
Centipedes and millipedes in Fort Worth affect gardens differently. Many centipede species are beneficial because they feed on spiders and small insects in gardens, whereas millipedes feed on the stems and leaves of plant seedlings. House centipedes are carnivorous and do not eat plants; however, there is an exception.
Garden centipedes are not carnivores, but omnivores. This centipede-like arthropod feeds on parts of growing plants in contact with the soil and decaying plants. If you see these crawling, multi-leg, clear-bodied, worm-like creatures in your garden, you need centipede pest control from All-Safe Pest & Termite to protect your plants.
Will Centipedes In My Garden Try To Come Into My Home?
Centipedes prefer high-moisture areas in rotting logs, piles of leaves or grass, and rocks. Stretches of hot, dry weather may drive centipedes into homes searching for new, moist areas to live and lay eggs. Inside the house, they gravitate to these areas of high moisture:
- Basement
- Crawlspace
- Bathrooms
- Potted plants
- Leaking pipes
- Sump pumps
To eradicate centipedes in your basement, crawlspace, or other high-moisture areas, you need All-Safe Pest & Termite. Our professionals know where centipedes live so we can stop the infestation.
What's The Best Way To Keep Centipedes Out Of My Home And Garden?
To get centipedes out of your home, eliminate access points and high moisture areas by doing the following:
- Seal cracks that lead into the house
- Repair leaking pipes
- Dehumidify the crawlspace or basement
- Inspect potted plants brought in from the outdoors
To control centipedes in the garden, remove rocks, rotten logs, and leaf piles, mow the grass low, and de-thatch the lawn. Also, avoid over-watering the garden and yard so you don't create human-produced high-moisture areas.
The best way to control centipedes in your garden and eliminate them from your Fort Worth house is to use our team from All-Safe Pest & Termite. Our pest control experts have been eliminating pests for over three decades, and we will stop centipedes from harming your Fort Worth garden.