How do you debug your yard? Because let’s face it, the only thing that could be worse than a thinning, patchy yard is a yard full of bugs. At the end of the day, your yard should offer a relaxing, homey space, especially in the warmer months, something which is only possible when there are no bugs.
So, which are some of the best bug treatments you could use for your yard? How do you ensure that there is no buzzing and biting from mosquitoes, or worse, the embarrassing itching from flies, lice, or gnats?
This review sheds light on some of the most effective and the best bug treatments for your yard.
Comparison of the Best Bug Treatments for Yards
| Best Bug Treatments for Yard | Best For | Check on Amazon |
|---|---|---|
| Ortho Bug B Gon Max Insect Killer for Lawns | Best Overall Bug Treatment for Yards | Check Price |
| Ortho Bug B Gon Insect Killer for Lawn and Gardens Concentrate 1.32 fl. Oz | Effective Against Over 235 Insects & Bugs | Check Price |
| SPECTRUM BRANDS 61067 HG-61067 32Oz Rts Bug-Free Spray | Long Lasting Bug Treatment for your backyard | Check Price |
| Spectracide Triazicide Insect Killer Concentrate | Best Bug Treatment For Lawns & Landscapes | Check Price |
| Monterey LG6150 Garden Insect Spray | Best Odorless OrganicBug Treatment | Check Price |
| BAYER CROP SCIENCE Complete Insect Killer | Best for Long-Lasting (3 Months) Protection | Check Price |
Reviews of the Best Bug Treatments for Yards
Ortho Bug B Gon Max Insect Killer for Lawns – Best Overall Bug Treatment for Yards
We start off the list with this insect killer for lawns. It is one of the most effective treatments with a capacity to prevent and kill more than 100 varieties of listed insects. Using the 10lbs bag, you’d be able to get rid of bugs in a maximum area of 10,000sq.ft, and you can use it on lawns and ornamentals around your home and in the perimeter. You could use it in your vegetable patch and the flower beds too. So, if ants, fleas, ticks, or chinch bugs have been a nuisance in your yard or lawn, this might be a good remedy for you. You could also use it for cutworms, mole crickets, sod webworms, and spiders.
Pros
- Easy to use
- Largely safe for use with pets
- Seasonal bug repellent
- Extensive coverage, suitable for use on large lawns
Cons
- It doesn’t get rid of fire ants or grasshoppers.
View price on Amazon
Ortho Bug B Gon Insect Killer for Lawn and Gardens Concentrate 1.32 fl. Oz – Effective Against Over 235 Insects & Bugs
While you may love the outdoors, you could be one of the individuals who are mostly creeped out by bugs, especially spiders. As a result, finding a treatment that can get rid of the scariest crawlies is a great win. If you are looking for a bug treatment that will get rid of spiders, fleas, mosquitoes, Japanese beetles, and ants, this powerful bug treatment capable of killing/ repelling over 235 types of bugs and insects might be exactly what you need. This 1.32oz bottle of bug treatment concentrate will make a maximum of 42 gallons of bug spray, which is why this bug spray is one of the best options for use in your yard.
In addition to its effectiveness against a host of bugs and insects, it’s also a long-lasting solution that will offer a maximum protection period of 6 months. The best part is that it will work incredibly well in keeping away the scariest of creepy crawlies, including the black widow, hobo, and the brown recluse.
This treatment concentrate is suitable for use on your lawns, around your house’s foundations, on roses, shrubs, trees, vegetable gardens, melons, flowers, and fruit trees, among others.
Pros
- It’s effective and works fast.
- Works on house foundations quite well, and gets of moths, crickets, mosquitoes, and scorpions, etc
- Safe for pets once the spray dries out
- It can be used in the gardens too
Cons
- Its effects aren’t long-lasting
View price on Amazon
SPECTRUM BRANDS 61067 HG-61067 32Oz Rts Bug-Free Spray – Long Lasting Bug Treatment for your backyard
Besides getting rid of annoying critters and insects that bite and cause bumps on your skin, you may also want the best bug spray to prevent damage to your plants. This bug treatment is effective, and it will kill mosquitoes, among other bugs.
For easy application, it features a quick flip hose-end-sprayer that will almost instantly active the spray at a flip of a switch – you only need to grip, flip it, and spray. It doesn’t require any mixing. The best part about this bug treatment is that after application, it will keep off bugs for up to 12 weeks. So, if you have been struggling with harvester ants, earwigs, lady beetles, carpenter ants, or house crickets, this Cutter backyard bug control spray concentrate might be the ideal solution for you. Its 320oz capacity is enough for the treatment of lawns as much as 5,000sq.ft.
Pros
- It can be used on flowers
- Gets rid of mosquitoes effectively.
- Works for up to 12 weeks
Cons
- It doesn’t last too long in extra warm and humid areas
View price on Amazon
Spectracide Triazicide Insect Killer Concentrate – Best Bug Treatment For Lawns & Landscapes
If you are looking for a concentrate that will effectively get rid of fleas, gnats, grubs, Japanese beetles, deer ticks, European crane flies, or ants, this ready-to-use spray concentrate might be the best option for your backyard, all thanks to its ability to kill more than 260 insect varieties.
It is a non-staining solution that will not stain the siding as long as you keep the siding clean and if it’s new.
Since it’s available as a concentrate, you can dilute it easily to ensure coverage on bigger backyards. It also offers great value for money, and its consistency is just right.
Pros
- Broad-spectrum insect control
- Gets rid of bugs below the ground/ surface
- It kills 260+ insect varieties
- Easy to use
- Gets rid of spiders
Cons
- Not as effective in getting rid of chiggers or grubs
- It doesn’t always work
View price on Amazon
Monterey LG6150 Garden Insect Spray – Best Odorless OrganicBug Treatment
Formulated with spinosad, this insect concentrate is odorless, and it works rather fast as an insect killer. It is a bacterial product that’s produced as a result of the fermentation process that takes place rapidly once the lawn is treated. The product of the fermentation process is odorless, and it keeps off and controls a myriad of insects. This insect treatment keeps off leafminers, caterpillars, tent caterpillars, codling moths, gypsy moths, fire ants, borers, trips, and fire ants, among others, which is why it’s ideal for use on outdoor lawns and ornaments, vegetable gardens, as well as the broad-leafed weeds on your backyard.
One of the reasons why you may like this bug treatment is that it supports your organic gardening dreams. This is made possible by its active ingredient, a natural bacteria referred to as spinosad. Spinosad is one of the newer additions used in agricultural chemistry, and it has been approved for use in organic gardening. It’s ideal for use in residential and commercial lawns and yards.
Pros
- An organic bug treatment remedy
- Easy to prepare and spray
- It kills squash bugs, but with the right timing, only
- Works well, even after one treatment
- Great value for money
Cons
- Not suitable for thrips and aphids
View price on Amazon
BAYER CROP SCIENCE Complete Insect Killer – Best for Long-Lasting (3 Months) Protection
Last on our list is this outdoor bug controller, a complete insect killer that brings to an end your struggles with ants, grubs, and ticks, among other insects, all in under 24 hours while offering extended 3-month protection for the soil insects. As a result, it is an effective remedy for turf and soil lawns all-around your home. It is also an effective mosquito killer that will kill mosquitoes along with other 30+ outdoor pests. This 32oz bottle of bug-treating concentrate works for large lawns, up to 5334ssq.ft.
Pros
- Offers protection from bugs for up to 3 months
- Easy to use and comes with an easy to spray solution
- It can be used on soil and turf lawns
- It keeps off more than 30 varieties of bugs
- Good stretch and thickness
- EPA-registered
- Ergonomic grip sprayer
- Bio-advanced insect killer
- Fast-acting thanks to Imidacloprid and Beta-cyfluthrin
- It can be used on fake grass too
Cons
- It can’t be used in some states like the state of Connecticut, MD, or VT.
View price on Amazon
Buying Guide for the Best Bug Treatments for Yards
As the temperatures rise during the warmer months, there is an increase in the number of summer cookouts and backyard pool parties, which unfortunately means an increase in the annoyance of mosquitoes. However, just because it’s natural to have bugs everywhere during the warm weather doesn’t mean that the pesky bugs should burden you. You only need to find the best bug treatment that works well for your yards. To find the best treatments, a look at the features that make the best of these bug treatments is essential. Below, we take a look at some of the important considerations you must keep in mind when looking for suitable bug treatments for the yard.
- EPA-Registered bug treatments
The first thing you need to keep in mind is to buy a bug treatment made with ingredients that are approved by the US CDC and registered by EPA. In most instances, these bug treatments would be made of ingredients such as the oil of lemon eucalyptus, picaridin, DEET, and IR3535. These ingredients are EPA-Registered as active ingredients in bug sprays, and they are effective in repelling ticks, mosquitoes, and all other kinds of flies that may be infesting your yard.
- Invest in quality
The best way to reduce mosquitoes, for example, is by using top-of-the-line insect/ bug sprays and repellents.
- Consider the size of the area to be treated.
The size of the yard to be treated is an important consideration, especially when it comes to you choosing between the liquid and the granular insect/ bug killers. You may need to buy suitable products for spot treatments, for example, the granular treatments for problematic spots, while the liquid treatments are ideal for whole lawn treatments. The reason for this is that the liquid bug treatments allow for easy applications using an insect sprayer, which allows for easy and even distribution of the products over larger areas. Keep in mind that while the granular treatments work, spreading the granules all over the lawn would be rather labor-intensive or even call for the use of a spreader (an additional cost) for even coverage of the treatment.
- Lawn and Foliage
If treating a flat area, for example, a lawn or a turf, you can use the liquid or the granular treatments, and they will both offer a great degree of effectiveness. On the other hand, if you need a treatment solution for flower beds, liquid treatments may be preferable. This is because you’d need a liquid to coat the stems and the leaves for the treatment to work.
- Active Ingredients
Depending on the types of ingredients used, bug treatments for lawns can be made of chemical and natural ingredients. These ingredients determine the performance of the treatments. The differences of the bug treatments are specified below:
- Natural Insecticides
Today, more and more people are looking for organic solutions for most of the ecological problems faced, which is why your search for the best bug treatments would easily be the ones made using natural rather than chemical ingredients. These ingredients are safer, and though they won’t cause the complete annihilation of the bugs, your pets would be safe.
So, which natural ingredients should you look out for in the bug treatments?
Clove Oil – Regarded as one of the most effective insect killers, clove oil is safe for use around animals, people, as well as bees. It is 100% natural, and this essential oil will effectively kill insects that come into contact with the essential oil. And afterward, clove oil will continuously repel insects following its application.
Thyme Oil – this is another effective essential oil that’s been used as an insecticidal remedy for bugs in the lawns. And though it would kill a variety of bugs and crawlies, it’s safe for bees and humans, among other species of animals.
Peppermint Oil – this is the other surprisingly effective insecticide. It is an all-natural defense again mosquitoes and all other biting bugs, even ants. It’s also impressively non-staining, with a rather refreshing aroma. It’s also easy to use.
Lemongrass oil, citronella oil, lemon eucalyptus oil, and cedar oil – These are the other all-natural effective bug treatments that work quite effectively in repelling and killing insects. and
That said, it’s important to note that although the essential oils aren’t; harmful to human beings, domestic animals, and wildlife, they could be significantly toxic to felines.
- Chemical Insecticides
The most common active ingredients in the chemical insecticides include:
Imidacloprid – this ingredient is quite common in bug treatments primarily because of its effectiveness. Essentially, Imidacloprid works by targeting the nervous systems of insects, killing them rather instantaneously. It can be regarded as a systematic insecticide, which means that it’s taken up by the plants from the soil, expressing the chemicals into the leaves and the stems. With this in mind, any bugs that end up nibbling on these treated plants would die. Imidacloprid features a limited level of toxicity to and in mammals, fish, and birds, meaning that this ingredient will not cause harm to your pets. That said, this component is highly toxic to the beers, which are quite important pollinators for your garden and the rest of the ecosystem.
Cyhalothrin – this is an active ingredient in bug treatments belonging to the pesticides class called the pyrethroids. It is a wide-spectrum insecticide that kills bugs on contact, quickly eliminating insects on your lawn. Unfortunately, bees aren’t spared by pyrethroids, which is why you might want to avoid bug treatments with this ingredient. Cyhalothrin is also highly toxic to aquatic critters and mammals and even humans who swallow or come in contact with this toxin.
The other chemical ingredients to look out for include cypermethrin, Cyfluthrin, and bifenthrin. Sodium lauryl sulfate, Lambda-cyhalothrin, and Gamma-cyhalothrin are the other top ingredients.
Conclusion
Sometimes, getting rid of the bug, especially mosquitoes from your yard, can be as easy as getting rid of their breeding ground, often the water in the vegetation or in potted plants. This often works, but there are few instances where these simple remedies won’t work, and you’d have to take on a more aggressive approach, in this case, spraying all over the yard. You need to find the best bug treatments for yards, and the treatments recommended above are some of the best varieties for you.
FAQs
Can you use Citronella to get rid of bugs?
Yes. An effective bug management/ repelling solution would be as simple as lighting up some citronella oil. Burnt, citronella oil mimics the scents from human lactic acid and also carbon dioxide, and since these are two of the scents that bugs find attractive, they would keep the bugs away. Citronella oil is also recommended because it’s perfectly safe, and it has been approved for use by the FDA.
Which insect repellents are bee-safe?
To safely keep off bees or wasps, you’d need repellents made of natural ingredients. Often, such repellents would be made using a herbal base and free of ingredients like DEET. Some of the best repellents that won’t kill off bees or wasps include sulfur, herbicides, garlic, serenade, kaolin clay, corn gluten, and gibberellic acid.
Can you get rid of bugs naturally?
Yes, besides the use of safe ingredients, you could also work on keeping a cleaner garden, gardening with guineas, plant marigolds to draw in the good bugs, crop rotation, get bug traps, and get rid of stagnant water spots/ water bodies.
