Ticks dry out easily in hot, dry conditions. Mowed lawns are not very hospitable to them, and that’s why regular lawn care is one of the best things you can do to prevent the tick population on your property from spiraling.
Mowing your lawn is an effective form of tick control. It won’t fix all your problems, but it can reduce a lot of them.
Ticks easily lose moisture. They need humidity to survive between hosts. This is why they often hide in tall grass and brushy areas. Shade and moisture keep them from drying out. You can see this if you put a light cloth on a stick and drag it through the woods at the edge of your property. The unkempt, shaded areas are almost certainly going to put a lot more ticks on the cloth.
There are limits to what lawn maintenance can do, though. For one, every lawn has edges. It could be a shaded strip along a hedge or fence or mulched beds along the foundation. No matter the lawn, there is almost certainly some kind of wild area next to it that ticks can call home.
Another issue is that there are always fresh arrivals. Deer and mice continuously move ticks to places where they were not previously. Even the dog can do this. So your well-kept lawn will continuously be reseeded by ticks. The best thing you can do is make sure they’re not comfortable when they arrive.
Still, having an open and well-kept lawn is a lot lower risk when it comes to ticks. As for the edges, trim back landscaping and rake leaf litter. If you have truly unmanageable woods at the edges, you may even want to consider putting down a three-foot band of wood chips or gravel where the lawn meets tall growth. Ticks will be reluctant to cross.
As always, it’s a good idea to do tick checks on yourself as well as your kids and pets. If you find a tick, remove it promptly. This action alone greatly reduces your odds of falling ill with a tickborne disease.
If ticks keep turning up on a property you keep well maintained, Mosquito Squad of The Hamptons can help. Mosquito Squad treats the shaded edges and ground cover where ticks wait for a host. This will help you protect your family with up to 90% reduction in pest activity on a recurring cycle.
