Dear Support -I have read your very informative article on mole crickets and how to get rid of them. I will be as aggressive as I can be in the Florida Climate. Treating the lawn I will follow all directions outlined. I have 10 acres of horse pasture that is getting eaten up. What are the grazing restrictions on these products? I have 4 horses on the property. Thank you very much- Sincerely, S.R.
Mole crickets are certainly a persistent pest. As our online MOLE CRICKET CONTROL article explains, it’s best to treat as much of your property as possible once you start seeing activity. Based on the size of the area you want to protect, it would be smart to start with both granules and a good liquid application to get rid of all currently living there.
Since you have horses on the property, I would recommend applying some BIFEN GRANULES. These granules are very fine, much like sand, and will filter through the grass down to the soil quickly. When applied properly, animals grazing or walking over treated surfaces will have little to no exposure. This material needs to be applied at the rate of 2 pounds per thousand sq/ft. The Bifen is packed om 25 pound bags so it will probably take three bags per acre per treatment. This means if you intend on treating 10 acres, you will need 30 bags of Bifen. Unfortunately, it’s not possible to determine how frequently you’ll need to treat at this time. This variable will be based largely on the current population and how quickly the mole crickets repopulate following your treatments. In theory, most of the current population should be killed following any one treatment if you get good coverage and Bifen G distribution. How long will there be no more mole cricket activity? Good question. You should expect one to three months of decreased to no activity so expect to treat 2 to 3 times per year the first year; less in subsequent years.
When treating large areas in excess of 3 acres, we recommend treating the land in quadrants. In other words, don’t plan on treating the entire 10 acres all at once. It will prove more efficient to treat two or 3 acres at a time. If you stage these applications over one third of the 10 acres and space your applications by one or two weeks, you’ll have the entire area treated in one month. This “staging” of the treatments will enable you to move your resident animals to sections which are untreated or were treated several weeks earlier. As previously stated, when Bifen is properly applied it will filter naturally down to the soil and essentially disappear from view. One good rain will activate the granules and in most cases the water will cause them to permeate down into the dirt making them virtually impossible to see or find. This feature also works to help minimize risk, exposure or consumption by grazing animals.
Since mole crickets will migrate and commonly move during their active season, it would be wise to identify where they may be first entering your property. Locating key entry points will enable you to focus your treatments in these areas. Once your infestation has been reduced, you should be able to minimize future mole cricket invasions by concentrating your applications at the sensitive locations. If you identify pockets of mole crickets which are stubborn and seemingly indifferent to the Bifen granules, consider some liquid BIFEN CONCENTRATE for quick and precise control. Just like the granules, liquid applications will filter down into the soil when done properly and watered in from either irrigation systems or a good rainstorm. That being said, we still recommend keeping children and pets off the treated area for at least a day following the application. Alternatively, you may choose to apply a weaker active which will pose no risk to non target animals. For example, CYONARA RTS is labeled for use on vegetables being grown in the garden. It has a “7-21 days to harvest” label which means vegetables treated with it can be consumed by people following the application within 7-21 days. Though not as strong as the Bifen IT concentrate, the Cyonara will be effective when treating active mole cricket populations that are either visible or close to the soil surface. We even have an organic spray which has a 5 to 7 day residual. GRUB KILLER RTS would be the safest liquid choice to apply to any Mole Cricket infected area. This would be your safest treatment option and in the long run would not be cost-effective to use over all the property. But for spot treating – especially sensitive areas – Grub Killer RTS would be a good “organic” choice.
In summary, you should be able to control your mole cricket infestation with 1 to 2 granular applications per year. The first year may require some additional liquid treatments to handle concentrated pockets where the mole cricket population is quite dense. Once these pockets are controlled and the mole crickets are mostly gone, the regular maintenance of keeping 10 acres free from invasive pests will be much easier to sustain. If you have further questions please give us a call on our toll free 1-800-877-7290.
Gene Shepherd says
When is the proper time to treat for mole crickets in the Daytona Beach Florida area? I know you need to kill the nymphs not the adults. Thanks for the article.
Tech Support says
Actually, killing adults is important too. This way you don’t keep getting new eggs. And since mole crickets will be active year round in southern states like FL, its best to treat on a regular basis so you control any active now and to prevent more from coming around.
Now we’ve found one of the best products to use is the Dominion 2L. In fact, its so good you only need to use it every spring (as long as you applied some the year before).
So for your problem, I suggest you get some applied now and then again in March or April of next year. This will insure you take care of any active at this time and for those you miss, a good springtime application should get them.
Dominion 2L: http://www.bugspraycart.com/insecticide/liquid/dominion-2l-termiticide-insecticide
Mole Cricket Article: http://www.bugspray.com/articles98/molecrickets.html