The establishment of homes in wooded areas has increased the potential for contact with wildlife and ticks. The abundance of the deer tick (black-legged) has been directly related to the abundance of white-tailed deer. The white-tailed deer population has doubled in the State of Connecticut since 1980. Several approaches can be taken to reduce tick population numbers.

Personal Protection

To reduce the risk of tick-borne diseases, wear a hat to help keep ticks out of the hair, wear light-colored (to aid detection) and tightly woven clothing, tuck shirts into pants and pant legs into socks, use repellents and inspect frequently for crawling ticks.  In addition, avoid short-cutting through heavily wooded areas, stay in the center of paths and avoid sitting on the ground.

However, most people will not follow these guidelines on a disciplined daily basis, and therefore environmental management may be necessary in high-risk areas.

Habitat/Landscape Modifications

The key here is to make the environment as inhospitable to ticks as possible while maintaining the type of landscape you desire.  This includes keeping grass cut short, removing brush/woodpiles from the property, keeping the property free of leaf litter and trimming vegetation around the property to allow air flow and sunlight, neatening stone walls to deter chipmunks and other such rodents, moving bird feeders away from areas that you will be using, avoiding landscape plants that deer like to eat and installing fences to prevent deer from frequenting your property.  Reduce ground cover in areas of your property that will not be exposed to sunlight.  In some situations, adding a 3-foot-wide landscape border, consisting of mulch or crushed stone, around the perimeter of your lawn will help to reduce ticks on your lawn.  Installing crushed stone beneath decks and sheds will help to deter rodents and ticks. Using crushed stone or mulch in all your landscape beds will help to reduce tick habitat.

Pesticide Control

The use of a low-dosage insecticide is currently the most effective means of reducing ticks in residential and recreational areas.  With just one application we can significantly reduce the number of ticks and lower the risk for exposure to Lyme disease.  Most critical is the timing of the applications.  Treating the nymphal ticks when they reach their activity peak in the spring and summer keeps the numbers down throughout these high-risk periods.  Fall (September/October/November) is another crucial time for control of the adult tick.  

Our goal is to reduce the tick population in the areas treated 90%-95% by year’s end.  However, 100% control is not uncommon.  Tick-Be-Gone services the entire State of Connecticut.

Suggested Deer-Resistant Plantings