How To Keep Ticks Out of Your Yard
Japanese Barberry Bush
To help prevent ticks in your yard, make sure you keep your grass is cut short, deter any wildlife, clean up any debris and keep any wood piles etc. away from your yard. Here are some additional steps you can take:
Spread “Flea and Tick” granules over the yard twice a year with a walk behind spreader. You can get the granules at any home improvement or farm store.
Be sure to treat your pets with a flea and tick preventer ALL year, not just spring and fall. Researchers do find ticks in the snow on warmer, sunnier winter days.
Remove any Japanese Barberry bushes. Many east coast states are beginning to outlaw these bushes because the tick incident rate is much higher where these bushes are present.
Mice are a large spreader of ticks that may carry the Lyme bacteria. You can use Tick Tubes around your yard also, but they will have to be refilled frequently. Tick Tubes are tubes with permethrin soaked cotton balls inside. The mice go into the tube and take the cotton ball back for nesting material. The permethrin gets on their fur and kills any attached ticks. When dealing with chemicals be sure to read all precautionary instructions. Permethrin is dangerous to cats when wet, so use caution when applying.
Be sure you are deterring any wild animals. It is neat when they visit but remember they are bringing little creatures with them.
Chickens or guinea pigs are great tick eaters. If you live in an area that would allow them, they can be a great addition.
TickEncounter has A LOT of great information on yard protection https://tickencounter.org/prevention/protect_your_yard
See the CDC recommendations below:
Preventing ticks in the yard
Source: https://www.cdc.gov/ticks/avoid/in_the_yard.html
Apply Pesticides Outdoors to Control Ticks
Use of pesticides can reduce the number of ticks in treated areas of your yard. However, you should not rely on spraying to reduce your risk of infection.
When using pesticides, always follow label instructions. Before spraying, check with local health or agricultural officials about:
The best time to apply pesticide in your area
The best type of pesticide to use
Rules and regulations regarding pesticide application on residential properties
Create a Tick-safe Zone to Reduce Blacklegged Ticks in the Yard
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station has developed a comprehensive Tick Management Handbook pdf icon[PDF – 84 pages]external icon for preventing tick bites. Here are some simple landscaping techniques that can help reduce blacklegged tick populations:
Remove leaf litter.
Clear tall grasses and brush around homes and at the edge of lawns.
Place a 3-ft wide barrier of wood chips or gravel between lawns and wooded areas to restrict tick migration into recreational areas.
Mow the lawn frequently.
Stack wood neatly and in a dry area (discourages rodents).
Keep playground equipment, decks, and patios away from yard edges and trees.
Discourage unwelcome animals (such as deer, raccoons, and stray dogs) from entering your yard by constructing fences.
Remove old furniture, mattresses, or trash from the yard that may give ticks a place to hide.