Pest control in Laurel, Delaware

What Laurel homeowners deal with

• Older wood buildings in the historic district south of Broad Creek are worth regular termite inspections, and unpainted wood trim draws carpenter bees in spring.
• Broad Creek and the large lake formed by its mill dams run right through town, so mosquito season starts close to home.
• Farmland and forest around Laurel mean field mice looking for shelter in the fall and ticks along wooded edges.

What shapes pest pressure in Laurel

Laurel sits in southwestern Sussex County, about seven miles from the Maryland border near Sharptown and six miles north of Delmar. Broad Creek, a tributary of the Nanticoke River, runs through the middle of town, and mill dams on the creek created a large lake at the edge of the historic district. The Laurel Historic District, on the south side of Broad Creek, covers the area first settled in 1789. The Delaware Public Archives notes that the town was surrounded by fertile land and forests, so farming and lumbering became important industries.

Trap Pond State Park, Delaware’s first state park and home to the northernmost naturally occurring stand of baldcypress in the U.S., lies just outside town, and the Broad Creek Greenway links Trap Pond to the Nanticoke River. That mix of water, mature forest and farmland shapes the local pest picture: creek, lake and wetland edges give mosquitoes places to breed, forest and field edges are prime tick habitat, and older wood buildings need an eye kept on termites — while bare, unpainted wood is exactly what carpenter bees look for in spring.

Pest season in Laurel

Spring

Carpenter bees search for nest sites in April and May, and termite swarmers can appear on warm days. Check porches and eaves for round holes in bare wood.

Summer

Mosquitoes breed along the creek, the lake and in backyard containers. Check for ticks after time near the woods or Trap Pond trails.

Fall

Fill old carpenter bee holes with wood putty or dowels, then paint. Field mice look for gaps around pipes and doors.

Winter

Mice that got in during fall stay in walls and outbuildings. DNREC says blacklegged tick adults are most active in the late fall and winter.

Top pests in Laurel