Contents
What is termite larvae?
A termite life cycle in initiated by the queen that lays eggs. These eggs are in turn hatched to form termite larvae.
These larvae are immature young ones grow to become either worker or nymph or soldier termites.
The nymphs grow further to become reproductive and hence they grow wings while the soldiers and workers are the terminal stages. The nymphs may grow to become kings and queens and head the termite colony.
What is the treatment?
Several treatment methods are available to get rid of termites. However, if you want to control termite larvae, you can make the best use of nematodes.
Nematode is a biological component which actually is a natural termite predator. These species are microscopic and feed directly on termite larvae.
This action results in the population decline even before the larvae reaches its adulthood to become termites.
This is really an effective treatment that is safe for both humans and pets. Thus, nematodes are a natural and effective alternate to chemical pesticides.
Two categories of nematodes are present namely,
- HeterorhabditisBacteriophora Nematodes (HB)
- SteinernemaCarpocapse Nematodes (SC)
Either of them can be used in the treatment process. Beneficial nematodes can feed on more than 200 termites inside the soil.
They wait on the surface in the soil where the larvae pupate and work to ambush them. These species have special tooth using which they rupture the skin on the insect’s body wall and openings.
In this treatment method, you need to introduce these microscopic species during the day, at least 7 inches deep into the soil that surrounds the infested structure.
During this time, it should be ensured that the soil temperatures are above 52-F. These species work effectively against the growth of subterranean and other types of termites.
1. Treating termite larvae in garden
If your garden in already infested with termites and is suffering with lots of termite larvae content, you can make use of the natural predators of larvae, namely, nematodes.
These species are introduced into the garden soil to feed on the larvae, thus contributing their part to decline the termite population even before they reach adulthood.
2. Treating termite larvae in mulch
Mulch adds a lot to the look of landscape. It preserves moisture content in the soil and minimizes the temperature extremes.
Mulch makes a stable habitation that just imitates the natural environment on the forest floor. Hence, it is very good for plants that exist within its coverage.
On the other hand, this nature of mulch acts as a good provider of food, moisture and shelter for predators like termite larvae and other pests.
To treat termite larvae infested mulch, you need to remove it off the plant bed and bag it to dispose it in such a place which is away from wood piles and other wood landscaping items.
Then, you need to treat the area where the mulch was removed, by introducing nematodes. Do this until the termite larvae population is controlled completely.
3. Treating termite larvae in house
Termite larvae form the future termite colonies. Therefore, if you get rid of them at the larvae stage, you can be on the safer side of the hassle.
You can make use of either traditional nematode method or the cardboard trap method to get rid of the larvae. The cardboard contains cellulose on which the termites feed on.
Hence, by making use of this as an advantage, you can place the cardboard in the termite infested areas in order to attract them. You can also spray the cardboard with chemicals that smell more like cellulose in order to tempt them.
Once they attack the cardboard in order to feed on the cellulose, you can take off the cardboard and burn it to get rid of the colony.
4. Treating termite larvae in firewood
If you encounter termite larvae in firewood, you can spray it with boric acid in order to dehydrate them by shutting down the functioning of their nervous system.
To make the method effective, you can place bait stations near the infected areas by spraying or painting the wood with boric acid.
5. Treating termite larvae in carpet
Termite feed on non-cellulose materials like carpets while attempting to search for cellulose. As a result of this, they also start to lay eggs and hatch them to produce larvae.
The result of this is holes on the carpet. Liquid treatments are considered to be illegal in certain places and also they are difficult to implement on termite infested carpets.
Hence, you need to remove the carpet and treat the area under carpet with termite control treatment.
Summary
Termite larvae are the pre-matured young ones and can be easily eradicated through natural termite control methods even before they reach their adulthood to form colonies.
You can make use of methods like nematode introduction into the soil to feed on the larvae. Based on the situations of infestation, you can also make use of cardboard trap methods to eradicate their population.
