Taking care of your home all year is necessary to keep it well-maintained and functional for years to come. With homeownership comes a lot of routine maintenance and services, like landscaping, drain and gutter cleaning, and pest control.
Most services are ones we take care of in the spring, summer, and fall, making winter an excellent time to catch up on essential interior tasks that can keep your home clean, safe, and pest-free, now and in the upcoming months.
The Importance of Routine Winter Interior Services
It seems that most pest and mold problems you experience in your home happen during the warmer months of summer and early fall. That’s usually only because these months are when these problems are most visible. Insects and rodents are usually more active during this period, and mold grows rapidly in damp, warm environments.
You might decide to save costs on home maintenance during the...
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Dormant pruning is the process of pruning back your shrubs and trees while they’re dormant - no longer growing or flowering - to aid their growth in the spring and keep them looking their best. This routine maintenance is one to consider keeping up with each winter, as it is crucial to the health of your plants through all seasons. It can also keep your landscaping looking well-maintained throughout the cold winter months.
Why Is Dormant Pruning Important?
Dormant pruning offers several benefits for homeowners who have trees and shrubs on their property. Pruning trees and shrubs during the colder months helps keep them in their best shape for springtime.
One of the most significant benefits of dormant pruning is ridding your trees and shrubs of damaged limbs. With damaged areas remeoved, your plants will be ready to grow healthy new limbs in the spring. For plants that flower or produce... 
We all know from history that rodents carry diseases that can be harmful or even deadly to the human population. Remember learning about the bubonic plague in junior high? Although the chances of a mouse or rat carrying the Bubonic plague in New Jersey are slim to none, these small furry creatures will leave your searching for pest control near me once the first droppings are found. However, some severe health risks come with having a mouse in the house.
Cold outside temperatures in the winter months drive these warm-blooded animals to take up residence in warmer locations, like your house or shed. They may bring bacteria and disease into your home and put your family at risk. Rat and Mouse prevention is the most important first step for anyone trying to keep their home rodent free. Let's take a look at some of the disease-carrying mice and rats found in... 
New Jersey is home to several interesting spider species, most of which are harmless. However, some spiders are armed with a poisonous venom that could cause serious health consequences to pets, children, and adults who have been ill. Let’s talk about the spiders found in North Jersey and see which you should be wary of.
House Spiders
The most common type of spider found in North Jersey is house spiders. They are the daddy long leg varieties that spin webs in the dark corners. The two most common types of house spiders are the Opiliones arachnids, also known as harvestmen, and the Phocidae, commonly called cellar spiders.
House spiders serve a useful purpose in the grand scheme of things. If you have houseplants, house spiders will keep insects that nibble on your garden in check. They catch those annoying flies in mid-wing. They even are quite the decorative accent during Halloween.... 
Dial Environmental concentrates on keeping pests outside where they belong, so you can trust the TermaPlus system to protect your home. Here’s everything you need to know about the TermaPlus Pest Preventative Program.
TermaPlus Program Benefits
Why should you choose TermaPlus? Benefits range from peace of mind to better property values.
Peace of Mind
Hearing mice skittering around in the attic or seeing bugs coming in through the windows doesn’t create a relaxing home environment. By employing the TermaPlus program, you can enjoy a clean and protected home without worrying about pests finding a way in.
Proactive Approach
Many homeowners don’t notice bug problems until the pests are already established. But TermaPlus’s proactive approach is preventative rather than reactive. Instead of applying toxic sprays and chemicals to your home and property, you can take a few simple steps to keep bugs from coming near in the first place.
Ongoing Support
Because... 
Warm temperatures and never-ending days are some of the best things about summer, but the proliferation of biting and stinging pests, like bees and wasps, is a warm-weather bonus we could do without. The jarring sound of these insects buzzing around puts a serious damper on outdoor activities.
The vastly different personalities of bees and wasps means knowing how to distinguish them is critical to staying safe at your next picnic since they require you to take distinct precautions.
How to Distinguish Bees from Wasps
Despite being frequently lumped into the same category, bees and wasps are actually quite different. Once you understand a few of their key characteristics, it’s easy to distinguish bees from wasps, or yellow jackets, as they’re more commonly known.
Body Shape
Their body shape is the simplest way to tell them apart. If you get a little closer—though we’re not advocating getting too close—you’ll notice there... 
Nothing rivals a beautiful, vibrant lawn and well-kept trees and plants. A healthy yard adds aesthetic appeal to your home and is the perfect place for your kids to play, but attaining the ideal landscape requires care and dedication. Here are some of our top lawn and plant health care tips to get you started.
Tips and Best Practices for Lawn Health
Caring for your lawn is simple, but there are some things you need to know. Here are some tips and best practices for homeowners to get their lawn’s health in tip-top shape.
Effective Watering
Water is critical to attaining lush grass, but did you know there’s a correct way to water your lawn? Follow these general watering guidelines for well-hydrated grass.
Instead of turning on the sprinklers a little bit every day, deep soak your lawn two or three times per summer.
Water between 3 am and 6 am... 
Given its moderate climate and abundant vegetation, it's no surprise that Northern New Jersey is home to dozens if not hundreds of species, many of which are mainly active in the spring and summer months.
While silverfish, crickets, and cockroaches are certainly pervasive, stinging and biting insects like mosquitoes, ticks, ants, and wasps pose a serious risk to kids and pets who want nothing more than to play outside.
What’s more, burrowing creatures such as mice and rats can damage plants, trees, and even structures like garden sheds and garages. Given that the average homeowner spends around $5,000 on landscaping, plus the cost of mowing, fertilizing and watering, it's easy to see why protecting that investment from destructive insects and animals should be a priority.
How to Protect Your Yard
Keeping your yard pest-free during the summer and all year long will protect your investment in and ensure your family has... 
Mosquitoes can be more than just a minor annoyance around the yard. Each year, more than one million people worldwide die due to diseases carried by mosquito populations. It can be difficult to protect yourself against bites, and so the best way to keep yourself and your family safe is by eliminating mosquito infestations in your yard. Here, we go over the dangers that mosquitoes pose to people living across the U.S and how to keep these pests away from your property.
What Attracts Mosquitoes?
In the summer, warm weather and high humidity levels make the perfect environment for mosquitoes to thrive. Many people struggle to keep these pests from their yard, resorting to chemical bug sprays and citronella candles. However, the first step to eliminating a mosquito problem is to remove the things that attract them to your property. Standing water is a favorite breeding ground of mosquito populations, and... 
Ticks are a pest commonly found in states along the East Coast, and they pose a significant threat to public health. Tick and other vector-borne diseases are on the rise, with cases within the U.S. tripling since 2004. One of the best ways to protect yourself and your family is by ensuring that your yard is free of ticks and other pests. Here, we go over the dangers of tick-borne diseases, and how to keep ticks from settling in your garden.
The Health Risks of Ticks
While some tick bites cause nothing more than minor redness and swelling, others may transmit bacteria that can cause serious or even fatal illnesses. Lyme disease is the most commonly reported tick-borne illness in the U.S., with thousands of confirmed cases affecting people each year. If you are bitten by a tick, you should keep an eye on the site for the following few weeks.... 
There might be no insect on earth more feared currently than the bed bug. While they might not be the biggest, the most dangerous or the creepiest bugs out there, for many people the thought of these critters crawling all over then while they are asleep is enough to legitimately give them the heebie-jeebies.
But, aside from the name, what do we really know about bed bugs? Here are some things you should know about these nocturnal pests:
Arrive in Many Different Ways
One of the main reasons that people are afraid of bed bugs is the fact that it’s very hard to prevent against them. You might spray your house regularly and do other sorts of treatments, but there’s every chance this won’t stop a bed bug infestation. Why? Because bed bugs usually enter a house by hitchhiking. They can hide in clothes, bags or boxes. You can make contact... 
Dial Environmental, with service areas throughout New Jersey, knows that the weather in our beautiful state can be tricky. From the torrential rains, freezing cold and warm, mild summers, Garden State weather seems to be always changing.
Most homeowners are aware of the effect this has on their vehicles and buildings, but they might not be aware of how pests, those insects and animals that love to try to set up in our homes, are affected by the weather we experience in New Jersey.
Today we’re going to talk about how our various weather patterns can affect the behaviors of some of the most common pests in New Jersey, and how you, as a homeowner, can help protect your property as the seasons change.
Spring and Summer
It’s no surprise that warmer weather results in high reproduction rates among pests. Depending on the type of pest, their behavior might change.
Insects... 
While keeping a home spotless is certainly one of the best ways to avoid pests, Dial Environmental knows it’s simply not possible. A house is never immaculate, and if you have children or pets, it doesn’t matter how frequently you clean or how often, there’s no real way to keep it spotless.
The truth is, while a messy home can help attract pets, even the cleanest of houses can experience a pest infestation. Having pests is not a sign that your home is dirty or unkempt, it’s just a sign that your home is attractive to these invaders.
When you consider that the American cockroach has been known to survive from eating the pages of books, or that ants are well documented to enter homes in order to drink water droplets left in a sink, or even that many rodents first enter a home seeking not food, but warmth from the... 
At Dial Environmental, we love the crisp fall air and the beautiful colors that the leaves show as summer slowly turns into fall. We also know that as the seasons change and the grass grows a little slower, it’s important to remember that we need to protect our landscaping and prepare it for winter.
Winterizing your plants not only protects the roots and new growth from frost, but it can also help keep wildlife and insects from invading your Landscape during the months their limbs are bare. Proper winterizing of flower beds helps to ensure that bulbs don’t freeze, which can result in your flowers not growing the next year.
In order to care for your plants and help them weather the cold months, the following services are recommended:
Pruning. Winter is the time in which you should have all trimming and pruning done for your trees and bushes. The change... 
When summer begins to fade away, the warm days will be replaced by cool nights. A range of pests will then know winter is coming and take steps to find shelter and enough food to survive until the hot and sunny days return. Pests that need a place to stay won't be picky, and your home could be the perfect solution. Learn about the types of pests you can expect in the fall and what you can do about the problem if you want to safeguard your home.
Rodents
Rodents are one of the most common pests people encounter during the cool months of fall, and you don't want them to catch you off guard. One small opening in your home's foundation or on the roof is enough to let rodents get inside and cause trouble. To reduce your odds of a rodent infestation, seal the cracks around your home with...