Bedbugs, Cimex lectularius, have resurged to rapidly become a very important pest of the 21st century, as they attack numerous urban areas including , hotels and homes   As a result of mass treatments of with older types of insecticides (DDT, Chlordane, Lindane) our society has had a 30+ year “vacation” from this pest, when bedbugs were almost removed from North America.   In recent times though, bedbugs have found ample opportunity to grow in number and spread through society.  Their success is a result of:

• Increased travel of people
• Superior treatment methods that particularly target other insect pests
• The lack of public awareness

What Do Bedbugs Look Like?

Bedbugs are oval, flattened, brown, and wingless insects approximately 1/4″ to 3/8″ long (5-9 mm). They resemblea wood tick.  After the bug has taken a blood meal, its color will change from brown to purplish-red.  Also after feeding, it is larger and more cigar-shaped making it seem like a different insect.  Young bedbugs are much smaller (1/16” or 1.6 mm when they first hatch) and almost colorless except after feeding, but resemble the adult in general shape.  You might also notice cast skins, which are empty shells of bugs as they grow from one stage to the next.  After a blood meal, bedbugs deposit fecal spots (composed of digested blood) in areas adjacent to the feeding site or back at their hiding places.

What Is A Bedbugs Lifecycle?

Bedbugs are active at nighttime and hide during the day.  After mating, females lay white, oval eggs (1/16-inch long) into cracks and crevices.   Just 1 bedbug can lay 200-250 eggs in her lifespan.  The eggs hatch in about 6-10 days and the recently emerged bed bug nymphs seek a blood meal.  Immature nymphs molt five times (i.e., they shed their outer exoskeleton in order to grow) before reaching adulthood.  They need to feed at least once before each molt, even though they could feed as much as once a day.  There may be as many as three or more generations per year .  All ages are found in a reproducing population. Immature bedbugs may live for several months without feeding while adults may survive as long as one year without a meal.  Under normal conditions , adult bed bugs will live for about ten to eleven months.

How Can I Detect A Bedbug Infestation?

Bedbugs normally cluster together in favorable harborage areas.  However, some bedbugs will live by themselves, away from the majority of the infestation.  The best way to figure out if you have an infestation is to look for bedbugs where you rest and where you typically set down luggage (or bags) when you enter the residence .  Your luggage and places where your luggage may be placed are also some of the first areas to look.  In bedrooms, look particularly around boxsprings, mattresses, bed frames, tufts, folds, and buttons on mattresses, furniture, such as desks and chairs, behind wall paper, clocks and pictures, cracks in wood floors, and under the edge of carpet. While bedbugs are most ordinarily found in bedrooms, infestations can also occur in other rooms, including: bathrooms; living rooms; and laundry rooms.  Dark blood spots on sheets and bedding may suggest bedbug feeding.  Bedbugs will often times excrete while they are feeding.  This results in darker (reddish or brownish) spots or smears placed on bed sheets , pillowcases and mattresses, or in nearby areas.  This material is mostly composed of digested blood and the stains care very characteristic .

Realize these insects are small (1/16” to 1/4”) and very flat, so they can move into very tight corners and cracks.  In some infestations, they were found under picture frames, in between the glass and the frame!  Be ready to do some close inspection and when in doubt, think about having the inspection done by a pest control professional .

In severe infestations, bedbugs may be more obvious .  The accumulation of bugs, cast skins and fecal spots will be very apparent upon close inspection.

How Can I Control A Bedbug Infestation?

We highly recommend that you seek advice from a professional pest control company .

Managing a bedbug infestation requires very detailed work and much moving (and disassembly) of furniture. Careful inspections must be completed in combination with non-chemical controls (such as vacuuming, and steam treatments) and insecticide treatments.  The insecticides available are commercial products requiring special equipment and education that is not readily available in over-the-counter products.

How Can I Prevent A Bedbug Infestation?

The greatest risk for encountering bedbugs appears to be while people are traveling.  Regardless of the type of accommodations you stay at, it is a good idea to check your room.   Please see the section “How can I detect an infestation?” and check around the headboard and adjacent area of the bed.  Also inspect luggage stands or other areas where suitcases are normally placed .  Be suspicious of any unexplained bites you may find in the morning; that could be the result of bedbugs.  Also be watchful for fecal spots, which could occur on bed sheets or nearby areas. Examine your luggage when you return home after a trip for any bedbugs that may have escaped your earlier attention.

Other sources may be associated with the scavenging of used furniture.  Residents and tenants are strongly advised against “scavenging” beds and furniture that have seemingly been discarded and left by the curb for disposal, or behind places of business.  Bedbug infestations are not limited to beds and mattresses, and they can be found on tables, drawers, and even electronics if these items were located in a bedroom or other place that could support an infestation.

Bedbug Control

Bedbugs are considered one of the most   of all insect pests to get rid of due to the high degree of insecticide resistance they have developed.  If not treated promptly , they can quickly become a serious problem.  Once you notice a bedbug problem, call a pest control expert immediately .

There are two different techniques of using a portable greenhouse. One is known as the cold greenhouse technique and that’s when only the sun during the day gives the greenhouse its heat. The temperature at nighttime typically goes down to about 45 degrees at the coldest and heat does kick on when it gets very cold outside. No growing takes place in this kind of greenhouse, however you can maintain many plants that will come back in the summertime such as rosemary.

Greenhouse vegetables need to have warmth and the second method, the warm greenhouse system, should be used in this case. This technique will require more financial outlay since the temperature cannot fall below 55 degrees F. A heating system must be installed into your garden greenhouse. You can use a propane, electric or gas heater.

Most vegetables can be cultivated in a greenhouse. There are several types of each vegetable that are available in plants developed specifically for greenhouse growing. Look in seed catalogs to find those varieties. You want to look for kinds that will thrive in cooler temperatures than normal. You also want to find varieties that are more compact because room is at a minimum in a greenhouse.

Among the things you need to offer your greenhouse vegetables other than heat is pollination. You will not find any bees or other insects in your greenhouse that you would in the outdoors. A great example is cultivating tomatoes. Tie tomatoes to bamboo stakes and once the flowers appear tap the stakes once in the morning and once at nighttime. Do this when you see that the flower petals are curving backwards. You must watch daily because you just have a three day window of time that the flower petals will do this.

You’ll need to supplement sunlight throughout the winter too so plan on supplying grow lights in a winter greenhouse. Plants generally need 8 hours of sunlight per day. You’ll also have to supply water and fertilizer regularly.

Greenhouse vegetables during the wintertime can be hard to work with, more so than in the summer, but it can be very rewarding. Tomatoes can be picked out of the greenhouse in the dead of wintertime. You will be able to enjoy fresh veggies any time of year.