Box elder bugs - Ask Extension
Good Morning,
Starting last year, we have been infested with hundreds of harmless- but very annoying box elder bugs. It seems to coincide with nei...
Knowledgebase
Box elder bugs #865848
Asked April 25, 2024, 9:56 AM EDT
Good Morning,
Starting last year, we have been infested with hundreds of harmless- but very annoying box elder bugs. It seems to coincide with neighbors on both sides of us cutting down trees in their backyards (just my guess that now these bugs have nowhere else to live?) I spray daily with soap water and Maggie’s Farm 3-in-1 garden spray.
I’m not sure what other options I have? It doesn’t seem to make sense to have a company come and spray- since the bugs are living on our neighbor’s houses. We live in a row home in Waterside, Frederick.
I would appreciate any help you could offer.
Thanks,
Linda
Frederick County Maryland
Expert Response
Hello Linda,
As you noted, Boxelder Bugs can be a nuisance but are not harmful. As such, they do not require treatment with any type of pesticide, even lower-toxicity or organic formulations. (Even so, such treatments will not work for very long since it only affects the bugs the spray actually touches during that application. Being broad-spectrum ingredients, oils and soaps can also harm or kill other insects if the spray contacts them, and if concentrated residues drip onto desirable plants, they can cause leaf damage.) It's possible the neighbors removed a favored tree (like our native Boxelder Maple, a host plant for which the bugs were named), but it's hard to say if that had any impact on where the insects dispersed afterwards.
If too bothersome, you can blast the bugs off of a house wall or tree trunk using plain water in a strong jet from a garden hose (if you have one), or just sweep them off with a broom, if reachable. Otherwise, nothing needs to be done, and they will soon disperse and be less noticeable until autumn. You can discourage them from entering a home by sealing any exterior wall gaps/cracks and checking door and window weather-stripping and insect screening for tears or needed repair/replacement. In cool weather, they naturally congregate in areas that receive sunlight in order to bask and warm up. In nature, that would usually be a rock face or tree trunk, but our homes act like giant rock faces or trunks as far as they're concerned, which is why they indiscriminately gather there as well.
Miri
As you noted, Boxelder Bugs can be a nuisance but are not harmful. As such, they do not require treatment with any type of pesticide, even lower-toxicity or organic formulations. (Even so, such treatments will not work for very long since it only affects the bugs the spray actually touches during that application. Being broad-spectrum ingredients, oils and soaps can also harm or kill other insects if the spray contacts them, and if concentrated residues drip onto desirable plants, they can cause leaf damage.) It's possible the neighbors removed a favored tree (like our native Boxelder Maple, a host plant for which the bugs were named), but it's hard to say if that had any impact on where the insects dispersed afterwards.
If too bothersome, you can blast the bugs off of a house wall or tree trunk using plain water in a strong jet from a garden hose (if you have one), or just sweep them off with a broom, if reachable. Otherwise, nothing needs to be done, and they will soon disperse and be less noticeable until autumn. You can discourage them from entering a home by sealing any exterior wall gaps/cracks and checking door and window weather-stripping and insect screening for tears or needed repair/replacement. In cool weather, they naturally congregate in areas that receive sunlight in order to bask and warm up. In nature, that would usually be a rock face or tree trunk, but our homes act like giant rock faces or trunks as far as they're concerned, which is why they indiscriminately gather there as well.
Miri
