How To Get Rid Of Flea Beetles In Vegetable Garden

Robin has experience dealing with flea infestations. She has researched how these pests work and how to deal with them.

Dealing With Flea Infestations

Fleas—that word is enough to make you feel itchy all over. They may be tiny, but they present a tremendous challenge and a great deal of danger. If you have noticed them on your dog or cat or are getting bites around your ankles, your flea infestation nightmare has just begun. This is especially true if you live in a place where it is warm and humid because that is just what fleas love. Their favorite temperature is around 80 to 90°F with 70% humidity.

If it is summertime and you think the fleas have just come out, think again. They have been there all along in hibernation. They actually start emerging in March or April. In addition, for every flea you see, there are nearly a hundred immature fleas in various stages of development hidden somewhere nearby. They are practically indestructible and are vectors for diseases, including murine typhus and the bubonic plague.

They can also give animals and people tapeworms. Prevention is the best cure, even if you have no pets. Once the fleas have set up housekeeping, there are several things you need to do, and not just once, to get rid of them and keep them at bay.

How to Tell If You Have a Flea Infestation

Identifying a flea infestation is fairly simple and straightforward. The biggest telltale signs can be seen on your pets.

The biggest sign is if your pet is excessively scratching.
Examine your pet's fur. Animals with fleas will often have reddened skin and may have some hair loss.
If you have dogs, the area fleas target the most is the hindquarters.
For cats, fleas will usually target the area around the head and neck.
You can examine your pet's skin for red or black residue that resembles dirt. This is actually flea droppings.
The fleas themselves are not difficult to see with your eyes. They are usually three millimeters in length and can be seen hopping around.

How to Get Rid of Fleas in Your Yard

If your pets spend most of their time outside, then your flea problem is likely to be coming from your yard. All the cleaning you do inside will only be a temporary fix until you get to the root of the problem. Here are some steps you should take to get rid of the fleas in your yard.

Start by removing fleas from your pets and keeping them inside while you treat your yard. This will prevent fleas from attacking them again and making you start the process over again.
It is recommended that you wear white clothes when out in the yard. This will make the fleas easier to spot when they get on you, which will make locating them easier.
Clean out your yard for any debris, compost, or piles of leaves. Clear out any shrubbery that makes access to certain spots difficult.
Fleas like to hang around spots that are shady and moist. They avoid direct sunlight and will not be out in open grass. You can start looking for them where your pet likes to hang out since they shouldn't be too far from there.
Common spots for fleas can be in places like under a porch, beneath some bushes, or along a fence line.
Spray insecticide. Be sure to use protective gear like a mask when spraying chemicals. Use caution when spraying if you are near any type of body of water that can be contaminated. Spraying the whole yard should not be necessary; just focus on where the fleas are heavily present. Keep in mind that sprays will only kill adult fleas. Eggs and larvae will continue to be in your yard. You'll have to spray once a week for four weeks to completely wipe out the infestation. If you can't decide on which insecticide to use, consider this review of Hot Shot Flea Spray.
There are various chemicals out there called insect growth regulators (IGRs) that can help deal with larvae. These chemicals inhibit their growth and can break the cycle of flea reproduction if used in conjunction with insecticides. They won't kill adult fleas, but they will prevent more of them from appearing.

How to Get Rid of a Flea Infestation Naturally

If you don't feel comfortable using chemicals in your yard, there are some natural methods to get rid of fleas. Here are some suggestions.

You can use food-grade diatomaceous earth as a natural repellent. The dust work by coming into contact with fleas and drying out their body. This effectively kills them. Keep in mind that this method won't work if your yard is wet or if it is raining.
You can introduce nematodes where the fleas are in your yard. These microscopic worms prey on fleas in the larval and pupal stages. They are completely harmless to humans and pets. Make sure you apply them where there is no direct sunlight, as they don't like the sunshine.

How to Get Rid of a Flea Infestation in Your Home

After dealing with the yard, it's time to handle the fleas in your home. Here is what you should do to make your house free of fleas.

As pets are the likely cause of fleas entering your home, you should clean them first. Brush through their hair with a flea comb. Dip the comb in soapy water to kill the fleas that get trapped. Repeat until the fleas are gone. You could also give them a bath with special flea shampoo.
Make the house more clear for cleaning by removing any objects or furniture on your carpets. You want to have as much carpet surface accessible as you can. Consider removing objects from your closet and under the beds as well.
Wash your pet's bedding in soapy water to kill any fleas well as potential eggs and larvae. If the infestation is really bad, you should discard or destroy the bedding.
Examine the carpet for flea dirt. Cleaning it out is important since flea larvae eat flea dirt. Removing this food source could inhibit their growth.
Use a vacuum on your carpet. Along with the adults, you'll also be getting rid of the eggs, larvae, and pupae. Be sure to also vacuum your hardwood and tiles as well as your furniture. If the infestation is serious, you may consider a steam cleaning prior to vacuuming.

You can read this detailed account of someone removing fleas from their home with non-toxic methods.

A thorough cleaning in the home is necessary to avoid having flea bites.

wikimedia commons

How to Prevent Flea Infestations

After battling a flea infestation, you're probably curious as to how you can prevent one from happening again. Here are some preventative measures you can take so fleas don't become a problem for you again.

Place cedar chips where you previously found fleas. Fleas hate the smell of cedar, and it acts as a natural deterrent.
Keep your lawn trimmed. Long and unkept lawns may prove to be popular with fleas since it offers a shady spot for them.
Flood your yard with water. This will get rid of larvae and eggs as well as flea dirt. This will obviously not be necessary if it is rainy where you live.
Trim any foliage or branches in your yard to allow in more sunlight.
Some plants have natural oils that repel fleas. Consider planting rosemary, lemongrass, peppermint, or sage.
Stray and wild animals can introduce fleas to your yard. Seal off any openings to sheds, garages, or crawl spaces since they like to take residence in those places. Don't leave out pet food in the yard since this can attract other animals as well.

Lifecycle of a Flea

To understand what it will take to get your flea problem under control, you first need to understand the world of the flea. The flea starts out as an egg—one of up to 50 a female can lay in a day, and one of thousands she can lay in her lifetime, which can be up to a year and a half in the best conditions. The time it takes the eggs to hatch can range from two days to two weeks.

They are usually laid in the hair of an animal, and they drop out easily onto any area where the creature rests or scratches. A large number of animals can carry fleas, including:

squirrels,
chickens,
rabbits,
mice,
foxes,
raccoons,
and domesticated pets.

Flea Larvae and Pupae

Blind larvae will eventually emerge from the eggs. They avoid light and will go through three stages of growth in areas such as moist or sandy soil, crawl spaces under houses and flooring, under furniture, and in carpet or bedding. They feed on flea feces, which is made up of digested blood that the adult flea fed on.

They also feed on any type of organic debris, including bits of hair and feathers or sloughed off dead skin. If tapeworm eggs are available, flea larvae will feed on them as well. Because they are hard to see and stay out of the light, they are very hard to track down.

Once the larvae have gone through all of their growth stages, they weave a cocoon and turn into pupae. The cocoon is sticky, and things like small fibers, hairs, yard clippings, and even dust cling to it. This helps camouflage it.

The pupa grows for as little as four days, though it can take substantially longer if conditions are less than ideal. It then becomes an adult flea ready to hatch out. They don't always hatch out right away, however. They can stay in a stage of hibernation for many months, including the winter months.

Adult Fleas

Adult fleas in cocoons are ready to pop out when the moment is just right. They wait until they detect vibrations, which occur when people or animals move around near them, or until there is pressure from an animal or person laying on them. They are also sensitive to heat and can easily detect carbon dioxide.

These things signal to the flea that a blood meal is available, and they will immediately hatch and seek their food. Even if they make a mistake and blood is not present, they can live for up to a week. They must have a blood meal to survive and reproduce, but not having blood does not always mean they will die right away. They can also go into a state of hibernation that can last for up to a year.

A hatched flea is a hungry and determined flea. They look for things that are moving and can jump up as high as 100 times their own body length. But jumping high isn't really their forte. They can also jump as far as 200 times their own body length. They will land on animals or humans, including on your pant legs and shoes.

They bite by making two or three punctures in the skin, suck the blood, and leave red, itchy bumps on the skin. Their bites itch because of the body's allergic reaction to the flea's saliva. Some people and animals have more severe reactions than others, and this is only the beginning of the threat that fleas present.

Fleas and Disease

Aside from skin irritation and the loss of hair due to excessive scratching, infection can also be the result of bites. In domestic pets, the hair loss and skin irritation can be mistaken for other diseases.

If, in the course of scratching and biting, an animal accidentally swallows a flea that has been feeding on tapeworm eggs, tapeworms will begin to grow in the animal's gut. Children can accidentally ingest fleas as well and can get tapeworms from handling infected animals or coming into contact with infected animal waste and putting their hands into their mouths.

Fleas can also transmit bacteria such as Rikettsia typhi, nurine typhus, and the bubonic plague. These are most commonly transmitted by the oriental rat flea and the cat flea. These bacteria can also come from the waste of the flea. When the host scratches and breaks the skin, the bacteria enter the body.

Symptoms of these illnesses include fever, swollen lymph nodes, and headaches. These diseases can often be mistaken for other, more common illnesses. These diseases must be treated with antibiotics and are usually curable but can also be deadly. You can check this article for more info on the effects of flea bites on humans.

As the flea feeds, it quickly digests and produces waste. This waste is called flea dirt. It is hard and grainy, and when there is enough of it around, it can be seen with the naked eye. If you think your pet has fleas, check for flea dirt around the crotch area and underneath the tail.

If you experience a flea infestation and do get it under control, check your hair and the hair of your small children carefully for flea dirt and residual fleas. Remember that flea larvae feed on flea dirt, and this is how the cycle of the flea's life can begin again. Remember, however, that the adult flea population is only the tip of the iceberg. The real threat comes from the remaining 95% that are in various stages of immaturity.

Your pets will be happy when the flea infestation is wiped out.

wikimedia commons

Post-Eradication and Preventative Measures

After you have completed your aggressive flea eradication campaign, do not rest on your laurels. Some stragglers will undoubtedly be lurking in some dark corner. Maintain your yard, sweep, vacuum, and clean carpets religiously. Remember to get under furniture and rugs inside and underneath hedges outside. Give your pets baths weekly and use safe and effective flea prevention products.

As a final preventative measure, you can make a homemade flea trap to monitor your progress. This is simply a shallow dish of Dawn dish liquid and water placed under a nightlight overnight. Fleas will jump in and drown. In the end, you and your animals will have a happier, safer summer, and all of your efforts will pay off as you enjoy a flea-free house and yard.

This article is accurate and true to the best of the author's knowledge. Content is for informational or entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for personal counsel or professional advice in business, financial, legal, or technical matters.

Questions & Answers

Question: I'm in the process of moving into a home where previous tenants had a cat. I had new carpets put in (cream of colour) and spent a week painting the rooms. I realised after a few days that I've been severely bitten by fleas all over my body. I sprayed the rooms with flea spray a few days ago. I went in again today to find about 10 fleas on my socks which I managed to catch with scotch tape. Do you, the writer of this article, think this sounds like a bad flea infestation or am I on top of things? I don't have animals!

Answer: This is an infestation. They could be in the floorboards. Without animals to feed on, they will gobble you up.

If you take the steps in the article and do not get rid of them, you may have to call an exterminator.

Question: Why use a dish with Dawn dish soap under a nite light to get rid of fleas?

Answer: The fleas are attracted to the light and the scent of the dish soap. When they jump in, they drown.

Pamela-anne from Miller Lake on June 22, 2012:

Very informative hub I guess the flea is what you might call small but mighty keep up the good hubbing! take care pam.