The Beneficial Nematode

People throughout the ages have searched for practical, organic pest control. Ancient Egyptians covered slaves in donkey's milk to keep the fleas away. Fashionable folks of the 18th century wore tubes filled with blood round their necks to deter the pests. But more recent home remedies such as garlic and brewer's yeast have been know to do little more, often nurturing healthy and happy fleas instead of deterring them.

Human history marches on, and a kinder, more effective flea control method is here. And, as is often the case with nature, the solution was right in the earth.

The beneficial nematode, alias "killer roundworm," may be nature's simplest answer yet to troublesome, blood sucking fleas that infest homes, gardens and pets each year like clockwork.

The nematode, Steinernema carpocapsae, hunts down fleas in the pre-adult, pupae, and larval stages of their growth, which account for 95 percent of the flea population, even searching out the fleas that lie dormant in cocoons before reaching maturity. The killer roundworm enters the pest's body through any convenient opening, such as the spiracles, where air is taken in, and releases a bacteria that kills the flea within 48 hours.

When the host is dead, the nematode sheds its skin and begins to reproduce inside the corpse. The offspring hunt for new prey, destroying the remaining fleas in the wake of the nematode life cycle. If there are no host bugs to be found, the nematodes starve and biodegrade, leaving no harmful garden bug alive to tell the story.

The killer roundworm has been implemented commercially over the past five years to combat cranberry and citrus pests, but was never available to the garden growing public due to certain impracticalities in growing and shipping the "flea-killing commandos".

Preparation of the nematode for widespread use had its difficulties. In the past, nematodes were raised inside insects and then removed from the host's body to be used in pest control, which proved to be a costly and time consuming process. Then there was the problem of keeping the worms alive for storage and later use. To solve these problems, a specialised fermenter has been designed to replicate perfect growing conditions.

Nutrients, temperature, and oxygen concentration were stabilised at the exact level for maximum nematode growth. The the nematodes were encased in a brown organic coating to maintain the correct level of moisture for the worm to survive.

The nematodes come packaged in a seven-ounce container that holds more than 75 million worms in a comatose state for up to five months. The worms are simply mixed with water and sprayed into a flea-infested garden when required. Depending on the amount of fleas and the size of the area, no flea should be left standing within a few days of contact with the nematodes. One package is enough to cover a 2,500 square foot area.

As long as the ground is kept well-watered, as it would be with most grass, the nematodes need no other attention.

The worms can be used in any climate, as long as their food source is available. Across the country, wetter climates have the worst flea problems, but the nematodes aren't regionalist. Wherever there are fleas, they'll be ready to kill. The worms will work in a variety of places beside the garden, such as on gravel, and the bark of some trees. Once they're out there, and if it's moist enough, they'll start hunting, and they will keep on searching for their next flea meal for up to six weeks after the last flea has died, preventing new fleas from reinfesting the area.

The nematode won't harm the other beneficial bugs that live in garden soil so the natural ecosystem of the yard is preserved. They also have no effect whatsoever on people, plants, or animals. They have been widely recognised as a safe alternative to pesticides largely due to the fact that they occur naturally in nature anyway, and are an all-organic means of pest control.

You have to remember that there are billions of nematodes in every cubic meter of soil anyway. So adding a few more million is kind of a drop in the bucket.

SDA Pest Control, "Long Acre", Bluntisham Road, Needingworth, St. Ives, Cambridgeshire
01480 465684