Gardens takes its name from the Company's Garden, and the squirrels in there have been raising families in neighbouring roofs for generations. Add the restaurants on Kloof Street, old Victorian semis and a lot of flats, and you get a busy mix of pest work.
Gardens: what drives crawling insects here
German cockroaches in restaurants and flats, Argentine ants in summer and fishmoths in old wooden cupboards and bookshelves are the main ones.
Victorian and Edwardian semis with corrugated iron roofs, broekie lace stoeps and wooden floors sit alongside blocks of flats and modern apartments. Old houses have hollow walls and suspended floors, so mice and rats can move through without being seen. Restaurants, coffee shops and bars along Kloof Street sit below residential flats. Many homes are rentals with frequent turnover.
Gardens lies on the lower slopes below Table Mountain, between the city centre and Kloof Nek. The Company's Garden and its old trees are a squirrel haven. Winter rain runs down from the mountain, and in summer the South-Easter tumbles down off the mountain into the streets.
A note from the field
One of the most common mistakes is spraying insecticide over ant bait. It contaminates the bait and the ants stop feeding on it, so the colony survives.
For homes with toddlers and pets, crawling insect work is one of the easier jobs to do safely, because the products go into cracks, hinges and voids that little hands cannot reach.
How to tell you have a problem
- Ant trails run from a crack in the floor or wall to the dog bowl, sugar bowl or dishwasher.
- Crickets chirp loudly from inside the house at night but go quiet when you get close.
- Fishmoths drop out of books, boxes or linen cupboards when you move them.
- Dead insects collect on window sills, in light fittings or along the bottom of the garage door.
How the treatment works
Crawling insects walk through treated areas and carry baits back to their nests, which is exactly why baits and dusts work so well on them. We use gel baits in cracks and hinges for cockroaches and slow-acting ant baits that the workers take home to the queen. Insect growth regulators stop young cockroaches from maturing and breeding, which matters for German cockroaches that multiply fast. Residual sprays are applied as a barrier along entry points, door thresholds and drain areas rather than across open floors. Dusts go into wall voids, ceiling spaces and plug points where liquids should not be used.
Want the full step-by-step? See how our crawling insect control service works.
Keeping them out afterwards
- Put drain covers or mesh over floor drains and keep the water traps full, especially in guest bathrooms that are seldom used.
- Check second-hand furniture, appliances and cardboard boxes before bringing them inside, as German cockroaches often move house this way.
- Do not leave dishes in the sink overnight, since a wet sink is a feeding station for cockroaches.
- Seal gaps under exterior doors with a brush strip, because most crawling insects simply walk in.
- Store books and documents in sealed plastic boxes in dry rooms rather than in damp garages.
Pricing, honestly
Cost is driven by the species and how established the infestation is, with German cockroaches in a busy kitchen usually needing more work than a one-off ant trail. The size of the property, the number of units or rooms affected, and access to roof spaces and drains also matter. Where a follow-up treatment is needed to catch hatching insects, or where a business wants a regular service contract, we build that into a free quote upfront.
The first heavy rains in late autumn and winter push ants, cockroaches, crickets and millipedes indoors in large numbers. Summer heat brings American cockroaches out of drains and sends ants foraging hard for water. German cockroaches and fishmoths do not care much about the season because they live inside heated buildings all year.
Frequently asked questions
Are the squirrels in my Gardens roof from the Company's Garden?
Very likely. Grey squirrels travel from the garden and the trees along the streets into roofs, often through gaps at the fascia. Sealing those gaps once the roof is empty is the lasting fix.
Do you come out to Gardens for crawling insect control?
Yes. Gardens is part of our regular City Bowl & Atlantic Seaboard route, along with Tamboerskloof, Oranjezicht, Vredehoek, Higgovale. Most bookings are done within about 48 hours, and after-hours visits can be arranged.
Can crawling insects come from my neighbour?
Yes, particularly in flats, townhouses and semi-detached homes that share walls, drains and roof spaces. Treating several units together gives much better results.
Do old Victorian houses in Gardens have more borer?
They often do, because many still have original timber floors and roof structures. A beetle certificate inspection will show whether there is active infestation that needs treatment.
What counts as a crawling insect?
Anything that mainly walks rather than flies: cockroaches, ants, fishmoths, crickets, earwigs, millipedes and scorpions. They hide in cracks and voids, which is why they are treated with baits, dusts and barriers.
Is the treatment safe around food?
We use gel baits and targeted applications in cracks rather than spraying food areas. Food should be covered or put away during treatment, and we will explain what to wipe down afterwards.
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