or buy a gecko and let it live behind your fridge

Or keep cats ! cats love roaches.... sally

Jane, You'll do fine here. I haven't heard of anyone dying of a heart attack from the roaches here. There are a lot of creatures here that will scare the h--- out of you but it will just jump start the old ticker back up!
Let us know when you'll be down and how you like it. One nice thing (so I've heard)is you don't have to shovel snow.

I moved to S. Florida in 1988. A coworker (from the midwest) and I were out snorkeling off Deerfield Beach. We spotted some horrible scary water creature with a HUGE mouth heading straight for us. We practically ran on top the water to rush back to shore. A lifeguard was standing at shore line waiting for us. And laughed his dang head off when we described our monster - Manta Ray.

This morning I was sitting out enjoying my coffee and noticed that our new pitcher plant had caught itself a roach. Then watched a bird almost catch one. If the pitcher plant will continue to munch on roaches, and maybe add deer fly to its diet I can perhaps get over my guilty feelings of patronizing the flea market vendor who wouldn't let me in his booth. In the mean time, I really need to get the leaf debris away from the house.

Come on down to Florida, lo these many years and I'm still here. The dang deer flies bother me way more than the roaches. I hardly ever see [live] roaches.

~dianne

We are coming the end of the month again. Will stay at a friends house while we look at houses. My husband is trying to figure out a 'battle plan' to kill them. I can't even imagine I will ever get used to them. I am wondering if living in a condo (12th fl) will be safer? Do they crawl that far up?

The thought of going to bed and turning off the lights is terrifying. What if they crawl on the bed!

My husbands battle plan is because we couldn't kill them when we saw them last time we were down. They were so huge, we tried hitting one with a broom and couldn't kill it. Next day we opened the kitchen drawer to get a spoon and there was one in the drawer. Huge, Huge!! That was it...we left and went back to NY.

The house we stayed in is vacant for long periods. The owners only come during school vacations. It is on a salt-water canal. It was clean and had no food which would attract them. They had not sprayed since a year before.

We found one in the bathroom, in my suitcase, the kitchen drawer. If we went out at night to sit at the patio, there were huge ones flying. So we never went out at night.

The whole experience was a disaster because of these bugs. Now we are going to give it another try. Thinking, snow isn't looking so bad...Wish us luck.

Jane

In 1969, my mom, sister, and me took a trip to West Palm Beach and stayed in a cheap motel room. My sister found a coconut and opened it. She ate some of it and left half of it on the nightstand between our beds.
Later that night I awoke in the pitch-dark and reached out to the nightstand to feel for the lamp. My hand plunked down onto the coconut and at least a dozen palmetto bugs blasted out from under my hand and raced in all directions.
I spent the rest of the night out in the car.

Living in a condo won't do it! You can still have them and if one of the neighbors isn't clean they will come from their place to yours.
Best corse of action is to have an exterminator once a month come in and spray first then make sure they do the outside also. Too bad your friends place is closed up for so long and not sprayed except when they are here.
Hope you have a better time when you come down at the end of the month.

"MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING" I hate roaches, but fire ants are the real problem. The most roaches I have ever seen were in a house where we rented a temporary apt in Philadelphia. We learned to turn on the light at night if we needed a bathroom trip, we left shoes by the bed so we didnt have to walk on one on the way as the floor was carpeted by them. We found a new home quickly. I think if Jane is so squemish her best bet is an igloo in Alaska

Jane,

I doubt you will see as many as you described in normal day to day life. I've never sprayed my Florida houses and only see them occassionally. The worst was an old wood house in Coconut Grove. I would say I'd see a few a month there. I put out the little roach motels and that usually helped.

I haven't seen any in this house in Ft. Myers, but we haven't had company yet. ;) I have seen a few in my compost pile, but it's not like I expect that to be clean and bug free. ....I'd take them over NY any day of the week, but to each their own. :)

Yes, I know they're in the walls here (fourplex), but I hardly ever see them, mostly only when one of the seasonal residents first comes back and disturbs them, and then only one or two. Just putting out bait works as well as spraying, really, and it's healthier for you.

Jane,
You probably will find the most roaches in places you stay that are occupied only occasionally. With your own home you would take the precaution of removing any dead rotting vegetation from close to the house. The best advice is to find a home that is constructed with cement blocks. A CB home is a very good barrier to them and you can easily spray or bait the entry points or have a bug service do it for you. I would also recommend a single family home rather than a condo type home as you could end up next to a family that harbors roaches due to uncleanliness. I would be very cautious about buying a home in a HOA (home owners association) as many times you have no control over your own property, especially if you enjoy gardening. Some HOA's have very restrictive rules for you to follow and will even insist on what plants you can or cannot plant. Buy a house with the largest lot you can afford thereby having your gardens a short distance away from the house rather than right up next to it. With proper planning and due diligence I'm sure you could find a home that will suit your family needs.

Lou

jane, not sure how it happened, but this little snake made it's way into our bedroom. my wife woke up screaming in the middle of the night, snake trying to hide under our pillows, eventually a huge brown spider dropped from the ceiling fan and fought the snake off.....we were lucky!

Oh, Great!

Jane

I've got to get my waders on, it's getting deep in here!

FWIW, I have recently begun using a synthetic pyrethrin spray:
http://www.demonwp.com/

You mix it in a sprayer and then spray it at all door openings and around areas of your house where you might have intrusions. It lasts 3 weeks. I use it at a commercial building that I own too, and the results are fantastic. The barrier lasts 3 weeks, and any roach (or other bug) that walks over the barrier dies. It puts a HUGE dent in the roach problem, and pyrethrins are relatively non-toxic to mammals. I have a drive-in bay at my commercial property and I will find 10 dead roaches a week just inside/outside the bay entrance. Even if they make it inside they don't get far. The stuff is pretty cheap. I pay $11 for a package that makes 4 gallons.

Jane, I'm serious about the Tubes-in-the-Walls type of pest control. It really, really works. Your battle plan should be to tell your Realtor you only want to look at homes that have this. If he/she laughs you off, be adamant - print out this thread and give it to her. A lot of builders have been offering it as a upgrade feature. They've been doing it for at least ten years here. The pest control company comes quarterly, taps into the connection on the outside wall and refills the system. No bugs living in the walls! It is wonderful. They also spray around the perimeter of the house.

My worst, most horrifying experiences were opening the dishwasher and seeing a roach scurry around inside it. That was the grossest!!!!! THAT DOES NOT EVER HAPPEN IN THIS HOUSE!! Life is good!

Happy house hunting!!

Sherry

Here is a link that might be useful: If only sweat were irrigation...

Jane - NY, Hi, I am from NY also and quickly realized I needed to adjust to the south Florida bugs when I moved to the Keys in 1992. Didn't take long, you'll be fine, trust me. Palmetto bugs are no worse than the cockroaches that infest most NYC apartment buildings.
Actually I recently found out they are actually dance instructors. Here's why : Was enjoying lunch with a friend at Sharky's on Venice Beach a few years ago when it started to rain. Most outside customers moved to the tables under the overhang, like we did. After a half hour or so the whole outside erupted in bedlam ! The wooden decks became waterlogged and the palmetto bugs came flying out, and up the bare legs of most customers who were sitting at the tables. I simply swiped off the few that were on me but the women who were attacked started screaming loudly as they stood up and started dancing wildly ! Never knew there were so many women that could do the Irish Jig ! LOL

Ya'll are a hoot! we give our palmetto bugs chores! they are NP! many motels use them as bellhops in FL.. carry in your luggage, just strap it on their backs,.... lol
live here 30 yrs. wud live no other place..luv it!!!

I grew up with water bugs (German cockroaches) and I much prefer the wood roaches and palmetto bugs, because there aren't as many of them and they are easier to kill. If you've ever lived in a house infested with German cockroaches, you'll bless the harmless (but scary) palmetto bugs, who just seem to die all on their own with no help from us. My grandmother lived in a 150 year old house on an island in SC, and we would sleep with the covers over our heads at night to keep the palmetto bugs from flying onto us. But at least you can hear them scuttling around. German cockroaches like to get on the ceiling and drop onto the bed.

As for brown recluse spiders, I've seen a couple, but they aren't really aggressive (hence, the "recluse") and only bite if they are trapped. The wolf spiders are much more dangerous, because they dearly love to just sit on a wall and wait for you to turn the light on, so you can have heart failure!

I wrote this awhile back for my gardening blog. It talks about the widow spiders, so you may be interested.

Spiders and Roaches and Ants! Oh My!

One of the creepiest experiences I can remember involved german cockroaches.
In 1983 I dated a young woman in Pensacola. One night she invited me home and to say I received a shock would be an understatement!
EVERYTHING was literally covered with cockroaches!
Every wall, floor, ceiling, counter, and furniture item. They were everywhere! I've never seen anything like it, before or since.
She said her exterminator threw up his hands in defeat and tore up his contract. The roaches had built up an immunity to every poison in his bag of tricks. I even went to the store and returned with a bait called Ortho Pest-Be-Gone, which always worked well for me.
Well, her roaches ate this stuff like candy and suffered no ill effects.
That was a long time ago, and I've heard that these pesticide-resistant cockroaches are becoming more common these days.
What a nightmarish thought!

It took me at least 5 years to come to grips with the bugs here after moving from NJ 14 years ago. They can scurry over a foot now and I don't freak out, I arm myself and go after them. I sit outside at night a ton and my house is surrounded by palms, which the palmettos love, and it's become a war between me and them. I have a strong fly swatter and my swing accuracy is improving. Perhaps this is why Florida churns out so many good ball players...

I love the lizards/anoles, because they eat everything, but my first experience with them was in Naples. Found one in my room, captured it in the ice bucket and brought it to the front desk in outrage. The clerk then proceeded to clip it to her ear and I nearly fainted! But it taught me they're harmless.

I'm more scared of the spiders, snakes, scorpions and ants now. I had an incident at 5am headed for work in Tampa one morning where I had put a foot in a red ant pile while readjusting stuff on the front seat. Well I had tall boots on, so they made it pretty far up the pants before I knew they were there. Luckily it was early because I was pantsless and running around like a madwoman on the front lawn shortly after. I had so many bites that I had to go to the hospital. If you get bit too much they can poison you and you will need treatment. I learned the hard way to watch where I step.

Had a friend bit by a recluse and it was gross to watch. The hospital gave meds, but until they kicked in the bite spread... The tissue around it died and went from dime sized to larger than a half dollar, yuk.

And I second the mosquito comment - please come help feed them cause I can't take it anymore... They laugh at the glade clip on thing.

I can't ride my motorcycle down here during love bug season. They cover my helmet shield to the point I can't see. Bonus about the anoles here though. When I get home I leave my leather riding jacket out back and they eat all the guts off it and clean it up good as new, lol.

If you want to get really scared, I mean informed, take a Florida biology class. Anything can thrive in the Everglades. Our biggest concern now, even more so than gators or crocs.. The Nile monitors... Ugh!

Susie, the Palmetto bugs in my yard and house have formed a union - can't afford to pay them what they want, so I just relocate over into the neighbor's field!

They move SO FAST it's hard to hit them with normal bug spray, so I got some wasp and flying insect spray - shoots up to 10' - gets 'em every time! I can't stand the ooze they leave behind when I kill one.

My Chi loves to 'stalk' them - she will yap until I come and remove it. They don't run when she comes around, but they do when I appear - word has gotten out that I aim to KILL!

Brute- that is terrible advice to cut down our native palms.
Please do not do that!
Palmetto bugs live everywhere not just in palm trees.
Please do not move to our lovely state and start poisoning everything in sight.
Stay away if you do not enjoy Florida's native flora and fauna.
You are welcome if you will embrace the natural beauty of Florida.

Please look at this link that contains lots of nice color photographs.

Here is a link that might be useful: Florida natives

Yme405, Your tale of the desk clerk "clipping the anole to her ear" brought back a rush of sweet memories!
That gal must've been an oldtime Florida Cracker. When I was a kid, girls would catch these critters, allow them to bite their earlobes, then walk around with "lizard earings" for hours. The lizards would never let go until the girls finally pulled them off. Hah! Is it any wonder that I always fell in love with the redneck girls I dated? The more rustic and redneck they were, the better I liked 'em!

Glad I could bring back good memories for ya Brute. That has to be one of my favorite early memories here that still makes me chuckle. Saw my first armadillo that night, too. The Everglades and Florida crackers are definitely two of my favorite subjects.

My first experience with a Palmetto bug was when I was staying in a Sarasota hotel where Elizabeth Shoo and Woody Harrelson were also staying while filming, ironically.. Palmetto.

As much as I hate bugs, this is one of the funniest forums I've ever read. Jane, I live in Sarasota, arrived in 2000. We've had snakes in the pool, toads in the toilet, crab and wolf spiders in the house(THAT was my least favorite thing!). Bugs are easy and if you spray regularly (we do outside 2x a year)are almost non-existant inside. The killer down here is the heat. We have two seasons: Hot and hotter. Get ready.

And all you guys talking about bugs - not a word about termites?!

We have every dang type of bug found everywhere in this whole wide world.(and probably some from the nuther-worlds) It seems they also come to Florida to retire for the good life and you of course are their lunch. Termites? yeah we got 'em, heck, we even have termites that eat cement. So c'mon down and help feed the bugs, I'm getting darned tired of getting bit up and need some relief. You just haven't lived until you've driven your car during love bug season and come back home and see the front of your car is now sporting a black beard that's next to impossible to wash off without using a high pressure washer. The little bugs will pi$$ you off but it's the big critters (like the alligators, boar hogs, black bears) that will really leave a mark.

Lou

This is the best forum for Florida gardeners, I learn so much and laugh so much (Lou)...
I live in North Port (20 miles south of Sarasota). I've been in Florida for 35 years.

In my experience the roaches seem to LOVE cardboard boxes. Don't store anything in your garage, shed, closet in cardboard boxes or you will get a surprise when you open it.

A few roach traps placed under the sinks, dresser, closet, and you probably won't see any in the house.

My dad sprinkled Epsom salts on the floor of the sheds and the roaches haven't come back (after clearing out the infested cardboard boxes)...

The mosquitoes are the worst thing about Florida, especially if surrounded by standing water, and woods. I should buy stock in the company that makes Deep Woods Off.

I have a lot of wolf spiders this year, more than usual. They must be eating the palmetto bugs because I have seen very few of those.

I saw a wasp yesterday dragging a wolf spider through the grass and had to look it up. Yup we even have wasps that hunt the hunting spiders.

It's always interesting, and thanks to the folks in this forum (Lou, Sylvia, Tom and many others) I enjoy the wonders of gardening in Florida even more.

Larry

For all you newcomers to Florida, I think you'll find that bugs are a lot less prevalent from about November through March, if it's any comfort to you. :-)

Sheri

I have a horror story about cockroaches. I moved to Tampa two years ago, to a rundown apartment building because I needed to save some money for a house. Let's just say that nights were frightful. I'd hear them, crawling around, bumping into my pans, climbing my cardboard boxes. When I'd turn on the lights, I always would see about five to ten of the devils scurry for their hiding places. I would attack them at night. I got pretty good at squashing them with my flip flop. I had reddish ones, black ones, brown ones, small ones, big ones - it was like a diversity advertisement for a corporation. Sometimes they would come to me in my bed just to give me a good night kiss...

One night at midnight while I was killing roaches in the tiny kitchen, I accidently knocked over a glass bowl which shattered on my tile into one million peices. I couldn't move because I was surrounded by shards of glass and I was barefoot. Roach guts were smeared around the floor and counter. I was exhaused and had to wake up early the next morning for work. I cut my foot and bleed on the carpet. And there were still roaches watching me, mocking me that night. I consider this night to be my worst encounter with them.

BUT THERE IS GOOD NEWS! I left that slum of an appartment, bought a home constructed of cinder block, and have never seen a roach in over one year! Thank God!

- Aaron

I know this post is old, and I hate to necrobump, but the pictures bamboo_rabbit posted about palmetto bugs vs. brown-banded roaches are actually correct. According to entomologists, the roach more commonly known as a palmetto bug is actually the American cockroach. The scientific 'palmetto bug' is what bamboo_rabbit posted as the top picture. It can grow to be 2 inches (OMG) long and scare the heck out of you...

mh123, it is a good read and laugh! Those palmetto bugs stink when you smash them.
Wonder how Jane love Fl. now?

Just to set the record straight: Eurycotis Floridana, or the Florida Woods Cockroach, is the original "Palmetto Bug" named by Florida crackers. Nowadays, however, the American Cockroach is typically called a Palmetto Bug. I would much rather encounter a Florida Woods Cockroach than an American Cockroach. The latter will chase you across a room and cause spontaneous incontinence. Hideous things. I have lived in FL since 1955 and still shudder at the sight of them, lol. This was a funny thread!!!

For any type of roaches you need some Key West hens. I believe my rescue key west chickens must have feasted on roaches regularly down there in Key West because if they see one they fight each other and rip them to shreds faster than you can blink an eye. I am just so thrilled to have them do this because if there is one bug I can't stand, it is a large roach. They are like chicken crack to the KW hens lol.
~SJN

I wonder if Jane ever made it down here to stay?
Jane? uh, hello? Jane...?

Judging by her posts, I don't think Jane was able to hang with our bugs...

Wow! Poor Jane. I can't stand Palmetto bugs, but I can't stand snow either! I have some in my bathroom. My cat likes to catch and eat them, but he's been slacking! I had one run up my arm the other night when I was on the throne and reached for the toilet paper. I screamed loud enough to wake the dead! Then I just got settled in bed and one ran across my back! EEEKKK!!!! I'm still here! I lived in PA and NJ. I'd much rather deal with those creepy things than drive on a snow covered road! Isn't there some kind of trap for them?

Jane is still looking for a home in the Sarasota/Siesta Key area, but hasn't had much luck with a couple that went under contract but failed inspections for various reasons.

You can follow her saga on the Buying and Selling Homes forum.

For you Florida newbies, I wouldn't worry about a few palmetto bugs. Just swat them. Why, just this morning I took a pic of one at my neighbor's house.

It sure has been a big laugh here! I hope Jane gets things settled and is able to move here and gut out the bugs! They love used egg cartons too! And bags, paper or plastic. Darn things. is there any way to trap them or deter them? I have a cat so I don't want to use anything that will hurt Zackey.

zackey,
Yup, there is a way of trapping them..... you open your front or back door, put banana peelings just inside the door all along the inside of the threshold. When they go inside to eat the peelings... shut the door... they are trapped!!

Lou

The ducks sure like those roaches..and that make a nice crunching sound as they turn those disgusting creatures in to eggs.

Hey @jane__ny September 2021 now… dod you make it down here?

i just moved here from maryland and bought a couch off of someone on facebook. i cleaned the upholstery heavily, and have found one dead american cockroach for the past two nights (half eaten by my cat).

i think the smell of the soapy water drove them out of the couch. its now 2:24 on the third night, and i will check tomorrow to see if there is a 3rd dead roach. im in sarasota. hope you made it jane. its still worth it to me!

@jane__ny

Wow, a really old post!

Yes we moved down here and bought a house in the Palm Aire area, off University Pky.

Never had a roach in 9 yrs. I do not use a exterminator, however I've had a few ant invasions. Used Borax and seemed to work quickly. Haven't had any ants in a few years.

I have been attacked by fire ants and wound up going to Urgent Care a few times. Now I wear socks and long pants, each time I work in the garden...sweating like a bull!

The house we bought is a typical ranch but was owned by a single woman who took good care of it. Very clean and I don't know if she had a pest control service. But we never had a roach.

We did have a snake come under our front door which scared the heck out of us, we had rats in the attic which was taken care of by a rodent control service. That was years ago. So far, so good.

I hate the summer and regret not being a snowbird. The heat is intolerable and I hate working out in the garden.

The Pandemic put a terrible restriction on socializing and attending my orchid groups.

Welcome to Sarasota, Valerie. Maybe we could meet for a coffee or wine one day.

Jane

Glad you haven't had too much exposure to Florida roaches/palmetto bugs.

They do enable females to do an amazing Irish Jig however !

LOL!! I've gotten over freaking out about palmetto bugs, but I DO do a wild jig when ants start biting my foot!

...on my way to Jane's for some wine! Sounds great! I don't mind being called Valerie at all.

Sorry, Tiffany!

This old post showed up again and I just skimmed through the responses. Very funny, and yes I haven't had a roach problem...but I don't want to jinx myself!

Tiffany, Valerie and anyone who needs a break, come on over. We'll have a ladies night with wine, cheese and some fun!

Jane

It happens. ; ) Every Valerie I've met was awesome! Thinking about wine & cheese on such a beautiful day is an amazing feeling. Thanks!