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Millipedes are a group of arthropods and not insects. They are actually more closely related to lobsters, crayfish and shrimp. They have two pairs of legs on each body segment (except for the first three), this characteristic set them apart from insects, spiders and centipedes that have one pair of legs on each body segment. They require moist habitats rich in organic matter to breed and develop. Therefore, they are commonly found in gardens, lawns, forests and near streams and lakes.
Around homes, they are often found breeding in large numbers in flower beds, gardens, the lawn, leaf piles, mulch, near the roots of plants and in the soil under plant pots and rocks that are moist, cool and dark. They are detritivores, meaning they eat all kinds of dead and decaying organic materials. In this regard, they are good decomposers in the ecosystem.
However, at certain times during summer and fall, millipedes may migrate in large numbers from their normal living places to residents’ living spaces. Such mass migrations are often associated with heavy rainfall, which drives thousands of millipedes to come out of their normal habitats to breathe and to find dryer places to survive. This is when heavy home invasions occur!
In Georgia, the most troublesome home invader is the garden millipede. Garden millipedes have a flat body, brown to black in color, and are about ½- to ¾-inch long, smaller than other millipede species. Garden millipedes do not harm people and animals. Once they leave their natural habitats and get inside a building or on the carport floor, they will shrivel and die quickly due to loss of body water.
However, large numbers of them crawling into the house and dying on the carpet/floor can quickly become a seriously annoying nuisance. Additionally, millipedes release an offensive odor when disturbed or handled. They can also stain fabrics if crushed. It is not recommended to directly handle millipedes. Since millipedes do not live for more than a few days indoors, treatment inside the home and building is not necessary. Spraying these areas with insecticides does little to reduce their numbers. Even though you kill the ones that are there, more millipedes just keep wandering up from their breeding sites. A wet/dry vacuum and a broom/dustpan to remove them are often the fastest and most appropriate control. Place the millipedes in a plastic bag, seal the bag and deposit the bag in an outdoor garbage container. The key is to reduce moist breeding sites in and around the structures and prevent access to structures.
Chemical control may be necessary only if millipedes keep invading in large numbers and all the non-chemical methods do not reduce the occurrence. There are many products labeled for millipede control. One of the options is applying EPA-approved safe organic products such as the diatomaceous earth (DE) powder. Treatments should be applied directly to potential entry points such as cracks, crevices, weep holes, voids, utility and pipe penetrations, vents, doors, windows, and visible gaps in walls and foundations. DE is not poisonous, but it causes insects to dry out and die by absorbing the oils and fats from the cuticle of insect skin, specifically lethal to crawling insects. It remains effective if being kept dry and undisturbed. Insecticides should be applied to the perimeter of the home and/or lawn in a 4- to 5-foot band. Rake back thick layers of mulch to allow treatment of the exposed soil. Important: Read the label carefully for the product that you are applying.
Contact the Rockdale County Extension Office to get more of your plant and gardening questions answered at 770-278-7373 or visit our website @ ugaextension.org/rockdale. Contact Amy smith, UGA extension, Rockdale County, amy.smith@rockdalecountyga.gov.
One unexpected bright spot of the COVID-19 pandemic was the expansion of state stabilization funds—also known as rainy day funds—driven largely by increases in tax revenue. State and local governments rely heavily on taxes to finance their operations, with the largest sources coming from sal… Click for more.
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Contact Amy smith, UGA extension, Rockdale County, amy.smith@rockdalecountyga.gov.
I have been editor of the Rockdale Citizen since 1996 and editor of the Newton Citizen since it began publication in 2004. I am also currently executive editor of the Clayton News Daily, Henry Daily Herald and Jackson Progress-Argus.
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