Talstar P Professional Insecticide - Questions & Answers

Talstar P does work for stinkbugs and boxelder bugs. Talstar P does not have an immediate knockdown effect but it does leave a long lasting residual. We do encourage our customers to apply Talstar P once a month through the stinkbug/boxelder bug season (August-November).

Talstar P is our most popular product for white fly. It is important to spray the underside of the leaves on infested plants for effective control. Heavily infested leaves should be plucked off the plant and tossed in a bucket of soapy water.

Yes. Talstar P can be safely used around pets as long as you follow the label instructions; all pets need to be out of the area while application is being made and they can return as soon as the application is dry.

Evergreen Pyrethrum would be your best product to treat grasshoppers in pasture.

For best results, Talstar P should be applied in cool weather (65 - 80?F) or in early morning or late evening hours. You should not apply Talstar P or other insecticides when temperatures are near or below freezing.

According to the Talstar P product label "all pesticide handlers must wear a respiratory protection device when working in a non-ventilated space." Respiratory devices are not required for well ventilated spaces or outdoor applications. The Talstar P product label also says "all applicators should wear longsleeved shirt and long pants, socks, shoes and chemical-resistant gloves."

Yes, Talstar P is labeled to kill springtails. 

These insects do not truly infest a home as they do not reproduce in the indoor environment, but they may still be abundant inside if their breeding site is close by. Unfortunately the breeding sites for these flies are so numerous and varied, it is impossible to eliminate them all. These tiny pests are small enough to crawl through the average window screen and fit through cracks and crevices around windows and door frames.

You can help prevent these flies from entering your home by spraying a barrier application of Talstar P paying special attention to window frames, window screens, door frames, and cracks and crevices that may be used as points of entry.  A screen with a very fine mesh (smaller than 16mesh) will help prevent entry. Additionally it may be helpful to keep ceiling fans and window fans on at high speeds to keep insects out of small areas.

If flies have already entered your home and you need immediate control use Microcare. This product offers a fast knockdown and kill of flying insects, giving you immediate relief.

How long it takes an insect to die after coming into contact with an area that has been sprayed with Talstar P will depend on several factors. How long has the Talstar P application been in place (the longer it has been there the more degraded it is and the longer it will take an insect to die), age and size of the insect, What species is the insect (insects with piercing sucking mouth parts such as spiders and scorpions take longer to succumb) and How long has the insect sat on the dry deposits of Talstar P. Generally speaking you can expect most insects to die within 24-48 hours of contact.

Talstar P is a water based product that dries just as fast as water alone would dry.

Talstar P is safely used in homes with cats everyday. Be sure the cats are away from the area while Talstar P is being applied and they can return to the treated area after the application has dried. Please refer to the Talstar P product label for full usage instructions.

If Talstar is stored with the cap tightly closed and in a moderate temperature area, the shelf life will be 3-5 years.

Talstar P (Talstar One) will kill bees and wasp that come incontact with the treated area. However, if you know where the nest is in the wall it would be best to use a dust. you can use a hand duster to apply a dust product such as Tempo Dust into and around the area where the bees seem to be gaining access to your home. Over a period of a couple of days to a week (timeline will depend on how many bees are contacting the treated area) this will kill off the colony that has taken up residence in your home. Any insecticide applications should be done very early in the morning or very late in the evening when the bees are less active. After the bees have been eliminated it is important to remove the bee hive from the void where the bees were nesting. Failure to remove the hive can lead to mold issues and secondary infestation from hive beetles and other insects. If the bee hive is in an area that is not easily accessible you may want to consider hiring a professional pest control operator.

Yes, Talstar P (Talstar One) is labeled for clover mites. You will use 1 fl. oz. per gallon of water. This can be broadcast across your lawn, on ornamentals, trees, etc. It cannot be sprayed on any type of edibles.

Yes, Talstar P like most insecticides will be harmful to fish if it gets into the pond. According to the Talstar product label: "This pesticide is extremely toxic to fish and aquatic invertebrates. Do not apply directly to water, to areas where surface water is present or to intertidal areas below the mean high water mark. Drift and run-off from treated areas may be hazardous to aquatic organisms in neighboring areas. Do not contaminate water when disposing of equipment washwaters. Care should be used when spraying to avoid fish and reptile pets in/around ornamental ponds."

Talstar P will do a great job killing insects, but it will have no effect on a mouse. It is important when setting/placing traps for mice to put the traps directly into the travel paths that mice use. If the mice are not accepting peanut butter as a bait, you will need to try something else. Cotton balls with a drop of vanilla wedged onto the bait pedal, bits of string tied to the bait pedal or other items that you have noticed that they are already eating such as pet food or bits of bread work well too.

We cannot find any systemic insecticides that are labeled for bagworm control. Acephate 75 was labeled for bagworm control but due to new EPA regulations they were forced to change the label and exclude using the product as a systemic. You should also note that systemic products are not the best choice if you already have damaging pests present because the products can take weeks or even months to translocate through large trees from soil applications. The best treatment for bagworms is a direct foliar spray with Talstar. 

Talstar P will kill Cicada Killer that come into contact with treated areas for a sufficient amount of time to receive a lethal dose. You will need to dilute 1 fl oz of Talstar P per gallon of water and broadcast spray over the areas where you have noticed activity. Most folks notice only very limited results from broadcast sprays of insecticides for cicada killers because they don't land and walk around for a long enough time before entering their underground burrow. Please read below for the most effective treatment method:

Cicada Killer wasps thrive in disturbed environments, such as landscaped yards and places where bare soil is exposed. You can discourage the wasps from nesting in your yard by cutting your grass on the highest setting and by adding a thick layer of mulch to flower beds during the Cicada Killer Wasp season. These wasps do not like over saturated lawns either, so over watering during their season will help prevent them. Unfortunately, there is no fool proof way to prevent cicada killer wasps.For prevention you can try to use a granular insecticide such as Talstar PL  Granules in the couple of weeks before this pest is known to emerge. For current infestations, you would need to use Delta dust in each individual burrow.


We also like to let our customers know that the Cicada Killer wasps are beneficial insects that provide free pest control for a couple months each year. Cicada killer wasps paralyze and provision their burrows with other insects to feed their young.  The beneficial Cicada killer wasps, while large and intimidating to see, are mostly harmless and there have been very few reports of anyone getting stung by just being near them. In most cases where a sting was reported, the wasps were being held or molested in some way. Cicada Killer Wasp stings are also reported to be almost painless.

Talstar P is labeled for gnats and should do a great job for you in killing the gnats that land on the treated surface but will not truly repel them from an area.  Do you know what type of gnat you are dealing with?  Where are you having the issue, inside or outside?

You will get the same results with both the granule and the liquid in this area. We might lean towards the liquid however because it is a bit more versatile and can be applied to the foundation itself and around window and door frames to stop pests from moving in.