Loxahatchee Groves calls itself Florida's Last Frontier. Lots here typically run about five acres, horses and nurseries share the land with homes, and canals line the lettered roads. A property like that needs more than a quick spray around the foundation. Toro Pest Management has protected South Florida since 1969, and we look at the whole parcel in Loxahatchee Groves: house, barn, feed room, pasture and canal bank.
- Since 1969Third generation, protecting South Florida
- 110% GuaranteeIf the bugs come back, so will Toro, at no additional cost
- Within 24 HoursResponse guaranteed
- Free InspectionPlus $25 off your first service
Barn, Pasture and Nursery Pests in Loxahatchee Groves
A rural parcel has more pest habitat than a suburban lot. Feed, manure, hay, nursery stock and wood piles each attract something different, so we walk the entire property instead of stopping at the back door.
Stable Flies and House Flies
Stable flies bite horses for blood and breed in soggy hay, feed, grass clippings and manure mixed with hay. House flies breed in manure and garbage. UF/IFAS notes that homes on small equine farms sit close to these breeding sites, so a fly problem at the barn soon reaches the house.
Signs to watch for: horses stamping their legs, and flies gathering on stall walls.
Fire Ants
Mounds appear in pastures, paddocks, road shoulders and nursery rows, and a disturbed colony stings fast. Newly moved plants and soil can carry them from place to place. Our ant guide covers the species you are likely to meet.
Signs to watch for: dome-shaped mounds after rain, especially near gates and troughs.
Rats and Mice
Roof rats and mice go straight for feed rooms, aviaries and bird seed, and they nest in hay and tack rooms. Rodents chew wiring and contaminate grain. Our rodent control pairs sealed storage and exclusion with carefully placed devices.
Signs to watch for: torn feed bags, droppings on shelves and gnawed wires.
Mosquitoes
Ditches, canals, water troughs, buckets and low ground can all hold mosquito larvae during the wet season, and the Asian tiger mosquito does well in shaded yards. Change trough water often, then let our mosquito control team deal with resting sites.
Signs to watch for: larvae in troughs and heavy biting at dusk.
Subterranean Termites
Fence posts, sheds, stored lumber and mulch beds close to a home give soil-nesting termites a bridge to the structure. A 2026 University of Florida study found the invasive Asian and Formosan termites still spreading in Florida. Ask about termite control for the home and outbuildings.
Signs to watch for: mud tubes on posts, walls and slabs.
Whiteflies and Plant Pests
Ficus hedges and ornamental plants can host whiteflies, which leave sticky honeydew and sooty mold behind. On properties with a lot of landscaping or plant stock, catching them early protects the screen a hedge provides. Our whitefly control treats affected plants.
Signs to watch for: yellow leaves, leaf drop and a white cloud from shaken branches.
Landowners also call us about drywood termites in older homes and sheds, wasps in barn rafters, fleas on dogs and barn cats, spiders in tack rooms and wildlife such as raccoons and opossums raiding feed.
Thirty Miles of Canals: The Land Behind Loxahatchee Groves Pests
Loxahatchee Groves is the oldest of Palm Beach County’s western communities. Its story begins with the West Palm Beach Canal, or C-51, completed in 1917. George Bensel of Southern States Land and Timber saw the potential for a waterfront farming community, and he and engineer T. G. Thorgesen helped form the Palm Beach Loxahatchee Company, which bought roughly 6,500 acres. The company built nearly 30 miles of parallel canals and roads, maintained by a drainage district that became today’s Loxahatchee Groves Water Control District.
Citrus and farming carried the community into the 1930s, and citrus and tomato production gradually ended after Bensel died in 1961. As suburbs spread through the 1980s and 1990s, the Loxahatchee Groves Landowners Association defended the rural way of life with its motto, “Love it and leave it alone.” Voters approved incorporation 458 to 350, and the town became Palm Beach County’s 38th municipality on November 1, 2006. It covers 12.53 square miles and had 3,355 residents in the 2020 census.
The grid still defines the town. A county neighborhood plan from the 1990s described main north-south roads lettered A through G, each running beside a canal of the same name, and about 37 miles of dirt roads. The same plan recorded five-acre parcels as the norm, nearly 500 horses, wholesale nurseries, tree farms and about 40 aviaries. More recently, the town has described a large equestrian industry that grows in winter and spills over from Wellington next door.
Pests thrive on a landscape like this. Every canal adds moisture, every pasture feeds fire ants and flies, and every feed room is a target for rodents. Royal Palm Beach lies to the east and Wellington to the south, but in Loxahatchee Groves the distance between a house and a barn matters more than the distance to the next neighbor.
Pest Control for Five-Acre Homes in Loxahatchee Groves
A home here rarely stands alone. Between the house and the road you may have a barn, a workshop, a greenhouse, a trailer and a stack of lumber. Each building is a possible harbor, and pests move between them. Our residential pest control begins with a free inspection that covers whichever structures you want included.
We point out what is drawing pests in, then design a plan around how you use the land. That might mean protecting the house and the feed room, or setting up a perimeter routine around the main living area, with separate attention for a barn. The 110% Satisfaction Guarantee stands behind the work: if the bugs come back, so will Toro, at no additional cost to you.
A few practical steps help on acreage:
- Store grain, bird seed and pet food in metal or heavy plastic bins with tight lids.
- Move manure away from stalls and compost it where you can.
- Change or clean water troughs and buckets every week in the wet season.
- Keep hay dry and off the ground.
- Stack lumber and firewood away from buildings.
If you are buying land with an existing house or barn, a termite inspection is worth doing before closing, especially when wood outbuildings are part of the deal.
A Loxahatchee Groves Pest Calendar for Horse and Land Owners
| Season | On a Loxahatchee Groves property | Landowner to-do |
|---|---|---|
| November to April (winter equestrian season) | Rodents in feed rooms, flies around busy barns and more horses on the move | Check bins and tack rooms, and keep up with manure removal. |
| March to June (swarm season) | Asian subterranean termites at dusk, Formosan from late April, drywood flights | Inspect sheds, posts and lumber, and look for shed wings near lights. |
| May to October (rainy season) | Mosquitoes in ditches and troughs, fire ant mounds, stable flies in wet hay and bedding | Clear wet organic waste quickly and change trough water often. |
| June to November (hurricane season) | Displaced rodents and wildlife, mosquitoes after canals and yards fill up | Pick up debris and check barn roofs and screens after each storm. |
Commercial Pest Control Along Southern Boulevard in Loxahatchee Groves
Most of the town’s commercial activity follows Southern Boulevard, where U.S. 98, U.S. 441 and State Road 80 share a route along the town’s southern end. Okeechobee Boulevard also crosses the town. Palm Beach State College opened its 50,000-square-foot Loxahatchee Groves campus in February 2017, and horse-related farms, goods and services are spread throughout the community.
We provide commercial pest control for:
- Retail stores and shopping plazas along Southern Boulevard.
- Restaurants and food service.
- Schools and colleges.
- Warehouses and storage buildings, including feed and supply operations.
- Property managers and government buildings.
Farm supply and feed sellers deserve special care, since grain and bagged feed draw rodents and stored-product insects. Keeping pallets off walls and rotating stock helps a great deal. Visits are arranged around your hours and animals, and you get a written record of the work. Technicians train at the TORO Institute at our Miami headquarters, where our on-staff entomologists teach food safety, sanitation and structural practices.
How We Work a Loxahatchee Groves Property
- Free walk-throughWe inspect the structures you choose, plus the feed storage, manure area, canal edge and landscaping around them.
- A plan for the landYou hear which pests we found, what sustains them and how we will work around horses, pets and plants.
- Careful treatmentMethods and placements fit each area, and every product is applied according to its label directions.
- Backed by a guaranteeWith our 110% Satisfaction Guarantee, if the bugs come back, so will Toro, at no additional cost to you.
What Toro Brings to Loxahatchee Groves
- Experience since 1969. Dr. Jose Perez Linares founded the company, and the third generation carries it on.
- Entomologists on staff, so an unfamiliar insect on your land gets a proper identification.
- TORO Institute training for the technicians who come to your property.
- Response within 24 hours, guaranteed.
- A free first inspection, and $25 off the first service for new customers.
- Hablamos Español, for you and for the crew who work the property.
Free inspection and $25 off your first service in Loxahatchee Groves.
Schedule Your Free InspectionLoxahatchee Groves Landowners Ask Us
Do you treat acreage and barns as well as the house?
Yes. We serve ZIP code 33470 across Loxahatchee Groves, and a plan can include the home, barn, feed room, sheds and the yard around them. We talk through which areas matter most to you, and a response within 24 hours is guaranteed.
Are products safe to use around my horses?
Tell us about every animal on the property before we start. We choose methods and placement accordingly, follow label directions and let you know when animals should be kept out of an area. Rodent stations and traps also need careful placement around pets and livestock.
How can I cut down on flies at my barn?
UF/IFAS extension advice puts manure management first. Keep manure piles away from stalls, compost when you can, since the heat kills eggs and larvae, and clear soggy hay, feed and grass clippings, where stable flies breed. Treatments work better once those sources are under control.
What about fire ants in the pasture?
Fire ants favor open, sunny ground, and pastures, paddocks and road edges fit that well. Baits applied in the right season reduce colonies over a wide area, and individual mounds near barns, gates and water troughs can be treated directly. Check the label for any restrictions on grazing land.
My road runs beside a canal. Does that affect termites and mosquitoes?
It can. Moist soil near canals suits subterranean termites, and low spots and ditches hold water after rain. We check the wood and foundations nearest the water, and we look for breeding sites around the home and barn.
Is the inspection free, and can we talk in Spanish?
Yes. The first inspection costs nothing, new customers receive $25 off their first service, and hablamos español. Call 305-594-4767 or use the Free Inspection form on this page.
Neighbors of Loxahatchee Groves We Also Serve
Toro also serves the communities around Loxahatchee Groves:
Last updated: November 2, 2026
110% Satisfaction Guaranteed
If the bugs come back, so will TORO, at no additional cost to you. TORO responds within 24 hours, guaranteed, and our technician will arrive quickly and deal with the pest problem to prevent it from coming back.
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