It is amazing how many calls we received last month from people wanting to remove snakes from their lawns, carports or yards. There are approximately 120 species of snakes in North America, 17 of which are venomous.

Like many of you, since childhood I have been scared of snakes, so the control method I use is stay away. As a general rule, snakes are just as frightened of you as you are of them.

Snakes try to avoid people, but seeing a snake can be terrifying for many of us, especially when we see them somewhere we don’t expect, like the front porch.

I wish I could say there was a way to keep them away for good, but I would be lying. However here are some facts I hope will help you.

Q: Why are there so many snakes out right now?

A: Snakes are seen more often in the spring and fall as they search for food and move to and from hibernation areas. Snakes frequently are associated with small mammal habitats because as carnivores, rodents are a primary food source.

They often find their way into yards searching for small rodents to maintain their diet or protective areas to hide.

Q: What is the best thing to use to keep the snakes away from my carport?

A: There are some snake repellants on the market that are sold in hardware stores (I know of none in our area) but research has proven there are no perfect snake repellants, toxins or fumigants that have long-term effectiveness.

One of the most common attempts to rid snakes is to use mothball flakes (naphthalene) or sulfur, neither have good success at deterring snakes in the slightest. Ultrasonic sound emitters are also marketed for snake control but are useless in snake prevention.

An old wives’ tales recommends using sisal rope, human hair, ammonia-soaked rags, garlic, etc. to make them leave but like most other repellants they proved to be unsuccessful. I am sorry but we really do not have any products that I can recommend that will eliminate snakes from coming around your house.

Q: What is the best way to prevent snakes from coming around?

A: Snakes will stay where they have two things, food and shelter. Habitat modification is the simplest way to control any unwanted varmint.

Around the home, mow closely around porches and outbuildings and remove any thick overgrown vegetation. Store firewood, hoses and lumber away from residences and try your best to eliminate all clutter. If you have seen them in your flowerbeds, reduce thick mulch layers around shrubs to about 2 to 3 inches in depth to discourage small animals from nesting.

There is snake proof fencing available for children’s play areas but the cost is unpractical for most homeowners. For play areas make a special efforts to keep all vegetation well cut and reduce hiding spaces.

The best thing to do is look closely before turning children lose if suspicious. Manual snake removal is the easiest and best method of control but 80 percent of all snake bites occur when people are trying to remove or kill a snake.

David Carter is the director of the Adams County Extension Service. He can be reached at 601-445-8201.