by the National Trust’s Dudmaston house steward, Kellie Channing.
I am very lucky at Dudmaston as the nature of the collection means I do not have to contend with the same variety and quantity of insect pests as other National Trust properties may have to.
If you have not visited Dudmaston Hall the tour of the house begins with furnished rooms but then soon changes to galleries housing a variety of art genres.
The main pest at Dudmaston is the clothes moth which come in two different types: the common (webbing) clothes moth and case bearing clothes moth.
They are small, fly at low levels and are easier to see on a sunny day as their pale gold colouring reflects in sunlight.
Clothes moths can do an enormous amount of damage in a relatively short amount of time, especially as they like to work undercover in the murky crevices of furniture and the dark corners of carpet, and under furniture where they are not easily spotted.
They feed on the keratin in the wool fibres and have a particular penchant for anything which is coloured red.
At Dudmaston we have two methods for treating the problem. If the infestation is on something portable it’s treated by wrapping the item in polythene and securing with tape before putting it in a freezer for two weeks.
For large areas, such as carpets, a water based insecticide spray is used alongside very thorough vacuuming of the carpet and the furniture on it.
What not to do if a large infestation is discovered is pick up the offending article and run through the property with it, all this will achieve is the distribution of moth throughout the entire house!
To prevent pest invasion on a day-to-day basis I use insect traps to catch the moth once they have emerged from the larvae stage; these are small rectangular plastic traps into which I insert a sticky piece of card (sticky side up).
Placed at the edges of the room and under furniture they will catch anything that walks across the sticky card: unfortunately this does include the odd spider and woodlice.
To enhance the performance of the sticky trap I add to it a small vial of pheromone; this pheromone apparently smells of lady moth and so attracts all the males who are flying around looking for love.
Thus in theory you catch all the chaps and the ladies are left flying around with nobody to breed with and so in time the moth will be eradicated.
I monitor the traps weekly recording the quantity and identification of the ‘catch’ this gives me an idea of what is eating the collection and how many of them there are.
It is very important to use an insect trap which does not have a large opening as there have been cases of bats becoming trapped in them, which is very sad and is not something we want to happen.
Chemical insecticides are not used due to their toxicity and the potential damage to treated surfaces. Moth balls are now withdrawn for the same reasons.
Housekeeping is important in controlling moth. Vacuuming in corners and along skirting boards and in the folds of curtains and soft furnishings must be thorough as textile is especially vulnerable when it is soiled or contaminated.
It is almost impossible to eradicate pests completely but by using traps, careful cleaning and by freezing it is easy to keep for me to keep them under control.
Hopefully the recent cold weather in the January and December of 2010 will be of benefit to me as it difficult for moth to survive in freezing temperatures rather than flourishing in our warmer winters.