Ticks are found outdoors in wooded and grassy areas, so there’s a chance that they’re living in your backyard.

Since they can spread Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever and a host of other diseases, odds are you don’t want them there.

Dr. Erika Machtinger, a veterinary entomologist at Penn State University, offered tips to make backyards unattractive to ticks.

Managing habitat is important, she said. Ticks tend to favor tall grasses and plants, leaf litter and places that border wooded or shrubby areas.

“Keep the lawn cut short and cut back any tree limbs hanging into the yard from bordering wooded habitats. Ticks dry out very fast so if you remove these shaded areas that can help keep the grass dry,” Machtinger explained.

Perimeter sprays that are labeled for ticks can be very effective any only require two sprays per year, she said. A popular product is Bifenthrin.

But Machtinger cautioned that so-called “natural products” may require many more applications, can be toxic to many pollinators, and may not be effective.

Tick control tubes and bait boxes can be filled with treated cotton that mice will use for nest material. The cotton won’t harm the mice but it will kill the ticks that attach to them.

People also might want to eliminate places where rodents can live, such as stone or log piles.

Machtinger also suggested moving swing sets, play equipment and lawn furniture at least 9-feet away from wooded or shrubby habitats.

“The best control is using as many of these options as possible - habitat management, perimeter sprays, host targeted control - in what is called ‘integrated pest management’,” she said.