The difference between a pesticide and insecticide lies according to different function they performs. A pesticide is a chemical substance that is used to kill, control, or repel pests, including mammals, fish, and insects. As the name implies, an insecticide affects only insects. This means that an insecticide is a subgroup of pesticides and comes under it.
Specialty pesticides control microbes, invasive fish species, and other pests.
Both pesticides and insecticides kill by poisoning, suffocating, or paralyzing, but sometimes a person does not want to kill the pest or insect. In this case, most people use a repellent. A repellent uses color, odor, or other disagreeable elements and may be a pesticide or an insecticide.
Common insecticides are wasp killers, ant killers, and June bug grub killers. Each of these chemicals uses a different method to kill the insects. The wasp killer is a contact poison, the ant killer is a stomach poison, and the tomato worm poison is a systemic poison. A fumigant is used to control soil-borne insects, such as the June bug grub. Sometimes stomach poisons are spread on the ground as bait, and sometimes they are sprayed or dusted onto a plant.
Ways to make use of a pesticide and insecticide are similar to each other. Dusts and powders, emulsified concentrates, and aerosols or spray applications are popular techniques. Other applications include baits that attract the pests or insects; granules or pellets that may be poisonous baits, fumigates, or systemic poisons; and spikes that release the poison slowly over a long period of time.
Sometimes humans and pets can be poisoned by pesticide and insecticide misuse. Typically, the product label lists important information, including the proper usage and recommended actions in case of accidental poisoning.
