Guide to Grubs, Beetles & Bugs that Destroy Your Lawn
June 29, 2011, By Elliot Feldman 1 comment
Depending on where you live, insects may or may not be a common cause of residential lawn damage. If you see the first signs of damage, such as brown patches, first determine if the damage has been caused by insects rather than disease-causing pathogens or dog urine. These conditions often are indistinguishable from insect-based lawn damage.
Identify Lawn Pests
Telltale signs of insect infestation vary according to the type of pest that's damaging your lawn. For example, lawn moths drawn to lights at night may be an indication of lawn infestation. Digging activities by birds, skunks or raccoons could indicate the presence of white grubs in your grass.
To find the infestation, dig around the roots to uncover the presence of white grubs, billbugs or other burrowing lawn pests. A drench test is another way to detect lawn pests such as chinch bugs and types of caterpillars such as cutworms.
One way to conduct a drench test is to mix two to four tablespoons of liquid dishwashing soap with one gallon of water. Then evenly apply the mix to a square area of turf. This treatment can cause insects to rise to the lawn's surface.
Certain types of insects create a specific type of lawn damage. For example, cutworms chew at the base of grass blades and can spread to cause brown patches. Lawn moths can devour grass blades whole. Southern chinch bugs can create yellowish lawn patches. Grasshoppers create ragged feeding holes on the edges of grass blades.
Physical features of the most common lawn insect pests include the following:
- White grubs have a white body and a dark brown head. They turn into flying beetles that feed on tree leaves.
- Cutworms can be up to 2 inches long and curl up when disturbed.
- Billbugs have C-shaped white bodies with reddish heads.
- Chinch bugs are reddish, purple, black or gray.
- Lawn moths are white or brown and fly when disturbed.
Comments (1):