Atwood LawnCare

Grubs are the larvae of various types of beetles, including Japanese Beetles, European Chafers, June Beetles and the like. The life cycle of a grub begins when the beetle lays an egg during the summer. This egg will hatch in the late summer and early fall, depending on when it was deposited. This grub will eat the roots of the lawn until the fall frost. As the soil begins to freeze, the grub will dig down into the soil to survive the winter. Then, in the spring as the soil thaws, the grubs work their way back up to the surface. (Some types of grubs may actually stay close to the surface all winter) These spring feeding grubs can cause major damage since they are very hungry. The grubs will feed until approximately late April, early May and then pupate (change) into the adult beetle which begins the process over once more.

What damage does a Grub do?
Grubs feed on the roots of the grass plant. This causes the grass blade to die. Grub damage is usually seen as large patches of dead grass. When you pull on the dead area, it will pull back like a rug on a tile floor, since there are no longer roots to hold it to the soil.
Many times, the lawn will look torn up, like someone has dug up the grass or ran over it with a roto-tiller. This is from raccoons or skunks digging up the grass to eat the grubs. While we cannot replace the grass, an application of insecticide will kill the grubs and therefore eliminate the food source for these animals.

When do we apply Grub Control?
Grub Control can be applied at three different times in the season. The first is in the spring when active grubs are seen. The current product of choice at this time is Dylox (trichlorfon). This will kill about 80% of the grubs located in the lawn. 100% control is impossible and unnecessary. It is possible to see grubs in the lawn in early May, but it is highly unlikely they are eating or doing damage. They are in the process of pupating into beetles and are not ingesting food, therefore insecticides will not be effective.
The optimal time to apply Grub Control is in July with a preventive application. The current product of choice at this time is Merit (imidacloprid). This product will stay active in the soil and kill the larvae as they hatch from the egg stage. If grubs are controlled at this time, there should be no grub activity in the fall, and therefore none in the spring.
The final time to apply Grub Control is in the fall when active grubs are seen. The current product of choice at this time is Dylox (trichlorfon). This will kill about 85-90% of the grubs located in the lawn. A higher level of control can be achieved in the fall because we are dealing with smaller grubs than in the spring. 100% control is impossible and unnecessary. This application will also prevent grubs from being a problem in the spring.

Will Grubs damage shrubs?
Typically, no. Grubs prefer the roots of turfgrass.

Why can we not get 100% control?
The grubs have to ingest the insecticide to be effective and it is impossible to have 100% of the insects come in contact with the material, no matter how it is applied. Eradication of any pest is both impossible and unnecessary. Grubs only cause damage if there are too many in a given area. If a lawn is well watered, as many as 15 grubs per square foot may not cause any noticeable damage, since the lawn will out-grow any damage. However, if it is not well watered, as few as 5 grubs per square foot will cause the grass to die. The intent of any pest control application is to reduce the number of pests (grubs) to a level where damage is minimized as best as possible.

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