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What To Use To Kill Grubs In Lawn

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How Do I Prevent Grubs In My Lawn

How to Kill Grubs in Lawn

I always advise people to take preventative measures rather than treating them later. Below are some means to prevent grubs in the lawn.

  • Use beneficial nematodes along with Milky spore disease. This process may take a year or two but prevents further infections.
  • Do not use artificial fertilizers to feed your lawn as it kills the beneficial nematodes. Use only organic fertilizer.

Nematodes For Lawn Grub Control

Beneficial nematodes can be introduced into the affected lawns to control Grubs. These nematodes work efficiently.

The nematodes munch on the larval forms thus they also prevent future infestation to an extent. Ive tried this method of control and I can say it works.

You can buy such nematodes on amazon.

Signs Of Grub Worms In Lawn

A lawn thats developing brown patches and showing signs of weakening could be suffering from disease. Fungal infections commonly produce brown spots, but even white grubs in your lawn can cause similar signs.

Here are signs of grubs in your lawn and how to check for these destructive worms:

  • Dead patches in the lawn: Youll observe patches of brown or dead spots as the grass starts to thin out, turn yellow, and die. This occurs because grubs feed on roots, thus killing your turfgrass easily. Check out this great article I did on other causes of brown patches in lawns.
  • A spongy turf: Grubs will damage the roots of turfgrass, leaving the grass easy to pull and roll up just like carpet. To test this symptom, you can do a tug test on your grass to see if it pulls up too easily.
  • Increased raccoon and bird activity: Birds, moles, and raccoons feed on worms and other insects in the lawn. If you notice theres increased activity of these predators digging your lawn, it could be a sign there are grubs in your lawn.
  • Presence of many grubs in the soil: A major sign of grub infestation in your lawn is the presence of the milky-white, C-shaped worms in soil samples cut from your yard. A few of these pests shouldnt stress your grass, but a large number of them can cause serious damage. More than 5 grubs per square foot of lawn soil will produce symptoms of white grub damage.

Read Also: How To Get Rid Of Clover Weeds In My Lawn

How Can I Control Grubs While Protecting Bees And Other Pollinators

Before applying any insecticides, the lawn should be mowed prior to application so there arent weeds flowering in the lawn while the product is being applied.

Also be conscious of drift. If its windy and you spray an area of your lawn, theres a chance the product could drift onto flowering plants nearby. Likewise, if youre using a spreader for a granular product, ensure you limit your application to lawn areas that have been mowed and do have a grub infestation.

Theres little reason to apply any of these products to your entire lawn if only a section of the lawn has a grub infestation. Only use chemicals to control grubs if necessary, and always follow all instructions on the label.

Treat With Milky Spore

Yates 38ml Grub Kill &  Protect for Lawns Concentrate

Milky spore is a bacterial disease that primarily affects white grubs that will become Japanese beetles. Japanese beetles are among the most common culprits when grub populations are found in Southern California lawns and gardens however, it is difficult to identify which type of grubs you have, and milky spore is only going to help if yours happen to be Japanese beetles.

Even if you are not sure which type of grubs have invaded your lawn, you may want to use milky spore as a preventive treatment that will help if any Japanese beetles show up. You usually need to apply this treatment a couple of times a year for two to three years, but once you go through this process, it can continue to act as a biological control for grubs for 10 to 15 years.

Milky spore is an eco-friendly, natural, non-toxic option, which makes it a great place to start. If you choose to use milky spore, simply follow the instructions on the package. You may also want to purchase an inexpensive Milky Spore Lawn & Garden Dispenser to make it even easier to apply this powder to your lawn or garden beds.

Read Also: What Is The Best Push Lawn Mower To Buy

What Is Best For Grubs In Gardens

There are several products you can use to kills the grubs in your gardens but it is generally best to use organic solutions.

That way you are not spraying chemicals on your food.

  • Nematodes seek out and kill grubs and other insects in the soil and are a good solution for gardens.
  • They are not as immediate as a chemical application would be but they are effective.

Apply Neem Oil Homemade Grubworm Killer

Neem oil has insecticidal properties and is effective in repelling grub worms in lawns and gardens. This natural pesticide deters grubs from feeding, laying eggs, and growing into adults, thus breaking their cycle and helping in their control and stopping lawn damage.

To use neem oil recipe to get rid of grubs naturally, mix neem oil with water and spray it on a grub-infested lawn using a hose-end sprayer. Apply generously over the areas with dead patches of grass to make sure you target the larvae.

Another common homemade recipe for getting rid of grubs naturally is dawn dish soap. While it is not 100% effective at controlling grubs, it can help control mild infestations in your lawn.

To get rid of grubs naturally using dish soap, mix dawn soap with water and spray it over the infested area. The dish soaps solutions smothers and suffocates grub worms and Japanese beetles, killing them in the process. This DIY solution can also kill adult beetles and prevent them from laying eggs in your lawn.

According to the Clemson University College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences, Insecticidal soaps kill by suffocation, they appear to disrupt the cellular membranes of the insect, and they remove protective waxes that cover the insect, resulting in dehydration.

Recommended Reading: What Is The Best Fertilizer For Your Lawn

How Do I Know If I Have Grubs

Many lawn issues that resemble grub damage can be caused by something else, including disease, drought stress, hairy chinch bugs, sod webworms, shade, compaction, and more. In the early spring, for example, many homeowners suspect grub damage because of the condition of their lawn after snow melt.

The only way to be sure that you have grubs is to scout for them in your lawn.

  • Using a shovel or a lawn edger, you can make a cut in a one-foot section of your lawn where you suspect grub activity.
  • Peel up a one square-foot section of grass and soil from that cut. If there is significant grub damage, the grass should peel up quite easily.
  • Sift around in the soil, simply counting how many grubs you find. If you count 10 or more grubs per square foot, you have a serious infestation. Finding a few grubs is normal and not cause for concern.
  • Replace the grass youve cut in short order to avoid any damage to the lawn.
  • Depending on the size of your lawn, you may want to scout for grubs in several places in the lawn. Just because there are a lot of grubs, or not a lot of grubs, in a particular square foot doesnt mean that the entire lawn either does or doesnt have a grub infestation. You can focus your scouting on areas of the lawn that are showing symptoms of grub feeding.

    As youre scouting for grubs in your lawn, take notes so you remember which areas of your lawn have high counts and which dont. This is important if and when you decide to treat the lawn.

    Grub Control For Lawns

    How to Kill Lawn Grubs

    Left unchecked, white grubs in your lawn will continue their destructive course and will eventually sever the roots of the grass so badly, it will be unable to regrow. Having your yard re-turfed is expensive and time consuming. Protect your lawn by using OMRI Listed® and compliant Safer® Brand products for a healthy and organic lawn.

    Read Also: Does Lowes Take Old Lawn Mowers

    How To Check For Grubs In Lawn

    Before you start treating, it is important to check to make sure that indeed there are grubs damaging your lawn. Irregular brown patches of dying grass are the first sign. If you see the patches, lift the turf to check for the grub worms.

    Take a shovel and dig a square foot about 3 inches deep and lift the turf to check for grub worms. If you find one or two grubs is normal and healthy, but if you find 5 or more grubs, you have a grub worm infestation that needs treatment to prevent further damage to your turfgrass.

    S On How To Use Dawn Dish Soap To Kill Grubs

    The mixture for killing lawn grubs can be possible if you use liquid soap or whatever home soaps.

    People often squeeze a little bit of lemon, although it is unnecessary. Its enough that theres a dishwashing liquid for killing insects.

    Follow these steps so youll learn how to use liquid dish soap to allow grub control:

  • Mix 3 tablespoons of dawn liquid soap and one gallon of water.
  • Carefully stir them to create soapy water.
  • Spray the solution evenly onto the areas with brown grass and patches.
  • Let it sit for an hour.
  • Check if there are fewer grubs by digging a square foot of the treated area.
  • If there are grubs that are still alive, continue spraying to kill grubs.
  • Read Also: What Does Your Lawn Look Like If You Have Grubs

    What Is A Grub Worm

    The grub worm is the larval stage of various insects with the vast majority of them coming from the beetle family. This in itself is not a surprise considering the fact that most insects belong to this group.

    TheEuropean chafer and Japanese beetle larvae are especially notorious when it comes to destroying lawns and they also represent the biggest grub worm beetle threat in North America.

    Grub infested turf is at its worst around August. This is the part of their life cycle when they start to surface, destroying pretty much anything they can get to grow up and finish their metamorphosis.

    The fact that the grub worm is destroying roots and anything it can find in the ground areas is bad as it is, but they bring another negative aspect with them. That is the other predatory animals that like to feast of them.

    This can be a very bad combination for your lawn and the grubs living in the garden. The damage will be doubled if you let these happen.

    Its a cliché, but the best counterattack is prevention!

    I realize it often feels annoying to hear this, but the best solution is to prevent these little root eating worms from being able to damage your grass in the first place.

    If they are not there, they naturally cannot do any damage. How can you prevent them from being there, or deal with them once your lawn has a worm infestation?

    The good news is that there are several working solutions for you.

    How To Repair Minor Damage From Grub Worms

    6 Best Grub Killer For Lawn [May 2021] Review and Buying Guide

    If you can spot only a few grubs in your lawn, the situation is far from serious and can be handled easily. Here is what you need to do to salvage your turf without a complete restoration.

    Use a Garden Rake

    Use your garden rake to get rid of the brown, affected spots and remove the dead grass. Make sure to rake the damaged area a bit more to remove the extra thatch and loose soil.

    Sprinkle Grass Seeds

    The next thing you can do is sprinkle new grass seeds over the raked area. We recommend sprinkling 10-15 seeds per square inch for a completely bald area and 5-10 seeds per square inch for a semi-bald area. Sprinkle less if the surrounding turf is healthy

    Tamp the Seeds

    Once youve sprinkled enough grass seeds, tamp them with your foot. Next, it is good to sprinkle topsoil over the grass seeds.

    Water Your Lawn

    Lightly water your lawn every day until the grass is a few inches tall. It is recommendable to water every day for two-three weeks.

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    Make A Grub Killer With Borax

    Borax is a common household cleaning ingredient that can be used to kill grubs.

    However, it should be noted that borax contains boron, which builds up in the soil and can kill your lawn in high concentrations. With that in mind, use this method sparinglyif at all.

    If you decide to use borax, add a tablespoon to a spray bottle filled with warm water. Apply the solution liberally anywhere youve noticed grub activity.

    Pros: Effective for short-term use.

    Cons: Borax grub killer can damage plants when used too frequently or in sensitive areas, like flowerbeds or vegetable gardens.

    Does Laundry Detergent Kill Lawn Grubs

    Yes, Laundry Detergent can kill lawn grubs. Mix some amount of laundry detergent in an ample amount of water to make a solution.

    Spray this solution on the affected areas of the lawn. Youll see grubs coming onto the surface, theyll die eventually.

    This solution is not harmful to your lawn but is a good way to eliminate pesky lawn grubs.

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    Grub Killer Vs Grub Prevention

    The lifecycle of grubs, also called grub worms, begins when the grub worms from last year appear as June bugs, also called Japanese beetles. This happens in the spring between May and June. While the Japanese beetles do not harm turf grass, they will damage trees and ornamentals as they feed on them.

    June bugs and adult beetles lay eggs in healthy lawns. The eggs hatch in the summer and become white grub larvae. Those are the grubs that are going to damage your lawn. They feed on your lawn from July and September.

    As winter moves in, the soil starts to freeze, and any grub worms that have survived bury deep into the soil and put themselves in a vegetative state over winter. When springs rolls in the next year, the newly hatched grubs come out of the soil as beetles around May to June. And so the life cycle of white grubs and June bug beetles continues.

    As the grubs feed on your grassroots during the summer and fall, you will see irregular patterns of brown patches all over your lawn. You will also be able to peel your grass back like a carpet. You can see the grubs around the edges of the damaged turf.

    To prevent grubs, use Acelepryn for season-long grub control. For organic options, Milky Spore Grub Control. Read our top grub control and prevention products.

    How To Get Rid Of Lawn Grubs

    How To Get Rid of Lawn Grubs / Turf Insects in 4 Easy Steps

    Lawn grubs are pale white, squirmy larvae that can destroy your lawn from the ground up, munching on roots until your grass dies off. These pests are a natural part of the ecosystem, so if you just have a few, theres no need to worry. However, if youre finding a lot of grubs, you need to eliminate them immediately to avoid damage to your lawn.

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    Do I Have A Lawn Grub Problem

    Lawn grubs can be present in your lawn but cause absolutely no problems. But how do you know if you have a real lawn grub problem?

    Since grubs eat grass roots, the lawn will be easy to pull up in chunks. If its still firmly rooted, then you have another problem, such as brown patch or dog urine damage. Heres a good test, from the University of California Integrated Pest Management Program: Pull up about 1 square foot of the earth around the base of your sod . If you notice more than 6 grubs in this space, its a good time to consider preventive methods or treatments to reduce overpopulation.

    Shetlar, however, recommended that lawn lovers should be even more vigilant, especially in order to prevent large critters from eating them. When talking about the maximum threshold of tolerance for grubs, I always chuckle about , in that skunks and raccoons havent read about this threshold.

    As such, it may be worthwhile for homeowners to be just a little warier on account of skunks and raccoons. Shetlar added, If there are four to five grubs per square foot, thats usually enough for them to be digging around.

    How To Get Rid Of Grubs In Your Lawn

    Although most homeowners expect to find some worms in their soil, no one expects the severe damage that one particular worm can inflict. Yes, we mean the peculiar damage left by the white grub worm. Grub worms feed on roots, and with a large enough population and some time, they can actually detach your grass from its roots in some areas.

    What does that look like, you may wonder? These severed areas of grass will literally roll up like a cheap rug. So if you think you have a grub problem and youd like your grass to stay put, then its time to snub those grubs from your lawn.

    Also Check: How To Get Rid Of Lawn Mites

    How And When To Kill Lawn Grubs

    One of the most common ways of killing lawn grubs is to use chemical insecticides. The next option is dethatching your lawn, which will help you eliminate lawn grubs. You can find them in warm areas. You must start acting once you notice them on your lawn, mainly during the warm weather. Once they establish themselves on the lawn, it becomes difficult to get rid of them.

    Lawn care is all in the details, and we take care of every single one to give you the lawn of your dreams. Contact us today!

    You may find them attractive, but they are no less than a gross menace in any lawn. They attack the roots and make the plants weak to die. Hence it is essential to regulate them. In this article, we will discuss controlling lawn grubs and understand what we should do. Now, let us begin:

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