White grub worms

I was preparing a spot in my backyard for fall vegetables to grow when I saw them, white grub worms! I didn’t even have to dig deep. This time of year, white grub worms will be pretty close to the surface. The white grub worms are the larvae form of June bugs. They are C-shaped and have a brownish head with 6 distinct legs.

For southern lawns, late summer and early fall can be white grub worms season.

You should be on the lookout for signs of weakened or dying grass. Right about now, white grub worms are hatching. Grubs are coming to the surface of lawns to feed on grass roots and other organic matter in the ground.

Have noticed birds pecking at the ground? Maybe you woke up to your yard showing signs of overnight wildlife digging or rooting around. Raccoons, moles or possibly ever skunks may have been in the area looking for the white grub worms as a meal.

While you may think this may be okay and they will get rid of the white grub problem for you, these critters could be inflicting further damage to your lawn in the process. Not to mention, raccoons in yards have been known to venture up and into homes for safety and shelter from the weather and will cause a whole new set of pest problems.

Your options for white grub worm infestation can be curative or preventative. Curative treatments are recommended for current, active infestations on contact. Preventative treatments are designed for long term effectiveness to not only take care of the white grubs currently in your yard but to also take care of those yet to hatch throughout the season.

It is best to treat now while white grubs are feeding close to the surface of your lawn. Once cooler weather arrives, the grubs will return to their winter cells deep below grown where material applied will have little to no effectiveness. The grub worms will go dormant through winter and if left untreated, awaken in the spring to begin feeding on grass roots all over again.

Signs to watch for potential white grub worms would be:

• Dead or brown irregular sized dead patches of grass
• Grass having a ‘spongy” feel after watering. Just before the lawn starts dying, the spongy area lifts and easily separates from the underlying soil.
• Birds or other wildlife critters digging up or scrounging throughout the lawn
• Hovering moths flying over your lawn or garden beds

Seeing less than 5 white grub worms within a square foot area of your yard is not a huge cause for alarm.

Look for more than 5 white grub worms per square foot of lawn. Dead, patchy grass or the indication of critters digging in the yard however could require a treatment plan. Once you have your white grub worm control treatment taken care of, remember, this will not repair the already damaged lawn.

Proper fertilization and lawn care is needed to get your lawn to recover from the lawn pest damage for next Spring. Has lawn damage progressed quite a bit? In some cases reseeding of dead lawn patches may need to be done. Discuss with your pest professional to determine the best course of action to prevent further lawn damage. The goal is to disrupt the white grub worm’s life cycle. This will improve the overall health of your lawn.

If you think you may have white grub worms or other lawn pest issues, contact  Bio-Tech Pest Control today at 281-296-6022.