White Grubs Control

White Grubs

White grubs are a real problem in many lawns, they are capable of causing great damage as they feed on the roots of lawns during the peak growing season for turf grass. Some white grubs can be one of the most damaging of all insects which invade home lawns in the United States, while other White Beetles can be very beneficial to lawns as the Beetles recycle nutrients and aerate the turf soil.

The white grub is the larval stage of any of many different beetle species, Scarab Beetles, May or June Beetles, Dung Beetles, Japanese Beetles and Chafers. Due to the fact that they are in several different beetle varieties, their life cycles can be anywhere between one to three years.

Which White Grubs Cause Lawn Damage

For most people, it is impossible to tell which type of White Grub they have in their lawns, and whether or not they are beneficial or harmful to the lawn. Because they live in the soil they are often impossible to even see, and we must rely on seeing the damage caused to tell that we have an infestation of White Grubs at all.

It is from the lawn damage that we then know that we have a damaging infestation of White Grub, and that it needs to be treated.

White Grubs Control

Controlling and killing White Grubs in home lawns can be a relatively straight forward process of applying the insecticide and watering it into the top soil so it can be fed on by the grubs.

However, problems can occur for several reasons. The first problem occurs when the White Grub has grown too large in size, it is when they grow to this stage that insecticides can become almost of no use at all. For this reason it is important to apply the insecticides at the correct times of the year when the grubs are youngest.

The next major problem when controlling White Grub is when the insecticide does not reach the soil layer effectively. This can often happen when the lawn is severely thatched up, usually an inch or more of thatch will stop the insecticide penetrating into the soil profile. While this may seem to be overcome by increasing the watering in of the insecticide, this is not always true, as severely thatched lawns will simply wash off extra water, and carries the insecticide and any fertilizers with it into the local drainage system. Severely thatched lawns should be de-thatched prior to lawn grub control.

Insecticides are readily available in your local garden supply store, and all work very effectively when applied correctly. They can come in both liquid and granular form, and neither is more effective than the other.

Lawn Management For White Grub Control

The overall greatest method of controlling White Grubs, as well as most other lawn weeds, pests and diseases is good lawn care. Proper lawn care will create a lawn which is optimum health and can most easily repair from any damage done by White Grubs, unless they are in severe infestation numbers. In fact, if a lawn is in excellent health, then a minor infestation of grubs can be more beneficial than it can ever be harmful, as the lawn recovers from it's root damage faster than it occurs, and benefits greatly from the aeration of the soil and the conversion of nutrients.