What lurks in the top two inches of your soil can cause significant damage to your lawn and plants. There are at least 10 species of grubs which are considered the most destructive of all lawn inhabiting insects.

Most grubs feed on the roots of your grass, cutting off the plant’s ability to take up water and nutrients. This results in yellowing or browning of the turf, making the grass easy to pull up. Additional damage can occur when mammals like skunks, birds or even moles dig up the lawn looking for these grubs to feed on.

In addition to damaging turfgrass, grubs can also damage roots of ornamentals and vegetables in certain situations. The adult grubs feed on over 300 plants including roses, linden trees, garden beans, grapes and even poison ivy.

These white, C-shaped creatures have soft bodies with legs near the head. They hatch from eggs in July in the top two inches of moist, warm soil in lawn areas and the feed on organic matter until October. Grubs eventually turn into adult beetles and emerge from soil to mate and lay eggs, which hatch into more grubs. After which, they tunnel down to overwinter.

This is a serious problem to many lawns and plants but it CAN be treated by a professional. Most damage to turf occurs from August to early fall so it’s important to have your turf treated in July.

Some signs that your turf is harboring this pest:

• Grass looks brown (There are other reasons that turf can brown, so it’s important to have a professional identify the problem to treat it properly)
• Large sections can be peeled back
• You might even notice areas where skunks or raccoons have dug up quarter size holes in sections

Countryside Industries is a family-owned and operated business dedicated to keeping your landscaping hearty and beautiful and keeping your business productive and safe as possible during adverse winter conditions.

We are dedicated experts in Landscape Management and Snow Removal for commercial properties and developments.

For a free consultation and quote, call (847) 526-1909 or email jjohnson@countrysideindustries.com