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June 2006, Volume 3 Number 1
Taking the Right Steps to having a beautiful
and healthful display
Preparing your Lawn for Spring
Bug Out! Homeowners have many things to consider
when choosing an insecticide
Plant Spotlight: Rose Care
Pest Spotlight: Stinging Wasps, Hornets and
Carpenter Bees
Known as May or June bugs when fully grown, white grubs are common garden pests and can survive in your garden for up to three years. The larval stage of beetles, white grubs are noticeable by their C-shaped body and brown heads. The six-legged critters are often found beneath the soil surface in lawns and near seedling plants. After hibernating deep below the surface during the winter, white grubs materialize in the warm summer months to feed.
Found all over North America, the white grub resides in the soil during the day, emerging at night to feed on plants. Favorite meals of white grubs include grasses and grain crops, such as potatoes, beans, and corn, as well as strawberries and roses.
When attacking your lawn, white grubs lend a noticeable browning color to affected areas. They also are favorite snacks of raccoons, skunks, and other backyard critters, which claw at your grass, tearing it up in their search for grubs.
But there are many ways to protect against these invasive buggers. Discourage white grubs from calling your lawn home by having a well-fertilized and aerated lawn with deep root growth. Rake your lawn to bring white grubs to the surface, making them available to woodland predators, like raccoons, which would otherwise claw at your lawn searching for food.
Insecticides such as carbaryl are effective in the early spring. Experts advise to treat for white grubs in April, May, and early June. Water your lawn before applying carbaryl; this makes white grubs rise to the surface.
If your white grub problem remains, contact your nearest extension agent.
