Lawn grubs love the warm weather, and the recent heat has seen them out in force. Most active in South East Queensland from October till May but found year-round, it’s important to stay especially vigilant any time the weather warms up.
Signs of a lawn grubs
Signs to look out for
Patchy lawns with brown or bare patches are the tell-tale signs of a lawn grub infestation. Other signs to keep an eye out for include white moths flying around as the sun goes down, white egg sacs on your house (eaves, fences, foliage, and furniture) as well as an increase in lawn grub predators such as birds or orange/black wasps. Preferring a healthy lawn, lawn grubs are far more likely to attack a well-maintained lawn. This goes double for all forms of couch grass as they are more prone to infestation. While Sir Walter DNA Certified is more resilient to these pests and usually recovers quicker; it is still susceptible to attack.
Treating a lawn grub invasion
Products to kill lawn grubs
A chemical-free way to rid yourself of lawn grubs is to put a wet hessian bag over the affected area of your lawn. The grubs will attach themselves to the hessian overnight and you can then dispose of the grubs first thing in the morning. The more thorough method for you can use a chemical like Grub Killa. With the active ingredient Bifenthrin, this product is toxic to most insects but less toxic to birds and of minimal toxicity to mammals. This makes it safer than many other pest control products. Treating tips when spraying for lawn grubs:
- Always spray in the late afternoon/evenings (Kill bugs at night, and weeds in the morning)
- Spray a second time 7-10 days later to break the lifecycle
- Don’t spray if rain is likely as you will only need to reapply
- Always read the label and follow label rates for application
- After treatment give any brown patches a hit with fertiliser to bring them back to life
Prevention from future attacks
While products like Grub Killa will kill grubs that are currently in your lawn, there is no residual effect so there is no ongoing protection.
You can prevent lawn grubs attacking by using a product called Acelepryn GR. Acelepryn GR gives unmatched season-long grub control against a wide range of insect pests including African Black Beetle, Argentinian Scarab, Billbugs and several species of caterpillars including Cutworm, Sod Webworm and Lawn Armyworms.
It is also unique in that it can be used as a preventative measure, up to 6 months of protection from every application. This means you can get year-round protection from just 2 applications. This is a great solution for people with regular lawn grub invasions. We have a great video explaining exactly how to use Acelepryn GR which is available from our lawn care store:
To get some more advice lawn grubs or to purchase a new lawn call our team on (07) 3114 8281. You can also to pop in and order in person at our sales office on 1/243 Bradman Street, Acacia Ridge. The office opens Monday to Friday 7am to 5pm and Saturday 7am to 12pm. For more great turf, tips keep an eye on our website and all our social media channels.
