Grub Treatment

I am in zone 7 and looks like I have a infestation of grubs. They have completely damaged smaller areas of the lawn and other parts are thinning out. Squirrels and other animals have been digging up the lawn to get to them.

My plan was to do a curative using Dylox - Bayer 24 hr now and follow up with the preventative Grubex1 or Bayer Season long .

Will the curative be effective now with the Dylox? Which preventative have you found is best? The Grubex1 contains chlorantraniliprole and the Bayer contains imidacloprid. I believe the Grubex1 would have be applied earlier - April, and the Bayer could be applied in June.

 

I really don’t know. It’s been years since I was certified to do lawn and ornamental pest control. A lot has changed. Hopefully someone else here will be able to help. A good idea would be to go the your local county agricultural extension office and ask them. They are an objective source of info. Here in PA that would be the Penn State extension office located in every county. Not sure how New Jersey does it.

 

I used St. Gabriel's "Milky Spore" to control Japanese Beetle Grubs in 2013. They originally came when we moved our Raspberry Patch to a place that is more obvious to the Beetles (the adults of the Grubs).

This biologic control takes about 2 years to become fully effective, and it did a good job. Today, as the snow melted, I went out and inoculated a few remaining spots where I know there are still some Grubs because the Moles left evidence of their traffic patterns under the snow.

I've posted information about "Milky Spore" previously, so I won't repeat myself here (or contradict myself); but it's not for the impatient.

It's just coincidental that today, I was working with a couple ounces of the product that I had held aside just for this purpose.

 

Vermont is right about milky spore. It is effective and earth friendly.

However, I am lazy and impatient. I treat my lawn with Grubex every year. I have been using it for years and I do not have a grub/beetle problem. I apply it every spring.

 

I'm lazy too . . . . but not impatient. The "Milky Spore", once applied, remains in the soil for twenty years or longer. The Patent holder provides a Ten Year Guarantee; but the Bacillus Popilliae Spores multiply and maintain a present as long as there are any Beetle Larvae to host until they die and then allow the disease to grow in their carcasses to contaminate future generations. It's like a gift that keeps on giving.

So that's why I like it; I've got nearly 3 acres on this farm that I try to maintain as lawn, so doing anything every year gets me tired just thinking about it, not to mention the annual expense. Done right one time, the "Milky Spore" just multiplies from year to year, feasting on new young grubs . . . . that's really all the product is; the ground up, de-hydrated and powderized carcasses of infected larvae from St. Gabriel's controlled environment in Virginia.

It's a bit tedious to apply initially, as you want to quickly water the dots of inoculate into the soil before the wind blows them away; but techniques can be developed to simplify that. With my original application in 2013, I didn't achieve much benefit in 2014; but by 2015 the Crow, Raccoon, Skunk, Porcupine, Mole and Shrew activity had significantly diminished. Prime Grub harvesting season around here is July and August so we'll see if I've left enough of a Grub population for this to be a happy hunting ground for these predators anymore.