The beautiful warm season has begun and we can finally spend more time in the garden - be it relaxing on the terrace or doing our beloved gardening around vegetables, fruit and flowers. But with the heat, the first pests become noticeable and these include the destructive beetle larvae, which are anything but good for many plants. While they can be removed from beds and pots, i.e. in loose soil, it seems to be more complicated with lawns. After all, you don't even want to dig it up. How can you control grubs in the lawn?
Recognize an infestation on the lawn
If the lawn is infested with grubs, larger areas will soon die. The stalks turn yellow and dry up. Of course there are other pests tooDiseases are to blamecould be, you first have to examine the affected areas a little more closely. To do this, select one of the places and lift a piece of the lawn. If you're lucky, you'll be able to see beetle larvae. However, you may also have to disassemble and examine an entire excavation.
In any case, the larvae are easy to detect due to their size.
What will actually become of Engerlingen?
Everyone has heard of them, but not everyone has seen them. And many people don't know what these larvae actually are. What will become of Engerlingen?
Three species of beetles are associated with these larvae: the May beetle, the June beetle and the ground beetle. The larvae of the rose beetle and rhinoceros beetle are also called that, but in this case they are beneficial insects that you do not need to pay any further attention to. The larvae hatch within a few days, but then spend two to four years in the soil, where they damage the roots of the plants (including the grass roots). After this time they pupate, whereupon the beetles hatch and the cycle begins again.
Since some grubs in the garden are, as already mentioned, even useful and protected, you should first identify the culprits before resorting to measures to combat them. If it is actually garden creeper, June beetle or cockchafer larvae, you can combat grubs in the lawn as follows:
Fighting grubs in the lawn - This remedy works best
Nematodes are probably the most effective remedy against grubs. These are roundworms that use bacteria to decompose the beetle larvae from the inside and use them as food, whereupon they themselves die because they then lack food. We already have youin this articleexplains how to properly release the nematode. In the same way you can tooEngerlinge im Rasenfight.
Can an infestation be prevented?
It is entirely possible to minimize the risk. The fact is that the females...tall grassesfeel disturbed. So if your lawn is kept nice and short all the time, you are offering them perfect conditions for laying eggs. So you could simply stop mowing for about three weeks during the mating season so that the female beetles look for other places.
Alsonatural enemiesare effective against the larvae. Moles, for example, literally love to eat them and should therefore be tolerated in the garden (at least to a certain extent). Then there is a bacteria that kills the pests and, fortunately, occurs naturally in most soils but does not harm the lawn. These bacteria cannot be released specifically. However, you can ensure optimal soil that promotes settlement. It should be sufficiently moist at all times.
Avoiddry soilswith a high sand content. Instead, it's worth incorporating humus to keep grubs outto combat effectively, by making it uncomfortable for them.
There are so-called May beetle years in which the beetles appear more frequently and the risk of larval infestation is particularly high. You can prevent females from laying eggs in their lawn by spreading a fine-mesh net over it. Tarpaulins are also suitable, but you must not forget to give the lawn a few hours of light by temporarily removing the tarpaulins. Otherwise the blades of grass will die.
You might also be interested in:Are grubs harmful in flower pots & what can you do?
Grubs in the lawn – what do you do with the lawn afterwards?
Before you even realize that you have beetle larvae in the soil, they have probably already caused some damage. How can you help the lawn recover? Depending on the extent of the damage, various options are available to you:
- For small areas, there are so-called lawn patches that have the ability to germinate quickly.
- If large areas of lawn are affected, you will have to resort to re-seeding. To do this, only prepare the affected areas.
Why lawn care is so important after controlling grubs in the lawn
Of course, the lawn with these spots doesn't look very nice and ultimately you want to be able to enjoy a lush green, healthy lawn in your garden. On the other hand, the enclosed areas are also perfect for weeds. To prevent these from spreading, you should promote a strong turf as quickly as possible by revegetating the areas.
What you can do against grubs in raised bedsfind out here.
