Get An Early Start Controlling Lawn Pests
If you had trouble with lawn insects last summer, it pays to get an early start on control measures this spring. Exact timing for these control measures will vary according to where you live and which insect pest you want to control. For specific timing in your area, consult your local cooperative extension office. But for the most southern parts of the United States, February is the month to take action to prevent last year’s problems from becoming this year's problems.
Controlling Chinch bugs. Chinch bugs are surface-feeding lawn pests that damage St. Augustine grass. You may see them on grasses such as zoysia, Bermuda, and centipedegrass, but infestations usually occur where high populations have built up on St. Augustine grass. Signs of infestation include small, round patches of brownish-yellow grass that first appear in the hottest, driest areas of lawn, such as near paved areas or the sides of buildings. Left uncontrolled, large areas of lawn may die.
To confirm that you have chinch bugs, remove both ends of a coffee can and push it into the ground between a damaged area and healthy turf. Fill the can with water and, if present, the chinch bugs will float to the surface within five minutes.
To control chinch bugs and other lawn pests, use Bayer Advanced™ Complete Insect Killer For Soil & Turf Concentrate. It combines two Bayer proprietary ingredients for maximum pest control, providing protection against both aboveground and belowground insects. Aboveground pests like chinch bugs will be killed on contact. It protects against soil insects like white grubs and mole crickets for up to 3 months and is a very effective replacement for diazinon.
Controlling Fire Ants. Warming spring weather marks the start of another fire ant season in many mild winter areas, especially the southeastern United States. Fire ants sting more than 5 million Americans every year. Those stings can be so bad that approximately 25,000 people are forced to seek medical attention annually.
“Fire ants are extremely aggressive insects that thrive in sunny, open environments such as lawns and gardens,” said Bayer Advanced garden expert Lance Walheim. “When a mound is disturbed by a child or pet stepping or lying on it, worker ants boil out, swarm over the victim and inject venom repeatedly.”
Fire ants are 1/16 to 1/4 inch long and reddish brown in color. They live in mounds with many underground tunnels. A queen ant lives up to seven years and produces an average of 1,600 eggs per day, so a fire ant colony can consist of as many as 250,000 ants at a time.
So how can you control fire ants fast? Bayer Advanced™ Fire Ant Killer Granules is a ready-to-use dust that kills fire ants faster than other fire ant dusts. And it doesn’t have the strong odor associated with many other fire ant dusts. Just shake the dust on the mound using the built-in shaker top and water it in. The worker ants track the powder into the mound, killing the queen and the ant colony quickly. The one-pound size can treat up to 130 mounds. Bayer Advanced™ Fire Ant Killer Granules can be used on lawns, flowerbeds, ground covers, and around trees and shrubs.
Products Mentioned In This Article
Bayer Advanced
