White Worms killing grass?

[tcrum5711]

I have 3/4" white worms that are being eaten by robins in my lawn. The birds seem to only find them in dead spots that I assume the worms have created. Any ideas on what these things are and how to get rid of them? I have not been able to dig any of them up and identify.

[jt5019]

Sounds like grubs

Not sure whats best to use but home depot, lowes etc have several grub control products.

[HazyDavy]

Merit would probably be the best thing to use. Just kills grubs and not the other beneficial organisms and insects in your soil.

[Ric]

Merit would probably be the best thing to use. Just kills grubs and not the other beneficial organisms and insects in your soil.


TOO LATE FOR MERIT. Merit is a systemic that takes about three weeks before it works. Dylox or Sevin are instant knock downs that need to be applied now. BTW the lawn will get a lot worst before it starts to get better after treatment. The Grubs have done damage that is not seen yet.

[OrganicBob]

White worms? Hmmmm! I feel like I've heard this before. Dead grass? Yup, it's grubs. Merit works great, also a new product from Bayer works too. It's called Allectus. Good residual, without harming the beneficials. Moles eat grubs as well, so watch out! A good indicator that you've got grubs is that the thatch becomes spongy, and the dead turf can be easily lifted from the underlying soil. White grubs are the larval stage for many types of beetles. Eventually, beetles will emerge and could begin feeding on your ornamental landscaping. Getting these under control will be necessary in order for you to have a healthy lawn.

[OrganicBob]

Dylox and sevin work well too.

[Critical Care]

That's a good pic of a white grub, JT5019. At rest they are typically C-shaped, have brown heads and three pairs of legs. Damage from these guys is usually most severe in September and October when they reach maturity. These grubs turn into June bugs, or some people call them May or June beetles.

You need to eximine the soil around the grass roots and dig in the brown areas near the edge of the healthy green grass, and if you find more than one grub per square foot of area, you may want to treat the lawn. But first... confirm that these are grubs, and not good ol' friendly worms.

[tcrum5711]

Thanks for the help guys. I figured they were grubs, but I didn't know if there was something else that it could be. I could have spent a lot of time treating it for something that wasn't even there.

[sheshovel]

Just be carefull what you treat it with won't kill the Robins when they eat the grubs that are dead or dieing OK?

[Critical Care]

...Or the red red robin won't go bob bob bobbing along.