Something is Killing my grass - Ask Extension
In my grass I`ve notices these little mounds of dirt all over the place 1.5" dia. x 3/4" high with holes about half the size of a dime burrowed into t...
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Something is Killing my grass #459622
Asked June 04, 2018, 7:17 PM EDT
In my grass I`ve notices these little mounds of dirt all over the place 1.5" dia. x 3/4" high with holes about half the size of a dime burrowed into the grass . The grass itself turning yellow in long stripes ? A local nursery I frequent had no idea of the problem and gave me your address in hopes you might be able to help ? Normally my grass this time of year would be a deep green and very healthy looking . Sending photos in hopes they will help ?
Thanks Much , Dave BrownEl Paso County Colorado
Expert Response
Hello Dave
Thank you for contacting ask an expert. This is perplexing. My initial thought when seeing the striping on your lawn was mole or vole tunnels. But the holes are too small for those creatures. A grub infestation seems more likely based on the holes, but doesn't really explain the stripes.
What i would like you to do is pick up a patch of dead grass and see if you can observe grubs.The grubs use the grass roots as their food source so you get dead patches of grass. When a lawn is infested with grubs (beetle larvae) often skunks will push their noses in to get the grubs. Thus leaving little holes the size of the end of skunks nose. (They have pointy noses).
If you find the grubs then I think that is the answer and i can provide with some additional information about how to manage grubs.
Thank you for contacting ask an expert. This is perplexing. My initial thought when seeing the striping on your lawn was mole or vole tunnels. But the holes are too small for those creatures. A grub infestation seems more likely based on the holes, but doesn't really explain the stripes.
What i would like you to do is pick up a patch of dead grass and see if you can observe grubs.The grubs use the grass roots as their food source so you get dead patches of grass. When a lawn is infested with grubs (beetle larvae) often skunks will push their noses in to get the grubs. Thus leaving little holes the size of the end of skunks nose. (They have pointy noses).
If you find the grubs then I think that is the answer and i can provide with some additional information about how to manage grubs.
First of all I appreciate your help ! Second I've done as you suggested by digging up some of the dead grass in 3 different and did come up with some grubs . But the more I dug I actually found very few only 2 .
Not knowing exactly how deep they are I dug some spots shallow and some a little deeper but still only came up with 2 . As I was digging around I did notice what seem to be really small grubs ? There size was tiny maybe a 1/4 in. in leight and 64th in dia. pretty small but still white in color with little arms which seemed the front/or head ? Sorry but didn't get any photos !
Should I have found more ?
Not knowing exactly how deep they are I dug some spots shallow and some a little deeper but still only came up with 2 . As I was digging around I did notice what seem to be really small grubs ? There size was tiny maybe a 1/4 in. in leight and 64th in dia. pretty small but still white in color with little arms which seemed the front/or head ? Sorry but didn't get any photos !
Should I have found more ?
Hello Dave
There are several explanations for the sparse numbers of grubs that you found. An obvious thought is that the grubs have pupated and are now beetles. The concentration of grubs does not have to be high to cause damage to the lawn.
Below is a link to a fact sheet that will give you some control options.
Ihttp://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/insects/billbugs-and-white-grubs-5-516/ Overall the best treatment is to take care of your lawn as it recovers, That means adequate irrigation. Fertilization with a balance fertilizer to encourage root growth and thatch management if necessary. There are various pesticide options, to be effective with that approach you will want to try to figure out what beetle is causing the problem. The fact sheet lists products and when they are best applied for each kind of beetle.
I suspect strongly that this problem was exacerbated by the dry winter, and then the extremely high temperatures at the beginning of June. Those conditions probably stressed your turf out and made the damage more apparent.
Good luck with your lawn. Don't hesitate to contact us again.
There are several explanations for the sparse numbers of grubs that you found. An obvious thought is that the grubs have pupated and are now beetles. The concentration of grubs does not have to be high to cause damage to the lawn.
Below is a link to a fact sheet that will give you some control options.
Ihttp://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/insects/billbugs-and-white-grubs-5-516/ Overall the best treatment is to take care of your lawn as it recovers, That means adequate irrigation. Fertilization with a balance fertilizer to encourage root growth and thatch management if necessary. There are various pesticide options, to be effective with that approach you will want to try to figure out what beetle is causing the problem. The fact sheet lists products and when they are best applied for each kind of beetle.
I suspect strongly that this problem was exacerbated by the dry winter, and then the extremely high temperatures at the beginning of June. Those conditions probably stressed your turf out and made the damage more apparent.
Good luck with your lawn. Don't hesitate to contact us again.
