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Collection, Preservation and Display of Old Lawn Mowers

Lawn munching Larvae

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 I let my dog out for his last toilet break before bed and I was greeted by a mass army of White Grubs on the pathway and on my lawn, I can only guess that these pests were in the soil and the rain forced them up to the surface for air. The grubs proceeded  to wiggle their way towards my back door in mass, some of which successfully got under the backdoor of my home. I must have used close to twenty kettles of boiling water outside to kill them. In all my life, I have never seen or even heard of such a spectacle. I Googled this oddity and there are different variations and descriptions as to what type of Larvae these are but I have not got a clue. It certainly explains why I went from a thick lush lawn to one that has started to thin out, "The buggers are eating the grass roots"

I need to nip this in the bud and source a pesticide in the hope I do not get a second wave of Larvae wanting to share my home and garden so it looks like my weekend will be taken over by D.I.Y.  pest control. 

  

RansomesRob Wed, 29/09/2021

Hi John. It sounds like they might possibly be Chafer Grubs. They feed on the roots of grass. There is a product called Nemasys that uses Nematodes that attack the larval stages of insect pests. There is a Nemasys product specifically for killing Chafer Grubs. Not used it myself so cannot comment on how effective it is. Cheers.  Rob

John.Sutherland Wed, 29/09/2021

Thanks for the info, I had no luck finding that product locally so I sourced it on line and bought it straight away. Costs £16.99, free PP,  according to the information it is a live pesticide and once opened lasts two weeks. It's safe to use around pets and children and does not harm worms, bees and something else, I forget. Should arrive on Saturday so rain or shine, I need to cut the lawn right down and rake up any old thatch before application so pretty much I will ruin the once fabulous lawn to eradicate this pest but it should be worth it and come next year I will get the lawn back to the standard I once had during the summer. 
You can always count on a member with useful information even if it's not lawnmower related, thanks again.

kind regards,

John. 

 

John.Sutherland Thu, 30/09/2021

Possibly, we certainly had a fair few during last month dancing on the lawn, by all account I would not go to the extreme of extermination but they can't read "Keep of the grass" I dare say this will not be the last of it, just have to monitor the situation towards the end of future summer times.