redbird – posted 15 August 2003 05:42
Yep, I’m the guy who has been singing the praises of Empire Zoysia on my new lawn – now I have my first serious problem – can anyone provide any info?
I am beginning to see thinning/browning in some slightly shaded areas of my lawn. Not really small patches – just very large areas that look as if they have increased dead blades and decreased green blades – as if recovering from a massive scalping. Previously, these areas had been the most lush areas of my lawn – best color, fastest growth, etc. The grass seemed to thrive best in these slightly shaded/slightly wetter areas.
I have begun to notice that hordes of little flying insects take flight in these areas as I mow (concurrent with the recent thinning/browning). I have lots of crickets too, but that is nothing new – the masses of flying beetles are fairly new.. I hate to use insecticide, because I love the tree frogs/toads/lizards in my yard area (sigh) but I am resigned at this point. Anyway, the hordes of insects are spittle bugs. I am also being told that spittle bugs should not be harming my lawn unless there is some other, underlying problem – is this true? I am in SE GA, the weather here as been bizarrely wet this year – non-stop.
So – what do you think – is the problem spittle bugs – or something else? Any recommendations regardon home-treatment (I prefer a hose-end sprayer method)? Should I lightly fertilize the geass after treatment to aid it’s recovery – zoysia recovers very slowly?
Thanks,Mike
Will-PCB – posted 15 August 2003 06:21
Is the blades of the grass showing signs of being eaten?
Is the ground underneat the grass loose as if a bug was digging round under there?
See any bug droppings?
Any signs of a fungus?
If not, you could just be suffering from the standard old Summer decline. Although its been rainy, it has also been hot. Maybe if you see no obvious signs of bug damage or fungus, you could just need a little fertilizer to push the lawn on through till the Fall.
redbird – posted 15 August 2003 07:53
The blades do not appear eaten (but spittle bugs don’t eat the blades – or so I am told -they suck the juices and kill the blades that way. I see no bug droppings (perhaps I am simply not able to identify them). I see no fungus that I am able to identify (perhaps I am not aware of what to look for).
I am seeing this (in these areas only):
Thinning overall (fewer green blades and able to see scattered, tiny holes in the grass canopy – pencil diameter size or less – where the earth below is visible).
An overall browning of the large areas affected – as if the awn had been scalped and is recovering. Many completely brown blades – fewer green blades.
Clouds (literally clouds) of spittle bugs when I mow (dark brown beetles w/two orange stripes on their back) and more than a few crickets.
Again, these areas are slightly shaded – therefore slightly more damp – but they are also the areas that have displayed the lushest, most prolific growth during the whole season. Due to the excerssive rain this year, I have not watered the lawn since the sod was new – but lack of moisture is definitely not an issue.
Mike
Baseball1 – posted 15 August 2003 09:47
If someone is online in this conversation could you please help me, i am desperate, my concern is posted in the environmental misteries, both under the name baseball1 could you please help me..someone?
Will-PCB – posted 15 August 2003 11:35
I’d treat for the spittle bugs, fertilize as much as your comfortable with, and stomp the area into the ground (since its new sod and you want to make sure its in good contact with the ground).
Then I’d sit back and watch to see if there is improvements.
frenchman – posted 15 August 2003 20:46
Take a sample of your yard and look at it to see if if you have any cutworms. Cutworms are bad right now. You said that you saw small holes in your yard as the size of a pencil. It sounds like cutworms to me. They can do alot of damage it a matter of times.
redbird – posted 18 August 2003 05:36
Well, I can tell y’all what I’ve done so far – I sprayed the shady areas of my lawn with soapy water (filled an Ortho “Dial-a-Spray” hose-end sprayer bottle with a half & half mixture of dish soap and water, wetting down the lawn with the sprayer set at a rate of 2 oz. per gallon). This brought all the critters to the surface of the lawn. Again, all I saw were MASSES of spittle bugs, hopping & flying everywhere, some leaf hoppers and black crickets. I followed up in 5 minutes with Ortho Bug-Be-Gone, again through the hose-end sprayer. I went through the lawn 2 days later and I couldn’t scare up a single spittle bug – but there were a couple of black crickets – no big deal. Since Bug-Be-Gone is formulated to kill just about everything, I feel pretty sure that any bugs I was unaware of are probably toasted pretty good. The lawn areas in question don’t look terrible – just overall slightly brown & thinning in large patches where there are more brown blades than green blades – like a lawn looks when it hasn’t been watered on a hot summer. Anyway, I am considering fertilizing lightly this week. Any thoughts/suggestions from my fellow turf warriors are still welcome.
Mike
Lex – posted 24 August 2003 07:54
Mike: I had a problem that sounded similar. You need to see if you have billbugs. Billbugs are extremely hard to kill because the adults are like weevils, the larva are grubs, and the eggs are in the base of the grass stems. You’ll need to kill the adults with one product then the larva with another. AND you’ll need to treat again in the spring because you can’t kill the eggs. http://ipm.ncsu.edu/AG268/html/hunting_billbugs.htm
redbird – posted 25 August 2003 09:06
Thanks, Lex – I will check for billbugs & get back with you.
Mike
redbird – posted 25 August 2003 14:55
Lex,I am just going to treat the whole lawn w/ Triazicide granules (Spectracide Product). It is supposed to kill above & below-ground pests, including spittlebugs, billbugs and grubs – I am assuming that anything which kills white grubs in the sub-soil would likewise kill any billbug larvae that are there with them.
I’ll keep you updated on my progress.
Mike
redbird – posted 29 August 2003 07:59
Lex/Frenchman/Will,Yep, I had some hunting billbugs in the Empire Zoysia along w/spittlebugs -hard to locate, only found two (have to assume there were more). I had previously treated the browning areas with Spectracide spray. I recently treated the entire lawn w/Triazicide granules and gave a light fertilizer/iron application. Lawn is looking great, rebounding, brown filling in w green blades at a surprising rate.
Q – I found one adult hunting billbug on a plant in a hanging basket near the lawn. I understand that I have not eradicated billbugs from the world, but it made me question: Should I re-apply Triazicide? It kills above ground, in thatch, and sub-soils. It is supposed to have a 4 week residual effect. Should I re-apply (it’s been less than two weeks) or am I good to go for the year? Whattayathink?
Mike.
redbird – posted 29 August 2003 07:59
Lex/Frenchman/Will,Yep, I had some hunting billbugs in the Empire Zoysia along w/spittlebugs -hard to locate, only found two (have to assume there were more). I had previously treated the browning areas with Spectracide spray. I recently treated the entire lawn w/Triazicide granules and gave a light fertilizer/iron application. Lawn is looking great, rebounding, brown filling in w green blades at a surprising rate.
Q – I found one adult hunting billbug on a plant in a hanging basket near the lawn. I understand that I have not eradicated billbugs from the world, but it made me question: Should I re-apply Triazicide? It kills above ground, in thatch, and sub-soils. It is supposed to have a 4 week residual effect. Should I re-apply (it’s been less than two weeks) or am I good to go for the year? Whattayathink?
Mike.
doro – posted 04 January 2009 20:37
I too have had problems with spittle bugs in my Empire Zoysia. It has been severely infested for the last 4 summers(since the lawn was put in). Is it possible to treat it during the winter and destroy the eggs? I would appreciate any input anyone might have on this.