More heat, more pests: Top tips to safeguard your lawn before summer

More heat, more pests: Top tips to safeguard your lawn before summer

Warmer weather brings outdoor pests back in full force, and they may cause yard damage before you even notice that they’re there. Each season and agronomic region brings its own set of growing challenges. From root-chewing grubs, plant-piercing chinch bugs, to fire ant nests, what you do now to protect your lawn matters.

TruGreen shares a few simple lawn maintenance habits to follow to help keep pests under control.

Early signs of lawn pest infestation

There are a few early signs of pest damage that may be mistaken for other problems:

• Patchiness and discoloration (often mistaken for drought)
• Irregular wilting (that doesn’t resolve with watering)
• Spongy or easily lifted sod (common with grub damage, later in the season)
• Unresolved problems from the prior year (assess the past to predict future reoccurrence)

These visible signs of lawn stress are often misdiagnosed, and missing the cause of the distressed lawn can delay an appropriate response. One way to fix this problem? Regular inspection throughout the year helps catch issues early.

“Assessing your lawn regularly and scouting for issues — especially after warm, hot dry or hot wet periods of time — is the best way to catch problems before they reach damaging levels,” says Brian Feldman, senior director of technical operations at TruGreen. “Having a professional consultant to discuss what you are seeing daily helps to diagnose issues and thwart pressure more rapidly. That partnership is critical to long-term landscape health and beauty.”

Common pests that may be lurking in your turf

Different pests damage lawns in different ways: some below the surface and others above. A few common culprits include:

• White grubs: Feed on the grassroots, causing turf to loosen and peel back; damage often appears as brown patches.
• Billbugs: Larvae damage stems and roots, causing plants to wither and die
• Armyworms, cutworms, sod webworms: Chew grass blades, leaving notches or bare spots; damage may appear quickly during active feeding periods.
• Chinch bugs, aphids: Extract fluids from grass blades, causing yellowing that can resemble drought stress.

How to make your yard less welcoming to biting, stinging pests

Common outdoor nuisance pests like mosquitoes are inevitable during the warm-weather months. However, these pests damage your yard and can pose a health risk to your family and pets. The good news is that there are ways to limit exposure and combat pests if they do make themselves at home on your property.

• Mosquitoes: “Mosquitoes breed anywhere there is standing water, so regularly inspect kiddie pools, toys, plant trays, garbage cans, and clogged gutters,” said Feldman. “Overgrown grass and shady spots give mosquitoes places to hide. Keeping your lawn mowed and dense vegetation trimmed removes resting spots.”
• Fire ants: Fire ants are aggressive pests that bite and sting. They live in colonies, building large mounds that provide a telltale sign that fire ants have invaded your yard. Once fire ants begin to build mounds on your lawn, they will continue building more until stopped. Keeping a well-maintained yard and avoiding leaving food out, including pet food, are two effective ways to reduce the risk of an infestation.
• Ticks and fleas: “The condition of your lawn plays a major role in whether fleas and ticks settle there,” said Feldman. “Fleas thrive in warm temperatures and hide in moist, shaded spaces. Ticks prefer tall grasses, wooded areas, and dense shrubs. A healthy, well-maintained landscape is one of the best defenses. To prevent fleas, avoid overwatering, remove leaves and other debris regularly, and keep garden beds tidy. Likewise, keeping grass mowed to the recommended height, avoiding tall ornamental grasses near high-traffic areas, and installing a 3-foot-wide strip of wood chips or gravel between wooded areas and your lawn are some of the best ways to prevent tick migration.”

Protecting trees and shrubs

Spring and fall are the best times of year for planting new trees and shrubs to improve the look of your yard, but success depends on how well you maintain your new plantings.

“Spring into summer is the ideal time to begin fertilization treatments as part of a comprehensive tree and shrub care strategy,” said Feldman. “Fertilized landscape plants produce greener, larger leaves, increased flowering, and better overall plant health and vigor. Without proper nutrients in the soil, they will not reach their full potential and can show signs of decline, including poor leaf color, stunted growth, and reduced resistance to insects and disease.”

Landscape plants and shrubs also need to be protected from pests, especially new plantings, just like your turfgrass.

“Trees and shrubs can be affected by a wide range of pests depending on local climate and plant type, including aphids, scale insects, Japanese beetles, leaf spot, and powdery mildew,” said Feldman. “Left untreated, these issues can weaken plants, reduce growth, and lead to long-term damage.”

Late spring and summer pests are a part of warm-weather life, but how you prepare for them can make a big difference. Closely monitoring your lawn when it’s warm and wet outside, regularly watering and fertilizing trees and shrubs, and maintaining a well-kept yard are a few simple ways to keep pests in check.

If you spot the early warning signs and stay on top of basic lawn care with the help of a professional, you’ll be in much better shape heading into summer.

This story was produced by TruGreen and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.