The yellow patches of sod on your lawn are more than just dry grass. If your turf grass doesn’t recover even after watering, you could be facing a chinch bug infestation. These tiny lawn insects feed on grass, sucking the blades dry before moving to the next greener patch. You could be staring at a dead lawn within no time.
Chinch bugs invade already drought-stressed turfs, sucking the life out of the remaining healthy grass. It’s best to consider pest control in Jacksonville early enough before the gnarly critters destroy your landscaping.
Can Chinch Bugs Cause Damage To My Lawn And Lawn Furniture?
Chinch bug damage on turf grasses can be extensive. The invasive lawn pests use their special mouthparts to bite into grass blades and stems before sucking the plant juices out. The insect injects the hosts with a natural toxin as they feed, causing the vegetation to dry. After the turf grass dies, the chinch bugs attack healthier patches of the lawn.
These nasty pests feed on grass, so they can not damage your lawn furniture. However, the impact on your lawn’s health is devastating. If you suspect a chinch bug invasion on your property, contact a Jacksonville pest control company immediately.
Can Chinch Bugs Bite?
Adult bugs and their nymphs can cause your grasses to wilt and die. Though chinch bug bites can kill your lawn plants, they are pretty harmless to humans. Their mouthparts cannot pierce your skin and will not cause any harm to you or your family.
How Harmful Can Chinch Bugs Be?
Chinch bugs can render all your landscaping efforts useless within a few weeks. The adult bugs overwinter in shrubs and near building foundations before coming out during spring. They inflict the most damage during summer when the weather is hotter and drier. Jacksonville residents may never know if the dry patches on their landscaping are drought-related or a chinch bug infestation.
The invasive pests also prefer to attack stressed lawns, accelerating their death. Underwatering, misusing pesticides, and other poor lawncare practices can attract the bugs to your property, turning your landscaping brown in no time.
How Can I Remove Chinch Bugs From My Property For Good?
Quick and effective chinch bug control is necessary to save your St Augustine grass from dying. Here are tips to help you eliminate the tiny terror bugs from your lawn.
- Proper lawn care
Chinch bugs love to invade stressed grasses. Implementing proper lawn care techniques can minimize the risk of attack. Some of the more-impactful methods include:
- Mowing your grass to the maximum recommended height
- Deep watering your lawn, especially during the drier months
- Dethatching the yard annually
- Properly applying nitrogen-based fertilizers
- Continually weeding the lawn
Proper lawn maintenance can reduce lawn stress, keeping the grasses healthy enough to resist a chinch bug invasion.
- Conventional and natural products
You can use pest control products to eliminate the adult and baby chinch bugs from your yard. However, the harsh chemicals can pose a safety threat to your children and pets.
Alternatively, you can use natural chinch bug treatment options like diatomaceous earth and boric acid. Introducing biocontrol predators such as ladybugs to your lawn can also help control the chinch bug population.
- Professional chinch bug control
The most effective way to eradicate these destructive lawn pests from your property is to call professional Jacksonville pest control services. At Trad’s Pest Control, our experts can help with chinch bug identification and recommend effective treatment options depending on the infestation.
Trad’s Pest Control will devise a unique treatment plan tailored to your property’s needs. Additionally, our lawn care services will restore your lawn to a lush, green, and healthy state for you and your family to enjoy. Reach out to us today to learn more about getting rid of chinch bugs from your Jacksonville home.