If you’d like help in identifying the weeds or insects that are ruining your lawn, we’re here to help. Please use this guide to lawn pests that are commonly found in the Baldwin County, AL region.
If you’d like additional help in identifying or treating these problems, please fill out one of our contact forms or just give us a call at (251) 648-9947
Insects Common to Baldwin County Lawns
Mole Crickets
Where to find? All grass types
Mole Crickets are the most destructive lawn insects we have. Not only do these insects destroy your lawn by feeding on and cutting through your lawn’s root system, they also create extensive networks of tunnels, further destabilizing the soil and limiting the ability of grass roots to grow, resulting in swaths of completely dead lawn.
While the damage can be apparent, letting you know that you have Mole Crickets, you can differentiate these from other crickets by recognizing their approximately 1″ bodies that are tan and/or grey in color and often seen in abundance throughout an infected lawn. They are most active after dusk.
Army Worms
Where to find? Bermuda and Zoysia
Not only are Army Worms fond of eating your grass, eventually they’ll turn in to moths, which can create additional problems for your property.
In addition to seeing the damage they cause, and locating the worms, you can identify them by their light green to brown, caterpillar-like bodies.
Tropical Sod Worms aka Tropical Sod Webworms
Where to find? All grass types
Very active in Spring to Fall, these caterpillars are extremely destructive, chewing on your lawn’s grass blades throughout the night.
The damage from the Tropical Sod Webworm is unique in that the damaged areas will have grass that appears shorter than any surrounding, healthy grass, leaving thin, brown, patchy grass in their wake.
These caterpillars are often brown colored at their youngest, turning green as they eat your healthy grass. That’s right… the nicer looking they become, the worse your lawn looks. Your grass goes from green to brown and these worms go from brown to green.
Grubs
Where to find? All grass types
Lawn Grubs, aka White Grubs or Japanese Beetle Grubs, are extremely common in lawns that do not utilize a grub control service. In fact, it’s hard to find a lawn that doesn’t have grubs. Feasting on your lawn’s healthy grass roots, they destroy your lawn from underground. Until you see the irregular patches of brown, dead lawn, you won’t even know what’s happening.
If you peel back a layer of grass, down to the roots, you’ll likely find these C-shaped, white-bodied larva, approximately 1/2″ to 1″ long. When you find one, you can be sure you’ll find more in the same vicinity.
Chinch Bugs
Where to find? St Augustine and Zoysia
Chinch Bugs bring a new level of destruction to your lawn. Not only do they drain your grass of their moisture, they even inject a type of poison into the blades of grass. To make them even worse, Mother Nature gave these bugs the defense mechanism of smelling awful. Sounds great, right?
As Chinch bugs move through your lawn, they’ll leave a path of gold, brown, or even an orange colored, dying grass behind.
Identifying them, beyond the damage they make, can be difficult due to their very small size, however they are unique looking. Less than 1/6″ in length, they’re one of the smallest insects in relation to the damage they cause, and recognizable from their dark and light grey bodies and amber-colored legs.
