2020 Grub Control Update and information!

Every year in the lower mainland BC, many lawns are being ripped apart by animals searching for the chafer grubs.

Important Note:

The NIC Lawn Guardian beneficial nematodes that we supply, MUST be ordered by June 20 on any given year, as they have to be packed and shipped from Ontario for mid July. Late orders “if possible”, will generally incur varying shipping costs as they will have to be individually shipped out from Ontario. So, please submit all orders prior to June 20 and let anybody else that may want to protect their lawns the same!

Most lawns have some grubs in them, but a large infestation when discovered by birds and animals can cause sever damage to your lawn. A well maintained, strong healthy lawn is your primary defense, but it is recommended that you add an annual nematode application to help build up your defenses to their maximum.

Birds tend to shred the lawn and skunks and raccoons tend to roll it back (which is the easier of the two to fix) as you can just play a little game of rolling it back each morning and they roll it back at night until somebody wins.

I quite often hear “Well, we haven’t had a problem yet!”. That is great, but remember – “The best defense is a good offense”. We at MyLawn.Care like to be proactive rather than reactive whenever possible. While that can be less exciting because you do not always see the results of everything you are doing, as you would in a reactive state, it can be very rewarding in the future as you look around at the other lawns around you over time.

We have two types of Chafer beetle in the lower mainland BC:

Spring: Grubs awaken from winter and start feeding on grass roots. After feeding the grubs change into pupae that will later become beetles.

Summer: Pupae turn into beetles, which emerge to feed on garden foliage and flowers. The beetles lay eggs in the lawn soon after.

Fall: Eggs hatch into new grubs, which feed on the grass roots causing damage to your lawn and making it easy for predators to spot. The destructive cycle begins again!

How do nematodes work?

Think of it as millions of little soldiers searching for grubs in your lawn.

• They locate and infect a host “the grub”. by releasing bacteria into the host.
• The host dies and nematode development and reproduction ensue.
• The resources “host” are depleted and juvenile nematodes develop and break free.
• They search for a new host and the process begins again!

Click here for a video that will show you how easy they are to apply.

Why do we use NIC?

• Canadian company, producing quality products for Canadian problems.
• Live host raised “in vivo”
• On natural sponge as pure IJ nematodes. IJ is the only stage that infests the grub. No carrier.
• 100% organic
• What is needed to combat the European chafer beetle is the nematode strain Heterorhabditis  bacteriaphora ( HB). This is the hardest strain to raise in a laboratory and the most difficult to keep in storage as well. This does not bode well for nematodes being created outside of Canada.
• 15 years of research.
• Nematodes have been found 8.5 years after release in soil, they do not die after killing grubs.

Things to know about application:

• Nematodes are light sensitive, so it is best to apply at dusk or on an overcast day.
• Nematodes use the water channels to travel in, so it is imperative that the lawn is watered both pre and post application, to ensure that they are off the grass and into the soil, where they can go to work.
• Nematodes are heavier than water, so always stir the solution prior to application.
• Use all solution within a couple of hours.
• Soil temperature needs to be above 10 degrees Celsius.
• Late summer/ Fall is the best time to spray as the larvae are small and weak.
• How to tell if they are fresh:
  • Alive:
  • Smell: Slight, not unpleasant
  • Colour: light beige to pink and consistent colour
  • Dead:
  • Smell: Strong, unpleasant
  • Colour: Mottled, splotchy, grey or black

• Grubs are infested within 48 hours, killed within 72 hours, and the next generation within 16-20 days.

We at MyLawn.Care have taken into account that every year in the lower mainland BC, many lawns are being ripped apart by animals searching for the chafer grubs. So, our Lawn Care Packs are created to specifically to perform in the BC lower mainland, so that you do not need to worry about this and can just spread the Care Pack and enjoy the results!

If you would like to hear more on another topic, or have any questions on the above, feel free to comment below or email us at [email protected]. We are here to help!