This is the time of year when annual white grubs begin to infest turfgrass and, in the Midwest, we are blessed with an assortment of different annual white grub species. This group of insects produces one generation each year with the adults becoming active by early June. Adults lay eggs in turf and 1st instar […]

We’ve been seeing a smattering of Japanese beetle adults in our traps for the last few weeks in West Lafayette, but it appears their numbers are starting to increase as we head toward the end of June. Expect to see emergence come into full swing over the next two weeks in this part of the […]

Although reports of spring white grub damage have been relatively uncommon in Indiana in recent years, there have been a growing number of cases in the northeastern part of the state. The European chafer Rhizotrogus majalis Razoumowsky is apparently at the root of several reports of large scale and severe damage to turfgrass this spring. […]

We recently discovered that the hunting billbug is capable of successfully overwintering in the larval stage as far north as West Lafayette Indiana. This insect is mainly a pest of warm-season turfgrasses such as Bermudagrass and zoysiagrass and has become a perennial problem in parts of the state where these grasses are cultured. Although we’ve […]

There appears to be a wide-spread outbreak of armyworms [Pseudaletia (=Mythimna) unipuncta (Haworth)] infesting residential turf across southern Indiana. These insects typically have 2 generations per year in this part of the country and we are in the midst of the 2nd generation of larvae. Adult armyworm moths lay their eggs in large masses and […]

Here we are in the second week of July – a time when conditions start to become difficult for cool-season grasses. Heat, drought and wear during this time of the season may all contribute to declining turfgrass quality. However, one of the most commonly overlooked reasons for declining turfgrass quality during this difficult time of […]

The first Japanese beetles of the year were captured June 8 in West Lafayette. Emergence is now in full swing. This imported pest is common east of the Mississippi river and in the Mississippi river valley. Adults feed on more than 400 plant species including many common ornamental plants. The soil-dwelling larvae (grubs) feed on […]

Reports of spring white grub damage are relatively uncommon in most of the Midwest. However, the European chafer is a slightly different beast and seems to be more cold-hardy than other annual white grubs. This characteristic allows it to feed later into the fall and start feeding earlier in the spring compared to Japanese beetle […]