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Grub Prevention and Control Services

Is your lawn looking a little patchier this year? Have you noticed that, even with a comprehensive lawn care plan, your lawn is still developing brown or thin spots? If you feel like you’ve tried everything to correct your lawn and you still aren’t seeing results, it could be time to consider searching your lawn for white grubs. White grubs are a common lawn pest that can cause your grass to look patchy or ill-maintained—even when you’re paying special attention to your lawn care schedule.

If you’re dealing with lawn grubs, you don’t need to suffer alone. TruGreen’s team of professional lawn care service providers know how to get rid of these stubborn pests and bring your lawn back to its ideal condition.

What are White Grubs?

White grubs are the larvae stage of most types of beetles. If you’ve ever noticed Japanese beetles or June bugs wandering around your lawn, chances are that they began as white grubs beneath the surface of your lawn. As the name suggests, white grubs are named after their body shape, which resembles a white “C” with legs near the head.

Beetles must lay their eggs underground. If a beetle decides that your lawn is a good spot to make its home, it will burrow under your grass and lay eggs. When these eggs hatch, white grubs emerge and begin feeding on the roots of your grass seeds. This is why one of the first symptoms of a grub infestation is patchiness throughout your lawn. After the grubs mature into beetles, they dig their way out of your soil and mate on the surface. When mature beetles are ready to lay their eggs, they’ll dig into your soil again and the cycle begins again.

Due to the lifespan of a grub, it can take over a year to fully correct a lawn infestation. Thankfully, professional services like TruGreen can help ensure that you’re getting the best possible treatment and that you have the necessary services in place to prevent grubs from returning next year. 

How Can I Tell if I Have Grubs in My Lawn?

If you think you might have a problem with grubs in your yard, you can do a soil test before seeking professional treatment. Take a tour around your property and locate areas where you’re seeing more damage when compared to the rest of your grass or your neighbor’s lawn. Mark these areas and use a spade to remove one square foot of sod in each part of your lawn that you believe might be damaged.

Pull back the layer of sod in each area and look for grubs. You should be able to spot them instantly thanks to their distinct white coloring and body shape. A few grubs don’t necessarily require treatment. Count the number of grubs in each area of sod and use the following guide to determine what type of treatment you’ll need.

  • Less than five grubs: If you have less than five grubs in each square of sod, you typically won’t need to treat your lawn, as this usually isn’t enough grubs to cause damage to your grass.
  • Between five and ten grubs: If you find between five and ten grubs, you might need to begin treating your lawn. Survey the overall damage of your lawn and decide if you’d like to seek treatment. You can also get a professional opinion from a company like TruGreen to evaluate the current condition of your lawn and determine what types of treatments can get you your desired results.
  • More than ten grubs: If you find more than ten grubs in a single section of soil, it’s likely that your lawn has significant damage. You’ll want to start with a professional lawn care company as soon as possible to limit future damage to your lawn.

Even if you don’t currently have grubs in your lawn, you might want to consider applying a preventive treatment to your grass. These types of treatments prevent beetles from laying eggs in your lawn in the future. 

Why are Grubs Harmful?

If you notice that you have a problem with white grubs in your lawn, you should take action as quickly as possible. Though a few grubs aren’t a major issue, an infestation can quickly harm the health of your lawn, leaving you with a time-consuming mess to clean up. Here are some of the reasons why it’s dangerous to leave grubs in your lawn without treatment.

  • Grubs damage your grass: One of the biggest reasons why lawn grubs are so harmful is because they feast on the roots of your grass. Your grass uses its roots to take in water and nutrients from the soil, which means that grubs can quickly cause your grass to die. If you’re noticing more brown or thinning patches in your lawn, grubs might be the cause.

Grubs also make your grass less resistant to damage. If you think you might have a grub problem in your lawn, test out your soil and attempt to pull up a small chunk of sod. If the grass comes up quickly or the earth feels spongy, it’s possible that grubs have damaged the roots of your lawn.

  • Grubs make your lawn more susceptible to disease: Damage from grubs doesn’t only make your lawn look less attractive—it can also harm the overall health of your property and make your lawn more susceptible to some of the most common fungal and turf diseases. When grubs damage the roots of your grass, your lawn has a more difficult time getting the nutrients, oxygen, and water that it needs to fight off diseases like brown patch or fairy ring. If you’re taking care of your lawn and you’re still seeing more damage to your lawn this year, grubs could be the underlying cause.
  • Grubs attract more animals to your lawn: Have you noticed more mole tracks or birds in your lawn? Many animals feed on white grubs and beetles—and if your lawn has plenty of grubs to go around, these animals can invite themselves onto your property. Animals like moles, raccoons, and skunks can even dig up your lawn in search of grubs, which might require you to pay for additional overseeding services.

Handling a grub problem is easier if you begin treatment early. We recommend regularly assessing the condition of your lawn so you can catch grub infestations before they can cause major damage to your property. 

How Does TruGreen Provide Grub Control Services?

If you’re facing a stubborn grub problem in your lawn, call in the team of experts at TruGreen for quick, responsive service. TruGreen offers both corrective grub treatments for current infestations as well as preventive treatments that will help you enjoy a healthier lawn throughout the year. Here’s what you can expect when you contact TruGreen for grub control services.

  • Healthy Lawn Analysis: We start all of our new clients off with a thorough Healthy Lawn Analysis. Our local property specialist will survey your lawn, taking note of any grubs or beetles that seem to be making their home in your lawn. Your technician will then create a comprehensive plan of action based on the composition of your soil, the types of grubs in your lawn, and other additional factors.
  • Application of insect control: After guiding you through your grub control plan, your TruGreen technician will apply a grub control product to your lawn depending on the current life cycle of the beetles in your grass. In most cases, your technician will apply this first treatment just before egg laying season to maximize its effectiveness. Your technician will then ensure that the treatment reaches the roots of your lawn.
  • Enjoy your new, healthy lawn: If grubs are found in your lawn, the treatment applied by TruGreen will kill them off before they’re able to lay eggs of their own. This will effectively eliminate any grubs from your lawn in just a single life cycle.

In addition to grub control services, TruGreen’s team also offers a wide range of aeration, mosquito control, and lawn maintenance services to keep your lawn looking its best. 

Why TruGreen?

As a homeowner, you only want trustworthy, reliable companies to perform services on your property. TruGreen is one of the most trusted names in grub control services across the country. Here are a few of the many reasons why homeowners trust TruGreen for all of their lawn care needs.

  • TruGreen takes an all-inclusive approach to lawn care: At TruGreen, we understand that your lawn might be suffering from multiple pest problems or diseases concurrently. That’s why we start all of our new clients off with a Healthy Lawn Analysis to determine the treatments that are best fitted to their soil type, grass condition, and local climate.
  • TruGreen only works with professionals: TruGreen’s team is made up only of trained lawn care professionals and those who have passed our TruExpert Certification Program. This ensures that you’ll receive consistent, quality treatments each time you schedule an appointment.
  • TruGreen is available throughout the United States: TruGreen works with a complete team of local experts across the country to provide nearly everyone with access to top-quality lawn care services.

Not satisfied with your results from TruGreen? Our Healthy Lawn Guarantee ensures that we’ll return as many times as needed to get you the results that you’re looking for. 

Getting You the Lawn You Need

Controlling grubs in your lawn and maintaining beautiful green grass doesn’t need to be a challenge when you choose TruGreen. Interested in learning more about our team and our lawn care services? Give us a call today at 877-349-9084 to claim your free quote—and get on the road to the lawn you’ve been dreaming of.