by Dave Geis

If you’re outside entertaining your friends and family (maybe not this week with record temperatures everywhere!!!), you may notice a few guests who arrived uninvited!  Party Crashers!!!

It seems that the harsh winter, along with some very early strange weather patterns (April and May saw all of the fruit trees blooming in the same week all across Maryland and parts of Pennsylvania!).

So who are these early, uninvited guests?  Good old Mr. Japanese Beetle for one.  Also, his friends, the Green June Beetle and the Oriental Beetle.  Not only will they chew on the leaves of most fruit trees, especially plum, they will eventually burrow into the ground and lay eggs.  That’s when the fun begins!  Once hatched, these larvae will feed on the grass roots.  Eventually, patches of brown, dead turf will appear where they have been feeding.  If you haven’t yet treated for the larvae, you have about one week.  The best way to control these root-feeding larvae, better known as grubs, is to apply an insecticide just before the eggs hatch.  The best window of time is about 2-3 weeks before the 4^th of July up to about 2 weeks after.

Another unwelcome participant at your cookout is the Bagworm.  They love to “hang” out on your Leyland Cypress, arborvitae, and spruce trees.  Look closely because they are still somewhat small.  They look like small bags or cones hanging from the tree.  Unless treated, they can quickly devour a plant.  Try using Bt or Conserve as a pesticide treatment. If they have grown to a larger size, whack those guys with something stronger like Orthene!  If you fail to treat while they are still feeding, in all likelihood, say goodbye to your tree!

On another note, one quick turf tip!

If your lawn has gone dormant (brown, straw colored) during this recent drought period, don’t start watering now.  Simply wait for the next good soaking rain and watch the fescues respond.  If you start watering on your own, you’ll break the plants’ natural protection of shutting down the photosynthesis process, and you’ll be forced to continue watering until the drought breaks.

While in dormancy, keep any type of traffic (both foot and vehicular) off the grass.  You’ll break the tender “crown” of the plant and loose it for good.

Stay cool!  Relief is in sight!

This entry was posted Saturday, July 10th, 2010 at 12:10 pm and is filed under Articles by Dave, Educational. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.