Spruce Galls

What are Spruce Galls?

Gall Adelgids cause wood galls to form on spruce tree branches. The galls, which change from green in early summer to brown in late summer, are pineapple-shaped and resemble cones.

Keeping Gall Adelgids in Check

• Water plants weekly when rainfall is less than one inch. Plants with an adequate moisture supply are naturally more resistant to insect and disease problems.
• Fertilize adequately to promote healthy plants.

Scale Insects

What Are Scale Insects?

The first signs of a scale problem are leaf yellowing, branch die back and general decline of the plant. Although very small, scale insects are usually present in large numbers. They form what looks like a crust on branches, twigs, and leaves. Scale insects extract sap and nutrients from the plant, weakening it and making it more susceptible to winter damage and drought stress.

Scale Insect Control

Scale control begins with a horticultural oil spray in the fall, winter or spring for protection against over-wintering adults. Treatment continues with sprays throughout the summer to control the crawler stages of scale. It may take a minimum of 2 years to establish good control for plants infected by scale insects. Here are some helpful hints for controlling scale insects:

• Follow a sound fertilization program
• Water thoroughly in dry months to maximize plant vigor.

Japanese Beetles

What Are Japanese Beetles?

Japanese beetles can be a devastating insect to many plants in the landscape. The adult beetle feeds on leaves of many ornamental plants, including: crabapple, crape myrtle, linden, purple leaf plum, flowering cherry, and Japanese maple. This insect pest occurs in the Eastern U.S. (Northeast to Southeast and into the Midwest) but continues to move westward. The adult beetle is about 1/2" long with a bright metallic green head and mid-section. Coppery brown wings covers do not completely cover the body, leaving exposed a row of five spots of white hairs down each side of body.

Damage from Japanese Beetles

The Japanese beetle overwinters as a partially grown grub in the soil. In early spring, the grub resumes feeding on turfgrass roots. Pupation occurs near the soil surface where the grub transforms into the colorful adult beetle stage. Adult emergence occurs as early as the last of May in the Southeast and as late at mid-July in the Midwest.

On ornamentals, it is the adult beetle feeding on the leaves that causes damage. Beetles have tremendous appetites, feeding for 30-45 days. These beetles are leaf-skeletonizers, eating everything but the leaf veins, leaving a lace-like skeleton. Often the feeding becomes so great that plants look like they have been scorched by fire. This extensive damage not only reduces the plant's aesthetic value but also reduces plant vigor. The grub stage can seriously damage and kill large areas of turfgrass. Damaged turfgrass will easily roll back like a carpet.

Control of Japanese Beetles

Control of Japanese beetles can be very difficult for several reasons:

• Adult beetles are very mobile and can move in from non-controlled areas.
• Feeding occurs over a long time and on many plants.
• Japanese beetle populations can be extremely high.
• Some feeding may occur before control is achieved with certain pesticides.
• Grub control applications to the lawn will not eliminate beetles from the landscape.
• Chemical Control is the best means to minimize the damage caused by Japanese beetles. Since feeding occurs over a long time, more than one application may be required. Some pesticides will stop beetle feeding, but beetles may still be present.
• Traps are not successful in controlling Japanese beetles and may, in fact, encourage a greater number of beetles on a property.

Gypsy Moths

What Are Gypsy Moths?

Gypsy moths are actually caterpillars that feed on the leaves of many different trees and ornamental shrubs in the spring and early summer. These caterpillars are capable of consuming large amounts of foliage quickly, causing severe defoliation to even very large trees. Their presence can also be a nuisance, with unattractive, tan egg cases on stems of leaves.

Damage by Gypsy Moths

Trees attacked by gypsy moths can become weakened and susceptible to borers and severe winter temperatures. While healthy, unstressed hardwoods can withstand a single defoliation without serious damage, evergreens are often killed by just one complete defoliation. Since each gypsy moth egg mass contains as many as a thousand eggs, a population can increase to a damaging level in a short time

Cytospora Canker

What Are Cytospora Canker?

This canker disease (caused by a fungus) occurs most frequently on stressed spruces, or those over the age of 15 years. Although the disease seldom kills the plant outright, it destroys the beauty of the tree by killing branches, especially lower branches. Fungicides are not effective in controlling this disease. Root zone fertilization and watering will improve plant vigor and help ward off the fungus.

Prevention of Cytospora Canker:

• Dead and dying branches should be removed as soon as possible.
• Sterilize pruning tools between each cut with denatured alcohol or a 10% solution of bleach and water to prevent spreading the disease.
• Avoid injury to tree limbs.
• Follow a regular program of fertilization and watering to promote vigorous growt

Aphids

What Are Aphids?

These tiny pests can do a great deal of harm to the beauty of plants in a very short time. Usually present in large numbers, aphids literally suck the sap from the leaves and growing tips of plants. Curling, distortion, and stunting can result. Aphids also secrete honeydew, a shiny, sticky substance that drips over the plant parts and attracts ants. To make matters worse, a black fungus (called sooty mold) often grows on the honeydew.

Controlling aphids

• Because aphids move from plant to plant and regenerate quickly, they are hard to control. Insect sprays will lower the populations to a non-damaging level. If aphids do not respond to sprays, call your lawn professional.
• To get rid of honeydew and sooty mold, simply wash it from your plants with your garden hose.

Sod Web Worms

What Are Sod Web Worms?

Sod web worms are the larval or caterpillar stage of a small, tan moth often seen flying over the turf in early evening from May through mid-summer. Sod web worms feed on the grass blades just above the soil line. The feeding defoliates the lawn where the sod web worms chew off the grass.

Sod web worms feed at night and hide in the thatch during the day. Presence of the larvae may not be noticed until significant damage has occurred. Large numbers of tan moths on your lawn in the early evening may be evidence of sod web worm infestation.

Controlling Sod Web Worms

• Thatch maintenance at less than 3/4 inch thickness is helpful in decreasing the chance of sod web worm activity.
• Watering the lawn to prevent drought stress also is helpful.
• If you notice large numbers of moths on your lawn, or small spots where grass blades have been chewed away, contact your lawn care specialist. Your specialist can identify any insect problems and advise you as to the correct action.

Mole Crickets

What Are Mole Crickets?

Mole crickets are one of the most destructive insects of lawn turf in the Southeastern United States. All warm-season grasses can be attacked by mole crickets. However, bahiagrass and Bermuda grass are damaged most severely. Mole crickets damage turfgrass by tunneling and by direct feeding. Their tunneling action loosens the soil so that the grass is uprooted and dies. As they burrow through the soil, they also leave mounds of dirt on the surface. Mole crickets may also feed directly on the grass root systems, which can seriously weaken the plant.

Controlling Mole Crickets

Insecticides are currently the best control method for mole crickets in turfgrass. Even with the proper product application, control may be limited due to unfavorable temperatures, lack of soil moisture, or both. Irrigation is essential following the application of a spray or granular material to ensure that the material is carried into the root zone where the mole crickets are feeding and tunneling

Fleas and Ticks

Fleas (1/32" - 1/16" long) are tiny, hard-bodied, wingless insects with a flattened body and legs adapted for jumping. Varying from brown to black in color, fleas live on the blood of animals, birds and humans. Fleas can cause considerable irritation to pets and subsequently to people when fleas begin breeding in carpets and rugs where pets rest or sleep.

Ticks (1/16" - 1/4" long) are dark brown or reddish brown, leathery-bodied eight legged parasites that feed on blood sucked from animals, birds, and humans. Ticks can live for months in a dormant state without food. Many serious diseases are transmitted through ticks, including Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Lyme disease, tick typhus, and relapsing fever. Ticks also may cause secondary infections, tick paralysis and other disorders.

Fleas and ticks can infest any home. They are harmful to pets and humans and can transmit diseases. Fleas carried by rats were the cause of the terrible "Black Plague" in the Middle Ages. Many people are allergic to flea and tick bites, and almost everyone experiences severe itching and painful irritation when bitten.

Controlling Fleas and Ticks

Fleas and ticks are hard to control. Here are some tips:

• Any flea and tick treatment generally involves more than one application.
• The first application reduces active fleas and ticks.
• Additional applications may be necessary for continued control as eggs hatch.
• People and pets need to stay off the lawn after each application until the lawn is dry.

Preventing Fleas and Ticks from Returning

Here's what you must do to prevent fleas and ticks from coming back:

• Have veterinarian dip all pets.
• Wash all pet bedding in hot, soapy water.
• Have a professional pest control company treat the inside of your home.

All of these actions must be completed at the same time as the lawn application to avoid reinfestation.

Facts

• Fleas are ectoparasites of animals which means they live on the outside of the body and need to feed on the blood of these animals in order to produce eggs.
• The cat flea is the species involved in most home infestations and will attack both cats and dogs. It is usually carried into the home by a pet and once inside, large populations can build up in a hurry.
• One female flea can lay about 18 eggs a day and just 20 fleas on a dog can produce 360 eggs per day and over 2000 eggs in a week. Because fleas usually feed and lay their eggs while the pet is sleeping, the pet's resting areas are where the most fleas will be found.
• Many pets acquire fleas outside in the yard. Research has demonstrated that urban wildlife, such as raccoons and opossums, are commonly responsible for introducing these insect pests onto residential properties where the pets can encounter them.
  
• Controlling a flea infestation successfully requires four steps:
  (1) Preparation for treatment,
  (2) Treatment of pets,
  (3) Treatment of the inside premises, and
  (4) treatment of flea activity sites outside..
  
• Obviously, the pet is a critical key to minimizing flea infestations and regular grooming help to limit fleas on the pet. For this reason, customers need to keep their pet groomed and treated with on-animal flea control products.
  

Step One

Any flea treatment will be less effective if the home is not prepared properly by completing the following steps.
1. Remove all items, such as toys, clothes, pet food from all floors.
2. Remove all items from under beds and in the bottom of closets.
3. Wash or replace pet bedding.
4. Vacuum all carpets and rugs thoroughly, including beneath beds and upholstered furniture.
5. Clean all wood, tile, and linoleum floors by seeping and mopping.
6. Clean concrete floors with soap and water in the garage, basement, or enclosed patio where pets rest or stay.
7. Remove all pets including birds and reptiles. Cover fish tanks with a damp towel and turn off the air pump.
8. Replace any pet bedding outdoors and make all shaded areas, crawlspaces, etc. available for treatment.
9. Arrange to be out of the home for several hours until the treatment has thoroughly dried.

Step Two

The homeowner needs to arrange for treating the pet. A number of on-animal treatment products are now available. Treatment of pets should be done under the direction of a veterinarian.

Step Three

In homes that have an active flea infestation, a residual treatment combined with an insect growth regular should be applied. This treatment is best accomplished by professional, like Terminix, using professional equipment. Efforts should be focused on the areas where pets rest or sleep. These are the sites where the most fleas will be located.

Step Four

• Outside, treatment should be applied to shaded areas and beneath shrubs and decks where pets rest or sleep. Again, a professional has the right equipment to provide this treatment effectively.
• After the home is treated, it may take up to two weeks or more before fleas are no longer seen. The reason for this is that flea pupae are unaffected by the treatment until the adult fleas emerge from their pupal cocoon. In any flea population, all stages of the flea will be present including numerous pupae. It will take several weeks for all adult fleas to emerge from these pupae and contact the treatment. This process can be speeded up by vacuuming as often as possible after the treatment because vacuuming stimulates adult fleas to emerge from their cocoons.

Fire Ants

What Are Fire Ants?

Fire ants are dangerous, especially to small children and pets. Their vicious stings are painful and may lead to infection. Fire ants make their home in turfgrass environments--parks, playgrounds, golf courses, pastures and lawns like yours. All grass areas are susceptible to invasion by fire ants, regardless of grass species. In addition to being harmful to people and pets, fire ants damage your lawn. Their unsightly mounds smother grass, make mowing difficult, and chip mower blades. Their underground galleries or tunnels disturb roots, dry the soil and cause the grass to thin out.

Controlling Fire Ants

Fire ants are also very hard to control. It may take several applications to bring these pests under control. Homeowners and pets will need to stay off the lawn after each application until lawn is dry. Fire ant problems only get worse if they're not stopped. Given the difficulty of stopping fire ants, give serious consideration to bringing in a lawn care professional

Chinch Bugs

What Are Chinch Bugs?

Chinch bugs are tiny insects, which suck the juices from grass plants. If present in large numbers, chinch bugs can kill large areas or even entire lawns. Their small size makes chinch bugs difficult to detect until lawn damage is noticed. Chinch bugs reproduce in large numbers and can reproduce several times in one season. The insect thrives in hot and dry weather conditions. Thus, turfgrasses are weakened by the same weather that increases the damage caused by chinch bug feeding. The damage is usually permanent and requires renovation by seeding or sodding.

Thatch can be a contributing factor. Thatch provides a natural cover for chinch bug activity. Thick thatch layers also cause turfgrasses to be more stressed by hot, dry weather. Thatch management is part of insect damage prevention. Watering once or twice a week and watering heavily each time is helpful in preventing chinch bug damage. The water increases the hardiness of the turfgrass and provides a less favorable environment for the insects. Your lawn care specialist can advise you as to the proper actions for chinch bugs.

Tent Caterpillars

What Are Tent Caterpillars?

Spring is the time to watch out for harmful tent caterpillars. These pests build silky webs in branch forks of several trees. Then they travel along the branches to feast on the tender leaves of your valuable trees. If left uncontrolled, the caterpillars will strip the branches of leaves in a very short time.

Controlling Tent Caterpillars

The pests can be effectively controlled with a regular spray program. Ask your lawn care professional about a regular program.

Spider Mites

What Are Spider Mites?

Spider Mites can be a major problem on many woody ornamental plants. Feeding by spider mites causes discoloration, dirty appearance and early leaf drop. Spider mites are related to spiders, having eight legs. These pests are extremely small and are difficult to detect unless viewed with a 10X hand lens. Dormant periods are spent as adult females in protected places (plant or mulch debris) or as eggs. Under appropriate conditions adults resume activity or eggs hatch. Many generations can occur over a single season. Adult females can live for several weeks, laying many eggs daily. Mite development, from eggs to adults, occurs within days, which accounts for rapid build up of large damaging populations on plants.

How Spider Mites Cause Damage

Spider mites have needlelike mouth parts, which pierce cells and suck fluids out. The feeding action causes fine stippling or flecking of foliage. With large mite populations on plants, entire leaves can become yellow or bronze. Presence of shed skins, eggs, and mites give the foliage a dirty appearance. Sometimes, spider mites will spin very fine webs on the plant. These webs are not the coarse webbing produced by common garden spiders. Damage caused by spider mites not only affects the appearance and aesthetic value of the plant, but also its health and vigor. Early leaf drop can occur with some mite-infested plants.

Checking for Spider Mites

To check for the presence of spider mites, hold a white piece of paper under a branch. Shake the branch to dislodge mites onto the paper. If present, these specks will begin to move after a few seconds.

Plants Vulnerable to Spider Mites

Plants commonly damaged by spider mites include: arborvitae, azalea, beech, birch, boxwood, citrus, elm, euonymus, hemlock, holly, honey locust, juniper, maple, Mexican orange, pine, pyracantha, oak, redwood, rose and spruce.

Controlling Spider Mites

• Early detection and treatment is the key to control.
• Once populations build to damaging levels, control is difficult.
• Spray coverage of both leaf surfaces as well as stems is critical for mite control.
• Horticultural oils will help, applied both dormantly and in-season.
• For mites that do not overwinter on host plants, dormant oils may not work.
• Several applications of miticides may be necessary.

Moles

Moles live in the soil and feed on insects, earthworms, and other soil dwelling food sources. Their active tunneling under the soil surface can cause lawn damage as moles forage for food. The tunnels create ridges of soil throughout the lawn. The uplifted grass growing in these ridges often dies. Lawn mowers may scalp grass growing on the raised tunnels. Moles can tunnel at the rate of one foot per minute. These foraging tunnels may radiate randomly throughout the lawn. Moles live in deep tunnels, 5 to 15 inches below the surface, where nesting and sleeping areas are formed. Moles are nocturnal. It is rare to see any tunneling activity during the day. New tunnels are made at night while moles are feeding.

Controlling Moles

The only effective control for moles is trapping. Although trapping moles is the only realistic control, it is difficult to predict where to set the traps. Traps are activated by movement of the mole in the tunnel where traps are placed over active tunnels. Moles usually do not use the same surface feeding tunnels, and their deeper tunnels are difficult to locate.

Skunks and Raccoons

Skunks probe the soil with their noses when looking for food, uprooting small areas of turf. Raccoons pull up the turf with their front paws as they search for food. A favorite food of both of these animals is white grubs, but their digging in a lawn does not necessarily mean grubs are present. Skunks and raccoons will also feed on insects and worms other than white grubs.

Controlling Skunks and Raccoons

It is not environmentally sound to apply an insecticide to stop animals from foraging in a lawn. If grubs are not present, applying insecticide will have no effect on animal activity, and they will continue to tear up the lawn in search of food. Trapping raccoons and skunks with live animal traps is the only way to remove unwanted animals from the area. In some neighborhoods, there may be too many animals for live-trapping and removal to be effective. Because trapping wild animals involves some risk, it is recommended that wildlife control officials or animal control companies be contacted. Using poison baits and gases have a low success rate and can be harmful to people and pets.