chinch bugs

In the past few weeks, lots of customers have been bringing us grass samples and photos of their lawns with tell-tale signs of 3 of the most common summertime pests: Take All Root Rot (fungus), chinch bugs, and grubworms. Here’s what to look for and some tips for prevention and treatment.

1. Take All Root Rot

TARR is the most serious and may be the most likely. We have seen lot of cases this year and it’s becoming a more common problem. Be on the lookout for yellowing areas in the lawn that eventually die leaving weakened brown or black dead roots. Spread Natures Blend compost over the area if the symptoms are mild or Disease X fungicide if more widespread. To be sure – bring us a grass sample and we can diagnose.

2. Chinch Bugs

Watch the edges of lawn near the sidewalk and driveway that look dry and wilted after you know you have watered well. Watch our quick video on how to check for chinch bugs, or bring us a grass sample and we can diagnose. Once you determine that chinch bugs are present, you can treat with hose-end Cyonara or Diatomaceaus Earth for an organic control.

Chinch bugs are more likely to attack a dry stressed lawn before a healthy, well-hydrated lawn. Look at your grass blades early in the morning. If the blades are folded, then the lawn is dry and ready to be watered. It will naturally be folded in the heat of the day which is why you should check early in the morning.

3. Grubworms

Areas of the lawn show signs of wilt even after you have watered. Dig down and look for grubworms under the soil. They eat the roots off your grass and other plants as well. You can treat for grubs with Season Long Grubworm Killer or Bayer 24 hour Grub Killer. Temperatures are too warm right now, but a good organic solution is to apply beneficial nematodes in the Spring so that they can colonize and be ready to eat grubs when they arrive in late Summer.

-DeAnna

It’s time to transition our gardens as we leap into Summer! Here’s our top priorities for June, which include joining us for DeAnna’s garden talk this Saturday, June 4^th at 10am. Bring your questions!

Check out our June Garden Guide for more tips and remember that trees, shrubs, and perennials can be planted 12 months out of the year! The only difference is the amount of water they need depending on temperatures and wind!

1. Join us for ‘Summer Garden Tips’ Garden Talk

This Saturday, June 4^th at 10am, DeAnna Baumgartner, Gill’s manager, master gardener, and Texas Certified Nursery Professional with 40 years of Coastal Bend gardening experience will share her best tips for Summer gardening. She’ll cover Summer planting, proper watering techniques, identifying and treating pests and other issues, fertilizing, and lots more. Bring your questions – DeAnna’s got answers. One attendee will win a $100 Gill’s gift card!

2. Plant heat-loving Summer color!

Revamp your old Spring annuals with some eye-popping, die-hard flowers for Summer. Flowers like Purslane, Zinnias, Moss Rose, Periwinkles, and Sweet Potato Vine will need water but thrive in our Summer heat. Try adding spineless Prickly Pear, Texas Sage, and other Summer-lovers that add color and form to landscapes.

3. Water… don’t go by the calendar!

With recent rains AND warmer weather, we need to be extra mindful of watering properly. That means we can’t rely on the calendar to tell us when to water. We need to pay closer attention to plants and check to be sure they need water. Pro tip: Use a moisture meter! We carry them and can show you how easy they are to use. They’ve saved many plants! When it’s time to water, do it in the morning before 10am. Keep the water on the plants, soil, lawn, flowerbeds, not in the gutter, sidewalk, or street. Sprinkler systems are great for established lawns and landscapes but turn them off when we get rain, so you don’t over water and encourage fungal issues. Summer lawns need about 1 inch of water once a week.

4. Houseplants Inside aka Tropical Plants Outside!

Houseplants are beautiful indoors & help rid the air of pollutants from fabrics, carpets, paints, and other household items. They also look spectacular outside on a shady patio set in pretty pots. Check out Sansevieria, Philodendron, & Hoya varieties for easy care and big impact! Pro tip: if you have a sad houseplant, try moving it to a shady spot outside for a few days to get some fresh air.

5. Watch for Summer lawn bugs!

Yes, they will be around more during the Summer. Treat the lawn with Bayer Season Long Grub Control if you see brown areas in the lawn that are easily pulled up, usually a sign of grubs eating the roots of your grass. Chinch bugs love hot dry areas in lawns. They make the lawn look dried out along sidewalks and pavement. Treat with Cyonara in easy ready-to-spray bottles. For organic control, use Spinosad or Diatomaceous Earth. Remember that healthy lawns are less susceptible to damage from bugs, heat stress, and common lawn disease like Take All Root Rot. Water lawns deeply (a good 1”) once a week this Summer and fertilize every 3 months. If you fertilized in April, wait to feed again in July.

6. Crape Myrtles – Choose While Blooming!

Crape Myrtle trees are just starting their Summer bloom cycle. Best to choose your color now while they’re in bloom, then plant and enjoy them for years to come. You must plan to water them or check them every day during this Summer. Crape Myrtles are water-needy when first planted.

May means Mom’s Day, graduations, and more BBQs and family holidays outside! May is also Mental Health Awareness Month. As gardeners, we know growing plants and being outdoors are necessary for our wellbeing…and so much fun! Here are our Top 5 Must Do’s this May to help you and your garden make the transition to warmer weather.

Check out our May Garden Guide for more tips and remember that trees, shrubs, and perennials can be planted 12 months out of the year! The only difference is the amount of water they need depending on temperatures and wind!

1. Plant Blooming Perennials

It’s still time to plant lots of different blooming perennials. Get them established now so they are better adapted to withstand warmer temps this Summer. Staples like Esperanza, many varieties of Salvia, Jatropha, Lantana, and more are all blooming beautifully right now. We’re excited about Cape Town Honeysuckle this month (see pic above). It grows to about 4-5’ tall and wide, whereas its relative, Cape Honeysuckle, grows to 8’ or more. Lots of blooms and lots more options for placement. Added bonus: these blooming perennials attract pollinators like butterflies and hummingbirds!

2. Plant and Harvest Veggies

Warm weather veggie time! Plant peppers, zucchini, squash, and okra this month for continued harvesting into the Summer months. If you planted tomatoes, cucumbers, and other early Spring veggies, you’ll be harvesting now or soon. Be sure to harvest often! It keeps birds & insects from finding them first. If you do have insect issues in your veggie garden, our go-to organic control is Spinosad – safe for food but takes care of bugs. And remember to keep watering as the weather warms up. Soaker hoses are great to snake around your plants keeping water close to the ground and root systems.

3. Tend Your Lawn

It’s vital to water your lawn once a week unless we have rain. Invest in a sprinkler that’ll do the work – we have them. Hand watering the lawn may feel therapeutic, but you won’t get good coverage and depth.

When mowing, the proper height for St. Augustine lawns is around 3 inches. For Bermuda lawns keep mowed to around 2-2.5 inches.

Feed with Natural Fertilizers: Medina Growin Green or Milorganite. These feed the lawn and the soil with great results. Water in to get them started.
Watch for lawn insects & treat when needed. Grub worms & chinch bugs are easy to control when caught early but there’s no need to treat unless you have them. Bayer Season-long Grub Control will do the trick for grubs. Cyonara takes care of chinch bugs.

4. Look for Thirsty Plants

Watch your plants and they will show you when they need a drink. Most show signs of wilting (see photo). That’s a sign they need water soon. Once you give them a drink, they perk up quickly. But some will not tell you until it is too late, like a live oak tree. Invest in a moisture meter. They help to read the moisture with a poke into the soil around the roots. We have them and they’re very easy to use.

5. Gifts for Moms and Grads

Let us help you find something pretty, useful, or both for the gardening moms and grads in your life. Pottery, birdbaths, wind chimes, garden tools, hats, gloves – lots of options. Or the gift that gardeners love most – plants!

Check out our May Garden Guide for more tips! Happy gardening!

You would think with our cold winter, snow and 2 freezes in the 20’s all the insects would have frozen. But no, there seems to be an explosion of nature’s critters this spring. Hot weather insects have started early. Aphids on anything and everything, spider mites are in abundance on roses, angel trumpets, hibiscus, junipers and more. Chinch bugs are beginning in the lawns, and scale is erupting on cast iron, flax lily and more. Be a good bug scout. Look and observe, and remember a few bugs here and there are not always bad. If you see an insect infestation that won’t be controlled by nature or patience and needs treatment, come and see us to help identify the problem and get you the right solution.

-DeAnna

1. Fertilize in Fall.

It’s great to fertilize in spring, and again early summer, but fall fertilization is probably the most important of all, and the most neglected. September 15 to November 15 application makes the nutrients available while the roots are still active. This will result in better turf density (and so fewer weeds), stronger roots, and residual nutrient inside the grass runners for faster green-up next spring. Apply the recommended amount, as excess fertilizer can result in fall and winter fungus.

2. Water Properly.

A long deep soaking once a week is appropriate through mid-October, then water just once every two weeks through fall and winter, if we don’t get an inch of rain. Excess frequency of watering also encourages fungus problems. Resume once a week watering mid-March to April.

3. Watch for Insects.

Chinch bugs have been a scourge this summer! Grub damage can start showing up late summer. And there is always the possibility of Fall Armyworms or Sod Webworms in fall. Don’t take your neighbor’s advice, please bring in a sample of lawn as soon as you see any problem (still somewhat alive but showing symptoms) and maybe a photo, and let us advise on proper treatment. Don’t just douse any and all brown spots with pesticide. Some may be old drought/heat damage, some may be fungus.

4. Mow Properly.

Once a week minimum during rapid growth. More frequently is even better if you can manage it (notice how often you see the mowers on the golf course). This results in better density and therefore fewer weeds. Keep your blade sharpened for best grass health. During late fall and winter fungus season, see if you can get your yardman to sterilize his mower before getting on your lawn to minimize spread of fungal spores from other yards (good luck with that!)

5. Control Weeds.

If you have followed recommendations 1-4, you are already ahead! But the next step, if you feel it necessary, is a pre-emergent weed preventer, such as Bonide Weed & Crabgrass Preventer 9.5lb or Bonide Weed Beater Complete 10lb, applied in October and again in January. Follow label recommendations for best results, you do not want to over or under apply. We do not recommend weed-and-feed fertilizers, because plants and shrubs all need fertilizer, but weed killers can damage or kill shrubs and trees, and effective application times for fertilizers and weed killers are very different. If you have some broadleaf weeds (clover, sow thistle, dandelion, chickweed) occurring in January or February, you can spot apply a broadleaf weed-killer such as Weed-B-Gon for Southern Lawns.

-James

Brown, dry looking lawn? Check for Chinch bugs.

We all know how hard you’ve worked to have a beautiful landscape. Now how do you keep it thriving and surviving the summer heat? Here are some of our top tips for keeping everyone happy and healthy:

Water….we need it and so do your plants. Water in the morning or evening before 10am or after 6pm. Keep the water on the plants, lawn, flowerbeds, not in the gutter, sidewalk, or street. Sprinkler systems are great for established lawns and landscapes. Water established lawns once a week. New plantings really need to be hand watered to insure the water is getting to the root system. Check new plantings daily for water needs.
Fertilize the lawn, shrubs, trees, and tropicals with Milorganite, Medina Growin Green, or Gill Lawn & Garden Fertilizer. Be sure to apply early morning or evening and water in. Milorganite won’t burn but needs water to start working.
Feed your veggies and herbs Espoma Plant Tone. Citrus and fruit trees with Espoma Citrus Tone.
Treat the lawn with Bayer Season Long Grub Control if you see brown areas in the lawn that are easily pulled up, usually a sign of grubs eating the roots of your grass.
Chinch bugs love hot dry areas in lawns. They make the lawn look dried out along sidewalks and pavement. Treat with Cyonara, or Triazicide in easy ready to spray bottles. For organic control, use Spinosad or Diatomaceous Earth.
Revamp your old spring annuals with some die-hard summer color. Flowers like purslane, zinnias, moss rose, periwinkles and sweet potato vine will need water but thrive in our summer heat. If you are so inclined, try adding spineless prickly pear, Texas sage, and other desert beauties that add color and form to landscapes.
Prune the old spent blooms and seed heads from your crape myrtles. It’ll help them to repeat their summer show of color.
Nothing wrong with playing in the water hose or sprinkler with your kids. My dogs and I have a grand time in the evening playing, cooling off and watering the lawn all at the same time.
Treat for fungus if needed. Roses, crape myrtles, and gerbera daisies are prone to powdery mildew and plumeria develop rust. Good air circulation is important and if needed use Fertilome Systemic Fungicide, Serenade, or Actinovate.
Trim to shape plants to keep good form but avoid heavy pruning during the summer heat. This is good for the plants and you.
Mulch everything including your potted plants to help hold moisture and reduce weeds.
Most important…enjoy some time in your outdoors!

-DeAnna & Debbie

The 2 days of freezing weather did not help our lawns at all, but I think there may be more happening than just the cold weather. I am hearing customers finding grub worms in the lawns, flowerbeds and potted plants. I have also seen chinch bugs in lawn samples brought in for diagnosis. I would first check the lawn for insects before treating for fungus or fertilizing. If you are uncertain you can dig up a shovel width sample of soil, grass and all wrapped in newspaper or placed in a box for us to look at.

Once we determine insects, fungus or neither, it is time to think about fertilizing. Once the grass is actively growing to the point you are mowing once a week, then it is time to apply fertilizer. I always say, “you can put a bowl of food by a sleeping dog and he won’t eat till he wakes up.” The same is true for the lawn. Since we want our lawns to recover quickly and look good again, timing is key. We need to make sure it has woke up from winter dormancy.

There are also lots of weeds in the lawn. Pre-emergents such as Weed and Grass Stopper with Dimension prevent weed seeds from sprouting and should be applied in January to stop Spring weeds, but can be applied year around for weed prevention. Existing weeds can be killed with Weed b Gon hose-end spray. It is most effective applied with 3-5 days of warm weather and sunshine in the forecast and no watering or rain for at least 3 days. Also make sure you are watering slow and deep enough since we have had several months of record heat. With a little time , patience and TLC the lawns should recover and look great once again.

-DeAnna