Forum home› Problem solving
This Forum will close on Wednesday 27 March, 2024. Please refer to the announcement on the Discussions page for further detail.

Chafer and Leatherjackets destroying my lawn

lawnloverlawnlover Posts: 3
in Problem solving

Hi Everyone

I am after some advice please.

I turfed my lawn about 6 years ago and have had problems with Chafers and leather jackets ever since. In the past I have had the lawn sprayed with pesticide and its recovered really well and returned to a lush green carpet.

In the last few weeks I have started to notice my lawn is being decimated again. I have pulled back the turf and sure enough I have grubs and leatherjackets again. I also have slimy muddy patches everywhere which I guess is worms as well.

I am seriously thinking of rototilling the whole thing in April and reseeding.

Questions I have

1/. Is there anything I can do to rid myself of these things. Have tried spiking with lawn shoes and Jeyes Fluid and nematodes in the past.

2/. Are turfed lawns more susceptible to this due to being like a uniform mat they can easily crawl underneath. I can still roll back my turf and it lifts fairly easily.

3/. If I rototill should I rid myself of the turf first.

4/. When I do rectify this situation how do I prevent from happening again. I have read you can use Iron Sulphate to up the soil PH making it more undesirable to worm and grubs.

And advice most welcome as these grubs are really starting to annoy me. Last year I lifted areas and plucking the little $%^&*( out by hand.


Thanks all


Posts

  • BobTheGardenerBobTheGardener Posts: 11,385
    That sounds like a lot of work and expense.  I would first try nematodes - there is a specific type for chafer grubs and one for leather jackets.  They are not cheap but will treat the problem at source.  The nematodes (small numbers of which are naturally present in soil) will kill the grubs without unbalancing the soil ecosystem like chemical treatments can and do.  Pesticides kill all types of natural soil predators as well as the bad guys, leaving you with an unbalanced soil ecosystem.  Unbalanced ecosystems become prone to invasion by undesirable species or go extinct.
    A trowel in the hand is worth a thousand lost under a bush.
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    Worms are good for gardens and lawns - they aerate the ground for you.  Try not to squash the casts, then when they dry a bit you can brush them in (free top-dressing!)
    If the turf rolls back easily then maybe it's not rooted deeply enough.  Spiking it deeply with a fork should help (the spiking shoes only do a few inches, I think).
    Any change you can make to the soil pH will be temporary at best - it will revert to whatever the underlying rock type dictates.
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • punkdocpunkdoc Posts: 15,039
    These pests are unlikely to be active at the moment, so you may have a different problem.
    If you can still roll up a lawn that was laid 6 years ago, then the lawn was not put down properly.
    How can you lie there and think of England
    When you don't even know who's in the team

    S.Yorkshire/Derbyshire border
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    edited February 2019
    There are currently no chemical controls which can be legally applied by home gardeners and, as Bob says, any chemicals will be indiscriminate and kill good wildlife too be they microbial or insect or grub sized.   

    The best thing you can do is improve lawn care so, come spring, scarify the lawn the remove dead thatch then spike the lawn thoroughly and brush on sharp sand which will fill the resulting holes but leave air gaps for improved drainage.  You can apply a spring fertiliser to improve growth.   Keep the grass trimmed but never shorter than one inch, preferably a bit longer while it recovers, as this provides more leaf surface to photosynthesise energy from the sun and feed a stronger root system.

    Next September, scarify and feed again with autumn feed and then pour on nematodes as they work best when soil temperatures are warm.   Too late to do it now while the soil is cold.

    https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?pid=651 for some more info.

    PS - missed the unrolling bit - definitely not normal.  It should have knitted to the base soil within the first couple of months.
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    My thought too doc. No lawn should 'unroll' after six years.
    Come to think of it - 6 weeks never mind 6 years.
    I think you need to look at the condition of the underlying structure of the soil it's laid on.

    The shoes are a waste of time - keep them for walking on icy pavements. They'd be more use for that.  ;)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • lawnloverlawnlover Posts: 3
    Thanks for the all the comments guys. Really appreciate it. Here’s a shot of the current state of it 
  • ObelixxObelixx Posts: 30,090
    Wait till spring and temps are regularly above 8C - when lawns start to grow again - then proceed as indicated above altho it is worth investigating why the grass roots have not knit to the soil below.

    Was it well prepared - dug, raked, trampled and raked again?  Or is it full of rubble and gravel and other horrors that isn't a good home for grass roots?
    Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
    "The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
    Plato
  • lawnloverlawnlover Posts: 3
    yes was professionally done it was rototilled and fertilised before being raked and levelled. Ground quality is excellent with no stones or rubble used to be a big greenhouse . Had two good years and then had a few issues with leather jackets and now with grubs seems to get worse each year. 

    As for redoing would you say the sod that’s left should be removed before rotatilling or just go for it and churn it all up. Reseed and start again 
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    I think as we've already said - the fact that you were able to easily lift areas means it hasn't taken properly and knitted. It might well be that the chafers/leatherjackets were able to get in there and do their damage fairly soon after laying, resulting in a poor lawn after that.
    I think you may have to lift what's there, get some new topsoil in, and pretty much start again. If it's a smallish area, that might be the best solution. Seeding is cheaper than turf, so depending on your budget and requirements, that might be better.
    I don't know if I'd want to keep the existing soil and rotovate - could be more of them lurking, although I would have thought not at this time of year. Nematodes would be the best course of action after you re do it though. 
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Sign In or Register to comment.