Lawn Insects
Mole Crickets

A common insect for Bahia Sod is the Mole Cricket.   The Mole Cricket does its destruction on the lawn by tunneling through the first couple inches of soil, thus cutting off the roots of the grass.  The sod feels spongy to walk on.  Mole Crickets feed on grass roots and this causes deterioration and loss of sod.  Areas of the lawn turn yellow and brown.  There are mounds of dirt present on the lawn's surface.  These insects are grey to brown in color.   They are 1 1/2" inches long with fat, short, front legs adapted for digging.


Chinch Bugs

A popular pest in Floratam Sod is the Chinch Bug. These insects extract the juice from the sod blades. Then they inject a poison into the blades.  The grass begins to appear brown and eventually brown patches develop with yellow margins.  The Chinch Bugs are black to brown and oval in shape.   They are 1/4" long and have a white marking on their back, similar to an X.


Grubs 

These insects are the larvae of a beetle.  Grubs feed on grass roots and they may kill an entire lawn.  They eat the roots of the sod.  The grass becomes loose and can be easily picked up.  The grubs range from 1/8" to 1 inch long.   They have a brown head and three pairs of legs.  They are a C-shaped insect.


Sod Webworms


These caterpillars chew away at the grass blades.  They are light to tan in color and are about 3/4 inches long.  The adult moth is the same size and will fly throughout the lawn.