The Grass Menagerie

Certain creatures can stop your grass from looking lush and in this post, we’re going to look at three of them.  

First to get a mention in our bestiary of grass damagers are leatherjackets. Leatherjackets are the offspring of the daddy longlegs or crane fly. In appearance they are a light grey colour and in terms of size they tend to be between 2-4cm long. Grass roots are a delicious meal for leatherjackets, and it is by the off colour patches they leave on your lawn you can tell you have them.

Generally, like many potentially invasive creatures in a garden, in small numbers, leatherjackets are unlikely to do much harm. They even support the diets of birds who consume them. Turfing over damage works, and damage often reduces over time if it isn’t extensive. Though if they really are giving you trouble, you can look into controlling them.

Now we’re going to look at chafer grubs. Like leatherjackets chafer grubs are larvae, but in this case, they are the larvae of chafer beetles. Chafer grubs tend to be milky white and grow to over 2cm in length. They also, like leatherjackets, have a penchant for grass roots if they are of a certain species of chafer beetle. There are some species that do not eat grass roots and prefer other sources of food. The ones that do eat grass roots leave browning patches behind when they dine.

However, it’s the way that creatures that enjoy eating chafer grubs tear at the lawn to get to them that causes the biggest problem. To avoid this, you if you have many grubs infesting your lawn you can use nematodes to control them.  

The last creature we’re going to cover is the mole. You’ll know if you’re dealing with a mole problem because if you are you will see heaps of soil on the surface of your lawn, yes, the infamous molehill. In view of taking a sustainable approach, the best thing you can do is do a little light labour to treat the symptoms of having a labour of moles in your garden. Just remove any molehills and fill any holes they leave behind to keep everything looking neat. Unlike leatherjackets and chafer grubs moles don’t nibble at grass roots and that’s a positive.

If you want to read about other grass related issues look at this post. And if you need some advice or maintenance click here.