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Lawn grubs are pests that feed on your lawn.
Lurking at the roots, grubs can wreak damage before you notice it.
Meet the Expert
What Are Lawn Grubs?
JJ Gouin / Getty Images
Lawn grubs are white and C-shaped, about 1/2-inch long.
Their heads are usually a different color: solid brown, gray, or sometimes mottled.
They have multiple pairs of legs.
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Raccoons, skunks, crows, and moles feed on lawn grubs."
Grubs vs.
But how can you know which is which?
Harlow-Ellis says you have to get down to the rootsliterally.
“Scouting your lawn for grubs is the best way to get confirmation,” she says.
But you have to consider the negative consequences.
Reduce Insect Population
To eliminate insect larvae, eliminate the insect in its adult stage.
DeLoe suggests scouting around various plantings on your property around mid-summer.
This is when the larvae have turned into adult insects and start feeding on the leaves of host plants.
This guides lawn grub activity off-site and away from the lawn.
Lawn Aeration
Lawn aerationcan reduce lawn grubs, Corcoran says.
As a residual benefit, pulling up lawncores from aerationmay help you see grubs buried deep within the roots.
Natural Products
Harlow-Ellis says one natural product that helps control grubs is milky spore powder.
This powder uses a bacterium,Paenibacillus popilliae, to target Japanese Beetle larvae.
Corcoran suggestsusing neem oil.
