Keeping Pests Away from Your Field: 5 Tips
It's every coach's nightmare–the start of the season is just days away, and insects rip apart your home field. Uneven turf is dangerous for your players, creating multiple safety concerns. Not to mention the patchy grass looks terrible.
Don’t let pests set the tone for your soccer season. Learn how to defeat grubs and mosquitoes on your home turf.
1. Be Aware of Different Pests
The first step in preventing pests on your soccer fields is to be aware of the different problems and the risks they present.
White grubs are one of the most common pests when it comes to destroying fields. Grubs are the immature form of Japanese beetles or various other beetle species. Typically in late July, female beetles lay their eggs in the soil. For most of August, the grubs feed on the grassroots, which damages your turf. As the grubs grow, they continue to eat the turf until they grow fully formed beetles.
Mosquitoes can make any outdoor event miserable. Most female mosquitoes lay their eggs in water or near it. Additionally, female mosquitoes are the only ones with the annoying habit of biting and sucking blood. Depending on your climate, you'll experience mosquitoes in the summertime and most frequently at dusk and during the night.
2. Know Your Fields
To ensure your grass is healthy and avoid a turf disaster, it's wise to monitor the condition every couple of weeks regularly. Follow this process to sample for grubs:
Cut a patch of sod that’s six inches long and six inches deep.
Flip it upside down on a flat surface and use a trowel to break apart the roots.
Be ready to catch any grubs you find, as they will be attached to the roots or close to the soil line.
As a rule, a healthy field should be able to support eight grubs per square foot. But if you notice signs that suggest otherwise, it might be time to treat your fields for damage.
To prevent mosquitoes from reproducing near your fields, you’ll want to limit any sites where standing water can gather. This feat is easier said than done. However, you can be intentional with removing waste from around your turf where water can accumulate. Mosquitoes also like brush and dense vegetation. If you have any control over landscaping, consider trimming the greenery around your fields back.
3. Manage for Damage
You can manage the quality of your fields by taking steps to maintain the health of your turf. Do so by overseeding, fertilizing and watering your grass. In the summer months, ensure you raise the blades on your lawnmowers. Watch for the growth of broadleaf weeds in your grass–this weakens your turf, reducing the nutrients to its roots. Limiting the amount of traffic on your fields will also help manage the overall health of your turf. Do all these steps to create a strong barrier against white grubs.
These days, there are many options for deterring mosquitoes, like repellent lawn incense. If you find you're encountering severe issues with mosquitoes, try installing a UV light CO2 trap. The ultraviolet light first lures the mosquitoes close and the carbon dioxide attracts them inside the trap. Additionally, recommend your players arrive slathered in Deet or their preferred bug repellent. Have additional bug spray on hand for when they get sweaty and need to reapply.
4. Contact a Professional
Hopefully, you’ll never find your lawns in the nightmare scenario mentioned at the start of the article. However, if you do, it might be time to hire a professional. Because of their years of experience, a pest control company will quickly determine the extent of the infestation. Additionally, professionals can do the job correctly and handle potent chemicals with care. You can also hire them for routine lawn care and maintenance to ensure your fields never experience severe damage again.
5. Types of Insecticides
If you wish to try your hand at applying insecticides to get rid of your white grub problem, here are the best options currently on the market:
Preventative Insecticides: As the name suggests, you must apply these chemicals before knowing that you have a white grub problem. This is the perfect product if you regularly have a pest issue that you need to manage. For preventative options, try chlothianidin (Arena) or thiamethoxam (Meridian).
Curative Insecticides: You can use these options as your white grub problem develops. Look for the names trichlorfon (Dylox) or carbaryl (Sevin). However, this product is restricted in many states because it quickly breaks down in water and has a high pH level. Before you purchase, ensure you can use this product in your home state.
Stop Pests Today
Don’t let white grubs or mosquitoes get the best of your soccer season. Stop pests in their tracks by learning more about your fields and managing the damage before it occurs.
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