Grubs

[cardarch]

I think I have grubs in my front lawn because of the brown patches. Yesterday I bought a bottle of Bayer Advanced Lawn season-long grub control. The label states that one application kills grubs all season long. The active ingredients is imidacloprid. Will this kill the birds?

[Lar]

I have yet to see or hear of them being an issue with birds but before placing out an insecticide for grubs, you need to know if it is indeed grubs causing the brown patches. The grubs eat the roots so the dead grass will pull up like picking up a floor mat.

Lar

[trader4]

If the product was so toxic as to kill birds from casual contact with your lawn, the product wouldn't be allowed on the market. All of these chemicals have some toxicity to wildlife and the usage should be minimized, but if you follow the directions, anything you use won't kill your birds.

Regarding grubs, are you sure that's your problem? Grub damage usually shows up much later in the season. Classic symptom is that the turf will peel back like carpet, because the roots are gone. You can also lift up turf section near the damaged areas and look for grubs. Finding a couple in a sq ft is not unusual. It takes a lot of grubs to totally destroy turf so that you have totally dead areas.

[Data]

There are no known environmental effects with this chemical "imidacloprid" It is asfe for domestic/home use. Regards Data

[Dave]

sheets note using rats and rabbits for tests, no birds. These tests on selected animals imply, but don't say, suggested potential harm to human exposure. So, I would be cautious in the least in using same.

Its not what they say, its what they don't say that bites you.

Dave

[Steveo]

That control product is generally used as a preventive. In other words it's not very effective on large grubs. Use it now to prevent the next generation.

HTH