Chinch bugs - what a nuisance
 

We live south of 44, have St Augustine grass, and have had recurring problems with chinch bug infestations, which devastate our lawn. Despite preventive and real-time treatments by one of the large lawn maintenance companies and self-help based on input from our local hardware folks, we have been unable to rid our lawn of these critters. Has anyone successfully overcome these pests and, if you don’t mind sharing, what did you do to deal with them?

Thanks

Good Luck.
I now it takes a long time to control chinch bugs through timely applications

We had to have Adam's Earth come out and treat, then they added manure or something to help bring the yard back. This was after another large landscaper had treated for bugs for about a year and a half..

Rusty did a video on them a couple days ago. Worth watching.

That liquid spray that Deans and Massey uses doesn't do the trick but you should have a guarantee from whichever one you use. My neighbors that use Massey have lots of damage, I have none. What I do is use Spectracide granular from Sparr. I put it on the first time I see Massey out there spraying and then again as soon as I see the brown spots coming onto my neighbors lawns that use Massey and one more blast around October. No Chinch. Bugs, No grubs, No anthills. This time of the year you would also want to put down a heavy coat of fungicide powder, not liquid. Just follow the instructions, hop in the shower and wash the clothes you were wearing by themselves after using fungicide or pesticide.

New to St. Aug grass here; have been growing centipede in LA for 20 years... So stupid question here.. How do you "know" you have chinch bugs? TIA!!

See post 4.

Rusty has some tips: https://youtu.be/D7PMaf07ajc

Chinch bugs
 

we use triazicide

Chinch bug video w Rusty
 

http://The Chinch Bug is Killing my St. Augustine Lawn and the treatmant I did in The Villages Florida. https://youtu.be/D7PMaf07ajc

There is the link to how I treated the Cinch bug in my lawn. You need to keep on top of your lawn care people. They may only come out once. This has stopped them for me…for now. Lol

We bought an auto mower. Now the lawn cutting services don’t bring in pests (or weeds) from other homes when they cut the grass each week. Almost no weeds or insects since we made the switch.

Limited-time deal: Husqvarna Automower 430XH Robotic Lawn Mower with GPS Assisted Navigation, Automatic Lawn Mower with Self Installation and Ultra-Quiet Smart Mowing Technology for Medium to Large Yards (0.8 Acre) https://a.co/d/28ggViR

I use seven and triazicide. Works great. If you have an infestation I’d re-treat after a few weeks.

Bugs and lawn care
 

Similar to #10. Dean's handles the chemicals (for the last 4 years) and I mow the lawn (last 2 years). With no scientific proof, I think that mowing my own lawn with my own mower prevents "hitchhikers" coming, via lawn services, from other yards. If a patch starts, I hand water the spots and, in conjunction with Dean's regular chemical treatments, the spot goes away.

Chinch bug infestations require at least two applications of pesticide, about 14 days apart. The initial application will get the adults, but not their eggs. #2 targets the offspring.

Chance bugs
 

I have had success using BioAdvanced lawn insect and fire ant killer from from Amazon

Yes, we have resolved them. Go to to Lowes and buy a bag of Triazicide granulars and spread it on your lawn. Lasts all season. Only thing that works for us.

Anything that has Bifenthrin:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DGUY2LO...v_ov_lig_dp_it
Several applications. Spray around the perimeter, not in the dead areas.
Note Chinch bugs are not active until mid-late summer.
They usually start at the edges of concrete, because of the heat.
Put something like this down now to kill eggs and control other pests like sod webworms.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/Sunnilan...4026/100533911

We are South of 44 and have had them. We use Deans and they came out (no extra charge) and took care of them quickly. Best way to prevent them is to have a healthy lawn. Also be sure the mower that is used to cut your grass isn’t bringing them in.

Forget the Pest Control companies here in TV. Most that I have seen just take your money for absolutely no results. Talstar is the best for controlling lawn pests. Ace Hardware has it. Get yourself a rotary spreader and 15 minutes later you're done. You will save a ton of money and have wonderful results. https://www.bing.com/ck/a?!&&p=0cdb0...bi1jYXJl&ntb=1

We use Arrow Pest formerly Falcon pest control. We didn’t have cinch bugs but we did have mole crickets. Massey kept treating to the point we came close to losing our lawn. Falcon at the time came out and in two applications took care of the problem.

Use Professional Insecticides
 

Chinch bugs are not easy to defeat. Most of our lawn service companies have the means to defeat them; however, they usually do not apply the insecticide in either sufficient quantities or often enough.

Go to the Sod Solutions website, www.sodsolutions.com/insect-pestcontrol.com for excellent advice on both cultural practices and insecticides.

Another source for professional products is Do My Own - Do It Yourself Pest Control, Lawn Care, Gardening, Equipment & Animal Care Products & Supplies. It has even more products than Sod Solutions.

Both companies offer excellent advice. The professional products are not cheap and are not usually available at local stores

The best way to prevent them is to keep your lawn well-watered. Saving a few dollars by not watering has led to the demise of many lawns. See video for add'l info. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7PMaf07ajc

We received the gift of chinch bugs when Tri-County Landscaping installed our yard . Of course after the 30 days warranty expired they took no responsibility. We hired Dean’s and they commented that they have rarely seen this poor of quality grass installed in the Villages. Dean’s applications worked and got rid of them after three applications.

Look for brown areas that spread. You can also ask the county ag agent for information and advice.

I used Pest911, and they finally got rid of the chinch bugs. 352-629-9111. They are located in Weirsdale. I now get my lawn treated periodically for those lawn-destroying critters! Good luck!

We had them three times. Had to replace some of the grass. We have them now and contacted True Green they came out twice will see what happens. We also need to get a new lawn service they come from their lawnmower.

The biggest mistake people make is to have their lawn cut too short.making it weak and susceptible to disease and bug infestation. St Augustine likes to be cut 3-4 inches. Also if you do not water properly chinch bugs love overly dry lawns

Helpful video, thanks!

How can I tell if the problem is chinch bugs and not mole crickets?