The milky spore application will not be fully effective for 3-5 years. My advice is to apply a product called Merit or Grub-Ex in the next 3 weeks (timing is critical here). this will prevent grubs from getting established. Note this product is only effective on grubs that hatching from eggs in August so the timing is critical. The good news? If applied correctly, your worries are guarenteed over until the next summer.

I'm in NE Ohio...should I also put down the GrubX in about 3 weeks?

I wonder what the effect of eating the poisoned grubs will be on the birds?

It seemed to have no effect on the birds, they still come back day after day searching for grubs....Occasionally they will find one....In just 4 weeks my centipede grass has recovered fantastically, I can't believed how green it is...I did fertilize it lightly once after I saw it was growing back....I had given up just about all hope on my grass, the grubs were in the progress of totally destroying my yard. What grass I did have would wilt on hot days, even if we had two inches of rain overnight....My backyard has been fully restored, no wilting what-so-ever.

David

Hey guys,

The Japanese beetle and European chafer grubs that the Grub Ex and Merit applications will affect at hatch time in August will very immature, so the birds likely will not even notice them. The application time for the Northeastern past of the US including Ohio is between June 25 and July 15.

Repectfully,

Trey Rogers, The Yard Doctor

Hi Trey
I've heard that unless all your neighbors within a 10 mile radius uses milky spore that you will still get Rose Chafers and/or Jap. Beetles (I get both).
Makes sense to me so I'm wonder if its worth the effort and cost?
Also I'm wondering how beneficial nematodes compare to milky spore.
I am extremely frustrated seeing my 100 roses devoured my scarab beetles every year.
I could hand pick them 3 times a day and still not put a dent in the numbers.
The Jap. Beetles are here through Fall!
Thanks for any comments.

Will Milky spore hurt my new grass seed?

It was my understanding that once you applied milky spore you could not apply a chemical grub control because it would damage the spore cycle. Is this true? Also what is the best time of year to apply milky spore. I live in North Western Massachusetts, our last frost date is May 30th. I would love to take care of my grub problem once and for all and I love the idea of milky spore, but I know some people in the landscape business and they have told me that milky spore is very weather dependent and if not applied at the correct time the spore won't grow & it won't work.

I applied Grubex in late May of this year (I live in western foothills of North Carolina)-- was my timing correct? Thanks

Hi Joepyeweed, of course you know that those birds are feeding those poisoned grubs to their chicks who will wind up dying. The birds don't know that they are being poisoned - heck humans eat poison every day and they should know better, right? I guess a green lawn is worth a few birds lives. Sorry everybody for raining on your parade. I know it's easier to use chemicals and we're all tempted but you can't just close your eyes to it and say well the birds keep coming back. Come on.

Hi Anita,

Imidacloprid, the active ingredient in grub-ex, when applied as a preventative, is highly toxic to grubs but not to mammals. That is why it is so popular now - it is elegant in that way, and even less toxic to earthworms than the curative alternatives. And the birds barely notice it.

Dylox, the stuff in those "24 hour grub kill" products, is much, much more toxic than imidacloprid, but mostly for the earthworms, and I'm not even sure that THAT nasty stuff kills birds.

And then there is Sevin, which is just poison to virtually everything. I wouldn't use that, ever.

Consider the "organice" pesticides. Arsenic? Vinegar? Feed either of those to a bird in the right quantities and that bird will die, and fast. And organically.

Put in another context, all of us are eating Round-Up every day thanks to the huge success of Round-Up Ready crops, and there hasn't been a massive die off of humans since this started. I think that is something worth considering.

Best,
Paul

Hi Paul, I don't want to hijack this thread, but I have to say that I know that we are poisoning ourselves and our planet, and you know it, too. Baby birds DO get fed poisoned insects every day, and they DO die. You compare the ingestion of a tiny residue of pesticide by a 100 pound animal and the the same tiny amount by a bird. Which one's going to be more effected? We are free to poison ourselves but let's not close our eyes to the effects of this on the world around us, especially the innocents with whom we share this earth. On another note, I'm thrilled that this question was actually about using milky spore as a control.

Japanese Beetles are getting worse every year for me. They strip my poor young Cherry trees of all their leaves, not to mention my grass is starting to die off in patches. Milky Spore is attractive to me as I don't like using poisons myself.

I thought it was too late in the year to apply Milky Spore but, I just found a "Question of the Week" on Gardens Alive that said from now until early Autumn, while soil temperatures are above 65F and there are grubs in the soil voraciously eating to prepare for winter -- grubs are needed for the disease to establish in the soil. So I'm very happy and excited to hear this -- I'm a procrastinator at heart :)

I thought this link would help enlighten everyone who had the same questions as myself.

Here is a link that might be useful: Milky Spore(disease) explained for Gardeners.

The Beetles are awful in Maryland - I lost a beautiful Maple Tree to these pests. I want to use Milky Spore and am looking for someone that has had a successful experience with it. If it truly doesn't stop the beetles from destroying my yard and my trees, then why bother?

Does anyone know if I use it now in the heat of summer @ 95 degrees, will it burn up my lawn ?

Thank you !

I would be willing to shoot every bird in my yard if that meant the beetles would go away. Since I am aiming for the plants in my yard to have good lives and the insects to die, if dying insects mean dying birds, that is acceptable to me, as long as the insects are dying.

Cheers

I'm pretty sure if birds, bats, and moles, disappear, insects will take over.

I am fighting a bunch of hungry grubs in my front yard. Milky spore is down. I can lift off the grass like a toupee on a bald pate. I was considering chemical warfare, but not for long.....

With all due respect, you'll see me out there sifting through the soil, throwing grubs to the crows, maybe a pan of dishwater after that. Bon appetite!

You really don't want to use a grub killing product while using Milky Spore because of how it works. Once the Milky Spore is on your lawn, the grubs will eat the spore and then travel for three days and die. Once it dies it will produce 3 billion new spores. So you want the grubs to keep eating and eat the spore. Whats great is that hopefully they will travel far in those three days you and your neighbors lawns will be saturated. It normally takes two years and you won't see the grubs anymore. You also want to get the concentrate because you only have to use it once. The spreader mix has to be used 6 times.

Here is a link that might be useful: www.YardLover.com

I am in my second year of applying milky spore granules using a spreader. Last year I applied 3 times and this year will do the same. I treat 14,000 square feet. That is 2 bags per, at $33 per bag.
So for the two year treatment that comes to about $400.00 .
I have had die off and poor roots that was getting worse each year.....Kinda' pricey, but I have cats that are in/out pets and the milky spore is safe around them.

I hope to get desired results or that money would have been better spent on care of those lil' felines........

xoxo
tunapig007

I think you all have some misinformation regarding Milky Spore. It does not take 3 years to establish it in your lawn. That's only for the spreader mix version. The concentrate only takes 1 application. Also, I found Milky Spore SUPER cheap on www.yardlover.com To treat 10,000 square feet, (or 1/4 of an acre) it only cost me $67.99. Shipping was free! Milky spore works wonders for me. It was an easy and cheap fix to my japanese beetle problem.

We have lost most of our lawn to voles and moles. I was told it was the grubs that attract these critters, and if I use milky spore to kill the grubs, the voles & moles will disappear. Is this true? I hope so, we have so many tunnels on our property it's dangerous to walk around!!

Does the Milky Spores powder work on all grubs or just japanese beetle grubs? When is the best time to apply it to the yard??? Thanks for any response

What is the best time for treatment in the southeast?

What is the best time to apply Milky Spore in our area. We are so tired of the Japanese beetles. They are devouring our Linden trees. JC

I bought milky spore concentrate to apply to my lawn and the package instructions are daunting. They say to treat it as a lethal chemical - to wear long sleeves and pants, socks and shoes, goggles, and an N95 respirator while applying, to wash all clothing as quickly as possible after using the product, to avoid handling pets etc., and there are extensive first aid instructions. I thought this was a relatively benign product that is nontoxic to pets and people! I'm afraid to put it on my yard now, but I need a solution for the Japanese beetles that are destroying my property and trees. Does anyone have information about the safety (or lack of safety) of applying milky spore?

I was really leary about applying the Milky spore because of all the warnings and protective gear needed. I know that mfgs nowdays have to list every precaution and being in a risk management profession, I appreciate that. So I got out there this morning in between rain drops, gloves, hard shoes, nylon jacket, but did not use a mouth protector (probably should have put that on like doctors and painters do). I followed all instructions, rinsed off my gloves and shoes outside, put all clothes in wash, took a shower. Not that bad really, just get on the other side of any slight breeze because the spores do blow easily. So far, I feel fine and hopefully my grubs are getting sick.

will the milky spores kill the european chafer beetle's & or their eggs & grubs. They are destroying hundreds of lawns in vancouver

OK. Personally, I would rather have no lawn, no roses AND no flowers than use things like Grubex and other grub killers, which are TERRIBLE for pets, birds animals & children, water quality and persist in the soil and migrate to others' lawns and air, giving people who don't want those poisons no choice just like second hand smoke except pesticides, much worse. Whoever asked about beneficial nemotodes, they won't survive if you've used Grub-Ex. Milky spore will survive that crap though. I was inundated by Japanese beetles about 4 years ago. First I treated with Milky Spore, next beneficial nematodes (timed it before 3 days of rain, they die if the dry, but they work quickly. I also set some preying mantis babies loose. Last year really only enough Japanese beetles that I could crush them with my fingers and this year nothing. Please, Plaase look at your lawn and love the dandelions and the clover and the natural lawn. Why are people so obsessed with working all summer to get a lawn that looks like a boring green rug. Grow some wildflowers. Love your children and your neighbors' health rather than your boring lawn. Do some research and look at labels before you buy weed killers and pesticides and don't believe the things that Tru-Green (formerly ChemLawn) tells you. The guys that come to treat your lawn have a few weeks training and their bosses are guys with high school educations brainwashed by chemical companies. Think about why you think it is so important to have the "perfect" lawn. Is it because your friends and family won't like you if it isn't perfect. What matters?

Here is a link that might be useful: Poison in the Grass

I couldn�t care less about the perfect lawn, but I keep on trying to grow vegetables and everything dies, my garden is infected with these big fat white/grey grubs.
Is this type of grub, which looks like a witchetty grub receptive to Milky spore??

I have several questions...i have grubs every year...1/2 of my 1/4 acre have been destroyed. i've tried grubx but afraid to use cuz of my dog (poisionus right?). i bought milky spore spreader mix. I'm confused as to when I put on. our temp is currently 60's. will milky spore keep them away this year? could someone plz explain in steps what i need to do. i'm totaly dumb on this problem. If i need to use something else plz tell me what and when. thanks so much. i really need help fast.

once you apply Milky Spore when can you fertilize and when can you over seed your lawn,or can you do right away,

finding out this is a real learning process that requires at least an 8hr class. It gets so confusing and who do you trust. So many details. My situation is this spring i have noticed quite a network of mole mounds surfacing in my yard and killing grass due to these grubs. Considering my shot gun as i dont have time to stand out with a pitch fork to kill the moles. i applied some milky spore at 40? a bag to find out that it needs applied every two months but how do i kill these mature grubs NOW to prevent total devasation to my lawn, so many different schools of thought since bayer and grub x seem to work when grubs are young. Help help help

Found a fat white grub with an Orange head today while gardening. We have some brown patches, and turned over grass in a few areas but only found the one, however my neighbours yard is half dead and they just put down seed. We refuse to use anything that will harm the local flora and fauna, so I started researching safe options and came across milky spores. In northeast Ohio, can we apply this in early may? Is there hope for the dead spots if we seed them this spring? To be honest I don't love the grass that much, but our city won't allow us to build a wildflower prairie bc its all weeds to them, heaven forbid its taller than 4 inches! Your advice is greatly appreciated.

Found a fat white grub with an Orange head today while gardening. We have some brown patches, and turned over grass in a few areas but only found the one, however my neighbours yard is half dead and they just put down seed. We refuse to use anything that will harm the local flora and fauna, so I started researching safe options and came across milky spores. In northeast Ohio, can we apply this in early may? Is there hope for the dead spots if we seed them this spring? To be honest I don't love the grass that much, but our city won't allow us to build a wildflower prairie bc its all weeds to them, heaven forbid its taller than 4 inches! Your advice is greatly appreciated.

I have a real problem with fungus. Hot, humid nights grows a fungus on the blades of my grass, which turns yellowish tan. I never water my grass after 2p.m.,I can't do anything about the humidity. I put a fungicide on every two weeks, I mow, next day at 7 a.m. I put down Bayer or Spectracide granules & water. Is the fungacide making my grass look sick? Can I put down Scotts fertilizer when its 95 degrees? Is there something else out there that works better than Bayer or Spectracide? I'm spending a fortune!!!!