White Grubs

White grubs are the C-shaped larvae of many different beetles, including Japanese, May/June beetle, Oriental, Asiatic garden, European chafer and masked chafer. They feed on the fibrous roots and thatch of turf during the spring and fall months. Infestations over six to ten grubs per square foot can be devastating to turf, causing large, brown areas of dead grass which can be peeled back like a carpet. Fully-grown larvae are one-half to three-quarters-of-an-inch long and can be identified by the rastral (hair) pattern found on the tip of the abdomen using a hand lens. The best time to control grubs is right after egg hatch in mid summer.