22 February 2023

Customer Question – Foxes damaging Lawn

Q. “We have an issue at home where foxes are removing the top layer of turf on our lawn, crows are then moving the turf to eat earthworms and other foods underneath which is making the situation worse.” Scott

A. Thanks for the message and the answer will depend on why they are digging the lawn up. A combination of foxes and crows would normally indicate a chafer grub problem – a common lawn pest. If you inspect the areas where the crows and foxes are digging, can you find any white grubs? Please CLICK HERE to see some pictures of the grubs. The lawn would also be showing symptoms i.e. yellowing / dying in patches as the lawn roots are eaten. If this is the case, then it is better to treat the grubs with Nemasys Chafer Killer as deterring pests from such an attractive food source is difficult. Please inspect the lawn and let me know what you find?

Reply “Hi Jon Thank you for the mail and I think you may have found the issue When I lifted the grass up to replicate what the crows are doing, I found chafer grubs!!! What should I do now?”

A. Nematodes are the answer and applying now is possible if the soil is warm enough i.e. 12c. If you decide to go ahead, I would treat with Nemasys Chafer Grub Killer sooner rather than later, so the treatment has as much time to work before temperatures drop. Please let me know if you decide to treat and how you get on.

Reply “Please could you pass on my thanks to Jon Manners because our issue with chafer grubs has finally been sorted following his suggestion when we spoke a few weeks ago. The crows did a lot of damage as you can see from the photo although I’m relieved we can now look forward to a healthy lawn once again. Have a good weekend.” A very happy Scott J

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