Summer is prime time for lawn pests like chiggers and chinch bugs, and they don’t wait for an invitation. The right ID and a fast response can save your lawn and your next backyard party.
Some of these pests bite you and your pets. Others destroy your grass from the roots up. Knowing which summer lawn pest you’re dealing with is the first step to choosing the right treatment. With tips from an expert, we’ll show you how.
Key Takeaways:
• Biting pests and grass-killing pests require completely different treatment approaches.
• Identify the pest before treating it. The wrong product can worsen infestations.
• Natural options like beneficial nematodes and Bt work for most lawn-damaging pests.
Summer Lawn Pests That Bite and Sting
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1. Chiggers
Chiggers are tiny, bright red mites that cling to skin and inject a digestive enzyme that dissolves tissue. The result is clusters of intensely itchy red welts around your ankles that can last days or weeks.
Note: Wear DEET-based insect repellent while in the yard. It won’t eliminate chiggers, but it will help keep them from biting.
2. Fire Ants
Fire ants are aggressive, venomous, and fast. Once disturbed, they swarm and sting repeatedly, causing burning pain and, in some cases, allergic reactions requiring emergency care.
Use the Texas Two-Step method: Broadcast a bait insecticide across the yard, then treat individual mounds with a drench, granule, or dust insecticide.
Always read and follow the label instructions on your pesticide. According to Wizzie Brown, Integrated Pest Management (IPM) specialist with Texas A&M, this is the most common mistake homeowners make with the Two-Step method. “The label will tell where, how, and amount of product to apply.”
Boiling water can kill fire ants (it eliminates roughly 60% of treated mounds), but Brown cautions it “may not reach far enough down into the ground to kill all workers, brood, and queens.” For best results, pour 2–3 gallons per mound after a rain, “when fire ants are closer to the surface, trying to get out of the water-saturated soil.”
Note: Call 911 immediately if someone shows signs of an allergic reaction to stings.
3. Fleas
Fleas are blood-sucking pests that hide in your lawn and hitch rides on pets and people. If your dog is scratching constantly after playing outside, fleas may be to blame.
Start with your vet to develop a treatment plan for affected pets before tackling the yard
Apply a flea-labeled pesticide to problem areas
Keep wildlife that commonly carry fleas (raccoons and skunks) out of the yard
4. Ticks
Ticks climb tall vegetation and wait patiently for a human or animal to brush past. They transmit Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and other serious illnesses.
Signs you have ticks:
Regularly finding ticks on yourself, family members, or pets after being outdoors
Place tick tubes near stone walls, brush piles, and wooded edges
Install deer fencing (research shows fencing can reduce nymph populations by as much as 84%)
According to tick researcher Erika Machtinger of Penn State, chemical acaricides (tick-killing pesticides) are the most reliable tick control method, achieving a 93.8% suppression rate. But, she says, “homeowners do not need to broadcast-spray their entire lawn.”
Because most ticks live at the edge where the lawn meets the woods, near stone walls, and around dense plantings, “applying acaricides in a highly targeted manner to these specific habitats provides excellent control while minimizing environmental impact,” she says.
Summer Lawn Pests That Feast on Your Grass
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5. Chinch Bugs
Chinch bugs are tiny (about 1/5 inch) but destructive. They suck the juices from grass blades while injecting a toxin that prevents the turf from absorbing water.
Signs and conditions to watch for:
Yellowing patches that start near driveways or sidewalks and spread
Overseed with pest-resistant grass varieties: endophyte-enhanced fine fescue, perennial ryegrass, or tall fescue for cool-season lawns; centipedegrass for warm-season lawns
Note: Not sure if it’s chinch bugs? Try the tin can test: Remove both ends of a can, press it into the lawn near damaged grass, fill with water, and watch for bugs floating up within 10 minutes.
6. Cutworms
Cutworms are 2-inch caterpillars that hide in thatch during the day and chew grass near the soil surface at night. Most are dull gray, brown, or black and may have stripes or spots. They curl into a C-shape when disturbed.
Signs and conditions to watch for:
Circular dead patches with small burrow holes in the lawn (looks like ball marks on a putting green)
Apply Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis var. kurstaki) to kill cutworm larvae
Apply beneficial nematodes (Steinernema carpocapsae) to infect and kill soil cutworms
Use a labeled insecticide
7. Fall Armyworms
Fall armyworms show up in mid-to-late summer and can devastate a lawn in just a few days. Unlike cutworms, they feed during the day. Look for caterpillars up to 1 1/2 inches long with a light-colored “Y” on their dark heads.
Signs and conditions to watch for:
Rapidly appearing large patches of dead or ragged-looking grass
Mild infestations often resolve on their own with good watering
Apply Bt or nematodes for moderate infestations
Use a caterpillar-targeted pesticide for severe damage
8. Mole Crickets
Mole crickets use claw-shaped front legs to tunnel through your lawn’s root zone, mostly at night. They’re especially damaging in Southeastern states with sandy, well-drained soils.
Release nematodes (Steinernema scapterisci) to target them without harming beneficial insects
Attract Larra wasps, a natural predator
Apply pesticide in early summer when nymphs are most vulnerable
9. Two-Lined Spittlebugs
The yellow-green two-lined spittlebug nymphs hide inside a frothy secretion of spittle on grass blades. The adults suck out grass juices, leaving streaks on the blades.
Centipedegrass is especially vulnerable.
Signs and conditions to watch for:
Foamy white clusters on grass blades
White or purple streaking along blades
Yellow or brown patches (severe infestations)
How to get rid of two-lined spittlebugs:
A healthy lawn can tolerate light infestations without treatment
Use a pyrethroid for severe cases; apply thoroughly since the spittle coating reduces contact
10. White Grubs
White grubs are the C-shaped larvae of scarab beetles, including Japanese beetles, June beetles, chafer beetles, and billbugs. They feed on grass roots just below the soil surface.
Apply beneficial nematodes (Steinernema or Heterorhabditis spp.) for a natural approach, matching the right nematode to the grub species
Apply a curative pesticide in late summer, soon after eggs hatch
Note: Not sure if it’s grubs? Try the shovel test: Cut 3 sides of a 1-square-foot section and fold it back. Treat if you find 5 or more grubs.
11. Wildlife
Moles, voles, armadillos, gophers, and groundhogs dig through lawns searching for food. Their tunnels damage roots, create tripping hazards, and leave the lawn looking like a construction zone.
Signs and conditions to watch for:
Raised ridges or tunnels running across the lawn
Patches of dug-up turf or cone-shaped soil mounds
Existing grub or soil insect populations attract digging wildlife
How to get rid of lawn-damaging wildlife:
Control grubs and soil insects first; removing the food source often reduces wildlife activity
Remove animals based on local and state laws
Note: If you suspect rabies, keep people and pets indoors and call wildlife control immediately. Do not attempt to remove a rabid animal.
FAQs
What Lawn Pests Require Immediate Attention in the Summer Months?
Fire ants, fall armyworms, and white grubs all require fast action.
• Fire ant stings can trigger severe allergic reactions
• Fall armyworms can destroy large sections of lawn within days
• White grubs should be treated soon after hatching; they become much harder to kill as they grow
How Do I Get Rid of Lawn Bugs Naturally?
Routine lawn care and knowing your grass’s tendencies (such as high thatch accumulation) go a long way towards getting rid of summer lawn pests.
• Mow short and clear brush as a first line of defense against chiggers
• Dethatching alone can reduce chinch bug populations without any chemicals
• Beneficial nematodes are effective against grubs, cutworms, fall armyworms, and mole crickets
• Bt bacterium (Bacillus thuringiensis) kills caterpillar pests like armyworms and cutworms without harming beneficial insects.
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