Chinch bugs... vacuum them, swamp them, feed them to the birds Want to get rid of chinch bugs in your lawn without using pesticides? Here are some simple and innovative suggestions. Use a strong vacuum cleaner like a Shop Vac. Vacuum the target area including a 2 foot buffer in all directions. Vacuuming gets rid of the adults, nymphs and eggs. Sound too easy to be true? The head of Wolfville’s Park’s Department, David Slabotsky, reports they have found this method to be “100% effective with no further follow up of any kind.” Glenn, who works in Halifax Regional Municipality’s greenhouses, suggests, “Put down birdseed on any lawn areas with chinch bug. It attracts starlings and other birds. They'll eat up all the chinch bugs along with the birdseed and your problem flies away.” Helen Jones of Real Alternatives to Toxins in the Environment (RATE) suggests the low-cost soap solution approach: Wet the problem areas with soapy water, especially the edges where healthy and dead grass meet. Lay a flannel sheet on top of the grass after you've wet the problem areas, wait about 10-15 minutes, then peel back the sheet and removing the bugs clinging to it and drop them in a bucket of soapy water. Repeat a week or so later, as needed. Helen also suggests, “If you overseed with Dutch white clover seed so it becomes evenly dispersed in the lawn, or replaces turf as the main groundcover, you can eliminate chinch bugs. Chinch bugs do not feed on clover. As a bonus, clover adds free nitrogen and brings up nutrients to the surface from deep in the soil (where turf can access it).” Sandy Mitchell of Natural Insect Control points out "the simplest, and most effective way to deal with chinch bugs is simply to water, water, water, and in most cases they'll just walk away.” If either frequent watering or soap mixtures don't solve the problem, Mitchell suggests beneficial nematodes, (brand name, Lawn Guardian, a mixture of two beneficial nematodes) can be used to control chinch bugs. Nematodes are a natural microscopic parasite (worm like) that infest soil dwelling insect larvae. Nematodes need to be applied in a different way when dealing with chinch bugs, which dwell on the surface of lawns, than when used to control soil pests like grubs which live deeper down. All the experts agree that improving soil quality is the long term key to eliminating insect problems in lawns. Chinch bugs are much more likely to be a problem in chemically treated lawns, or lawns making a transition from chemicals to natural, than in naturally treated lawns. For pesticide free solutions to your lawn problems we recommend: At http://versicolor.ca/lawn David Patriquin, Professor of Biology at Dalhousie University provides clear, easy to follow information on how to deal with numerous lawn problems without using pesticides At www.ecoBUGdoctor.com Entomologist Paul Maloney (Montreal; bilingual) offers great help. Thanks to Helen Jones |