How To Stop These Sneaky Worms From Destroying Your Texas Lawn

These little things are something that farmers and anyone with a lawn despise: they are armyworms. And it's almost peak armyworm time in The Lone Star State.

Once summer winds down and fall returns, armyworms will be thriving. Small brown lawn patches are one of the first telltale signs of an armyworm infestation.

It’s become a really big issue for a lot of producers in Central and East Texas in various cropping systems,” said Vanessa Corriher-Olson, a professor & Texas A&M AgriLife forage extension specialist according to KLTV. “When we have cooler temperatures and adequate moisture, those moths lay a lot more eggs. They can lay up to 2,000 eggs and then we can have three or four generations in a season.

It's important to remember that when it comes to armyworms, they are a surface feeder. This means insecticides can easily control them as long as they are identified early enough.

But that's the key, you've got to be vigilant. Applying an insect killer such as Ortho Bug B Gon Insect Killer for Lawns as soon as you find just a few, can stop their march and save your lawn.

Happy armyworm hunting!

YouTuber How To With Doc gives us a great look into the damage they caused his lawn, plus he shows us what to look for to catch these destructive insects early.

He says that the first signs of an infestation are brown patches that are rapidly growing. Doc points out that the caterpillars feed at night, so the damage to your lawn is not always immediately understood.

Another tip: An early sign of a fall armyworm infestation might be several birds clustered on a turf area. Although birds eat these caterpillars, they are no match for hundreds of them on one lawn.