Armyworms are a common turf insect in Tennessee known for marching through lawns in groups, or armies, hence their name, and causing extensive damage. These pests feed on grass blades, resulting in brown patches across your turf that become larger as the infestation worsens. They also strip them of their green pigment, creating a windowpane-like appearance, and upon closer inspection, they'll likely have chewed or ragged edges. Armyworms are most active when the weather is warmer, between April and September. If they infest your lawn, you'll want to contact professionals and schedule curative treatments immediately. Then, you'll want to invest in lawn care services to help it recover from the damage, including fertilization, aeration, and overseeding.

What are armyworms, and what damage can they cause to your lawn?

Armyworm damage on a lawn in Gallatin, TN.

Armyworms are a species of caterpillar recognized for being a destructive lawn pest. They have stripes running down their typically yellow and green bodies and a Y-shaped marking on their heads. These insects move through your turf in groups known as armies, hence the name, and can cause extensive damage in little time. They feed on grass blades, and initial signs of an armyworm infestation include brown patches that eventually become larger; damage from these pests closely resembles drought stress. They also strip the grass of their green pigment, resulting in a windowpane-like appearance, and they'll have chewed or ragged edges upon closer inspection.

When do armyworms become most active?

Armyworms typically become most active when the weather is warmer, between April and September. There are multiple armyworm generations every year, but it can prove challenging to notice them initially because the damage closely resembles drought stress. As a result, they can completely take over your lawn and cause the most harm come late summer.

What should you do if armyworms infest your lawn?

Professional in Gallatin, TN, applying an armyworm control treatment.

If armyworms infest your lawn, you'll want to take immediate action to avoid further damage. The best thing to do is to contact professionals and schedule curative treatments. When you do, they'll utilize highly effective products and apply them several times during the active armyworm season to eliminate the infestation and continue targeting later generations to prevent another.

Once armyworms have been eradicated, you'll want to focus on helping your lawn recover. To do this, you should invest in lawn care services, including fertilization, aeration, and overseeding. Fertilizers will deliver vital nutrients like nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium to restore your turf's green color, promote new, healthy growth, and stimulate the development of deep, robust roots. Meanwhile, aeration will loosen compacted soil and create passageways for nutrients, sunlight, oxygen, and water to reach the roots of your grass more easily; with improved access to the resources it needs, it can quickly recover after an armyworm infestation. Finally, overseeding involves spreading seeds to fill in bare and patchy areas resulting from armyworms, making your lawn thicker.

Practicing routine lawn care will help your grass stay healthy and in top condition so that it can better resist armyworms in the future.

Call Us Today to Schedule Our Armyworm Control Service

If your lawn is dealing with an existing armyworm infestation, look no further than our armyworm control service. Our team at Performance Lawns Inc. will apply our highly effective treatments three times from April until September to eliminate them and prevent them from infesting again. Then, we can help nurse your grass back to health with our lawn care services, including fertilization, aeration, and overseeding!

We offer our armyworm control service to residential and commercial properties in Gallatin, Hendersonville, Lebanon, TN, and other nearby areas. Call us today at (615) 708-5549 to schedule this service!