Month: May 2016

While we get to enjoy nice weather, summer vacations, cookouts, and holiday weekends, summer also means that crawling insects are out and about – and are looking for a nice, warm spot to live. Sometimes, that nice spot turns out to be your home, where there’s plenty of food around for them to eat. Once they’re in, well, they’re probably not going to leave, so how do you make sure they don’t get in the first place?

Superior Lawn Care has the answer! First, let’s discuss the bugs: We call these insects perimeter-invading insects. They’re anything that crawls and climbs (but we’re not talking about insects that become airborne), so that includes ants, spiders, centipedes, and other bugs that you may refer to as creepy-crawlies (since we’re not being scientific here). They can march right up to your front door (or back door, basement door, window wells, the cracks in your foundation. . . ) and sneak into your home. You probably won’t see them at first, but once they decide to invite all of their friends and family, you’ll definitely know they’re there. They will be heading to your kitchen or other places that have food or something sweet.

Keep Crawling Insects Out of Your Home

In the Pittsburgh area, using a perimeter pest control program is an effective preventative measure to keep insects out. Spraying around the exterior of your home or business using a regular treatment schedule will protect against invading bugs and allow you to enjoy the warm weather without worries of bugs in your home.

Perimeter Pest Control in Pittsburgh

Don’t let your home be invaded this summer by ants, spiders, and other unpleasant crawling insects. Superior Lawn Care provides an effective crawling pest control program with regularly scheduled treatments.  We suggest up to eight monthly applications a year to control insect infestation (especially if you live near woods), but you can start the applications at any time. Superior Lawn Care covers areas including Penn Township, Wexford, Murrysville, Greensburg, Indiana, and many other places in Western PA. Call or contact us today to learn more about pest control programs.

As you’ve probably heard, this is the year for cicadas to emerge in much of the Pittsburgh area after a 17-year break.

You may remember these large insects (some are up to two inches long) from the last time or two they visited. You probably remember what they look like, too: very large flies with red eyes. More than their look, though, is their sound: the male cicadas make an unmistakable humming that fills the air for miles around.

Right now, the cicadas that comprise Brood V, which last appeared in 1999, is starting to emerge in several nearby areas, including southern Allegheny, Westmoreland, Washington, Somerset, Greene, Fayette, and Butler counties.

A Cicada’s Short Life Cycle

Cicadas grow underground, and stay alive by ingesting sap from tree roots—in this case, for 17 years. They begin to emerge when the soil temperature is about 64 degrees at least eight inches under the ground. They then molt by shedding their exoskeleton after climbing onto nearby vegetation and are now able to fly. This usually happens within just a few days, which means that thousands of cicadas will be out and about.

Male cicadas make a distinctive humming noise to attract females, who don’t “sing.” After mating, females will lay their eggs within a twig. When these eggs hatch, the offspring will emerge as nymphs, then drop to the soil below and burrow underground to begin their 17 years of slow feeding. Brood V won’t emerge until 2033.

Will Cicadas in Pittsburgh Harm My Lawn?

They’re harmless to people, don’t chew on leaves, and don’t cause damage to grass or other plantings. However, female cicadas slice into twigs to lay their eggs, which can harm very young or already weak branches on ornamental trees, causing them to break off. Since cicadas prefer large trees like maple, elm, and oak, chances are they won’t bother your smaller trees.

Remember, cicadas don’t live long—just about two to four weeks, which means that by the beginning of July 2016, they’ll be gone.

If you’re concerned about cicadas in the Pittsburgh area, please give Superior Lawn Care a call. We’re happy to help.

You’re looking at your beautiful green lawn, when you notice a patch of color that you didn’t expect to see—pink! Looking around, you see several more patches with thready-looking grass. Your yard’s been overtaken by red thread, a fungus that can turn your lawn into a patchy mess.

What Does It Look Like?

Red thread is easy to spot. Patches are usually around 4-8 inches in diameter, and the grass looks bleached, tan, reddish, or pink, with a thread-like appearance. (Some people also say that the grass looks like antlers.)

Why Do I Have Red Thread?

This fungus shows up in grass that:

• May have a nutritional imbalance, such as too little nitrogen, calcium, or lime.
• Is sitting in cool conditions (around 50-70 degrees) in the spring and perhaps the fall. Outbreaks will happen in the spring and maybe the early summer, depending how cold it is. (In the Pittsburgh area, it’s not usual to see red thread in June, since our overnight temperatures may remain cool for some time.)

How Can I Prevent Red Thread?

You can use a regular maintenance program for your lawn that includes a multi-step fertilization program throughout the spring, summer, and fall. This will ensure that your turf has the proper nutrients and isn’t vulnerable to this unsightly fungus.

Red Thread Is In My Yard! What Should I Do?

Red thread affects the tips of grass blades, but not the roots, so it doesn’t kill the grass plant. While that’s good news, it will still spread to nearby grass if the soil imbalance isn’t corrected. You most likely won’t need to use a fungicide. Instead, proper soil treatment throughout the year is the best way to avoid red thread.

If you notice red thread patches, call Superior Lawn Care today. Our Five-Application Lawn Program will ensure that you’ll have thick, weed-free, disease-free Cranberry and Wexford area yards. We also treat lawns throughout the entire Pittsburgh area. We look forward to hearing from you and making your lawn . . . beautiful!