East Tennessee being invaded by pests that can destroy your lawn

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – As summer comes to a close, an invasive species of insects are beginning to make its way around East Tennessee.

Fall armyworms are pests that eat agricultural items, but they mainly like to feast on one thing: grass.

Dr. Midhula Gireesh, a turf grass and ornamental pest specialist with the University of Tennessee, said these pests can be troublesome for homeowners.

“They can eat or chew up the foliage, and they really prefer grasses and even though they are also like known for being agricultural pests, crop pests, they can also be attacking your lawns,” Gireesh said.

Their name can be misleading. While they do come up primarily in the fall, they are not worms, but more like caterpillars that become moths. While they are young, they feast on grass and the older they get, the more they eat.

“As they grow bigger in size, like the later in stir caterpillars. They are like aggressive feeders, so if there is like a full armyworm, a numerous full armyworm for instance, then probably you can see your lawn turning brown in some time,” Gireesh said.

The invasion of fall armyworms is an annual thing. Each year, the population of these pests varies but they can still wreak havoc on farms, lawns and fields.

“Some years, so it can be like more population coming in versus other years. This year looks like it’s it’s going to be like you know more for armyworms,” Gireesh said.

These insects migrate from the south, whether that be Mexico, South America or Florida. They naturally move north but can also come up due to storms.

Locally, President of Wayne’s Pest Control Shawn Hollis said grasses and fields are being affected.

“We had kind of a wet summer here at the end, and we are starting to see some damage in lawns and even some hayfields. I know other fields have been affected so we;re starting to see quite a bit of uptick in activity,“ Hollis said.

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