PESTICIDES: Grub Busting

Maintenance companies that aren’t offering grub control service are missing the boat, says Bill Atwood, president of Bill’s Complete Lawn Care Service in Humble, Texas. Ever since Atwood added the service to his mix eight years ago, he has received what he considers a respectable profit for a service that isn’t difficult to execute.
 
Atwood acknowledges it was easier for him than it might be for others to add the service because in Texas, he wasn’t required to obtain a special license to apply the insecticide he uses. “If you put something down that a homeowner can buy, you don’t have to have a license,” he says.
 
He suspects that rule might change soon, though. Even if it does, Atwood still sees merit in offering the service.
 
“Even where you have to get a license to put it down, it would be well worth the while,” he says. The key, he adds, is knowing what you’re doing so you can prevent callbacks and make the highest profit possible.

BEGINNING STAGES. Atwood’s company had already been offering fertilization when he decided to expand into fungicides and insecticides, including grub and fire ant control. He started by learning about what he was about to undertake. Professionals in the field from Texas A&M University taught him about the best time to treat lawns for grubs, and he turned to LESCO and Bayer Environmental Science for advice on treatment plans.
 
Next, Atwood made sure he had the right tools in place for grub management. He uses a walk-behind spreader to apply insecticide – not the cheapest brand, but also not the most expensive, he says – and only applies it in the granular form. He spends about $80 to $100 per bag on the insecticides.
 
“We use what we think does a good job, and that’s what the customer cares about,” he says.
 
Atwood has two, two-person crews who work solely on applying pesticides and fertilizers. Each crew member uses a spreader, which costs $300 each. Atwood is considering buying a riding spreader for large estates to spread the pellets in a larger area quicker to help trim job time. Those spreaders cost about $2,000 to $2,500.
 
“It will be a one-man operation instead of two, and that will pay for the equipment itself,” he says, adding liquid spreaders are another profitable option.
 
The crew generally makes two yearly applications – three if necessary – based on soil temperatures. The first application is when early spring-like conditions arrive – usually that’s at the end of January in the Houston area, where Atwood operates. The second application comes six weeks later, usually in mid-March.
 
If the soil temperature still isn’t at the ideal spot for optimal insecticide performance, Atwood’s crew will re-apply the insecticide around the first week of May.

GRUB CONTROL GROWTH. Almost all of his customers jumped on board when they heard Atwood would offer a grub service. “My sales and profit margin have more than doubled without going out to get new customers,” he says.
 
Atwood charges customers twice the cost of the materials multiplied by two for the total. For example, if he uses $25 worth of materials, he charges $50 for the materials, plus another $50 for a total of $100. A quarter of the company’s sales comes from the add-on.
 
Atwood explains to customers what the grub control service entails, including the treatment and frequency and how much it will cost. Customers rarely question the price, he says.
 
“They’d rather have the cost than the grubs,” he says, adding customers don’t usually complain about the added cost when he has to apply an extra dose when low soil temperature six weeks prior dictates another application.
 
Atwood learned the profit margin can shrink if the insecticide isn’t applied correctly. He has been called back to patch up brown spots where the grubs weren’t eradicated.
 
“We put down one application, thinking that would take care of it,” he says, adding he neglected to pay attention to the soil temperature. The company fixes dead patches of turf for free if their error caused the problem.
 
Lately, Atwood hasn’t heard many complaints. About half of his business comes from referrals and he has a waiting list of 30 people. “Grubs on my customers’ lawns are almost nonexistent,” he says.
 
Atwood also recommends brochures as a way to attract new customers. He tries to talk to prospects in person rather than just leaving a door hanger when people aren’t home.
 
Even with a few mistakes, grub service remains an add-on worth trying, Atwood says. “If you’re not doing it, somebody else is and they’re making the money.”