Profiting From Grub Control

Controlling white grubs in customers’ lawns has always been among the toughest challenges for lawn care professionals. While crabgrass and nutsedge emergence has been as predictable as the Super Bowl outcomes of late, white grub populations are fickle.

Grub outbreaks have varied widely, from the veritable grub explosion of 1995 to the relatively "quiet" grub season of 1997. This lack of consistency has sent lawn care technicians into a frenzy trying to explain summer brown patches and skunk and raccoon damage resulting from the presence of grubs -- and why they weren’t able to catch it sooner.

In recent years, however, more products have been introduced that operators can purchase to combat grubs. Imidacloprid (Merit®) and, coming to most states this year, halofenozide (MACH 2™), provide the option of preventive treatments for grubs to apply in late spring. These products, combined with a host of curative options, are allowing lawn care companies to successfully treat for grubs.

PREVENTIVE ALTERNATIVES. Some lawn care companies claiming success in grub management have come to rely heavily on early season preventive treatments. In order to be able to apply a preventive product to a significant percentage of customers and still show a profit, however, successful companies have had to overcome the higher cost of application per 1,000 square feet that these new chemistries carry. To do so, they have developed some creative solutions.

For some companies, it comes down to charging more for the application. David Murphy, president of Green Valley Lawn Care, Kansas City, Mo., said the application that features the preventive product is priced 20 percent higher than the company’s typical application cost. Green Valley customers who want grub control are required to take at least five applications. The second application contains the preventive product on fertilizer.

Murphy noted that the majority of customers have bought into the grub treatment as part of the seasonal application program. "Grubs are our most destructive insect pest in turf," he explained. "They’re a big concern with customers, and the damage they do is common knowledge. We sell based on the quality of the product, and people are not averse to buying based on the use of a quality product. It’s far more expensive to lose turf than to spend a little extra for an effective program."

For the remainder of the season, technicians will be on the property from three to five times. Murphy said that, along with monitoring weeds and other insects, technicians will keep an eye out for potential grub populations and damage.

"If the preventive application fails for any reason, we’ll retreat at no additional cost," noted Murphy.

Les Wilshusen is also a believer in preventive treatments, but his use of the product is selective. Customers of his company, Mike’s Lawn Service, Storm Lake, Iowa, get grub control as a part of any four- or five- application program at no additional charge.

The product is applied in granular form as part of the second treatment, along with a fertilizer plus postemergence weed control and a 1/3 rate "booster" of crabgrass preventive. To keep costs down, the grub product is only applied to sunny areas that are likely "hot spots" for grub activity, rather than an entire lawn. Technicians use a dual spreader and simply switch on the second hopper when passing over the hot spots.

Wilshusen has also addressed the potential for a customer quitting the service after receiving the expensive grub control treatment. "Customers who take one or two applications after the grub treatment get the preventive grub applicaton free," explained Wilshusen. "If they quit during the summer, we send out a bill for the application." The company also stands behind the application and will retreat if grubs break through later in the season.

For Crowley’s Lawn Service, Cleveland, Ohio, the terminology given to customers at the time of sale is "insurance policy."

"Customers who purchase grub control service from us are essentially getting our guarantee of no grub-related problems in the turf," said Phil Fogarty, president. The service, which is treated as an add-on service purchased separately, generated a few thousand dollars in business two years ago but this year will bring in about $45,000 from the 40 percent of the customers who have bought the treatment.

Customers are charged on a per square foot basis rather than a flat rate so Fogarty can avoid inconsistency in profitability from the serivce. His guarantee of satisfaction includes retreatments with curative products if grubs do appear, and if it’s too late, complete replacement of the lawn.

ALL THE STOPS. Many companies are also successfully and profitably managing grubs using a variety of control products on a "use as needed" basis. John Carson, general manager of Ehrlich Green Team, Reading, Pa., said the company uses an IPM-based treat- only-when-necessary approach to grubs.

"We don’t treat grub contol as an add-on service," explained Carson. All customers get the same guarantee of no grub-related problems, but not all lawns are treated with the same amounts or types of products.

The key to making this kind of a program work for the company has been strong record keeping, Carson noted. Long time customers have from three to four years worth of treatment summaries that are at the technician’s fingertips on the site. The technician knows what types of applications were necessary in the past and can make an on-site determination of what will be needed, if anything, in the way of an application.

Technicians also will scout for grubs during the historically high-pressure times in mid-August. Pockets of high grub activity that the record keeping has revealed are given more attention.

Preventive applications are made in instances where damaging populations are nearly inevitable, but this is very infrequently. "Less than 10 percent of the lawns we service are treated on a preemergence basis, and it’s usually due to customer demand," Carson noted. "In a bad year, maybe 15 or 20 percent."

Along with extensive customer records, Ehrlich Green Team technicians also have several product options available. "We keep them stocked with a variety of products for grub control that work best in different situations." For example, he noted that infestations discovered before vs. after Labor Day are best handled by products with different levels of activity.

Another key is knowledgeable, well-trained technicians who understand when and where to apply control products. Money saved in doing fewer broadcast-type applications is invested to some degree in technician time on the site, so technician efficiency and expertise is a large part of stang profitable, noted Carson.

Another company that has adopted a "use as needed" philosophy in its treatment of grubs is Broccolo Tree & Lawn Care, Rochester, N.Y.

In fact, Laurie Broccolo, owner, doesn’t put any pesticide treatments down for any turf problem unless the technician on the site determines that it’s necessary. To make this kind of program work, four factors are important: trained technicians, educated customers, scouting and record keeping.

Broccolo generally hires individuals with a two-year degree who are serious about the industry as a career. She also provides regular training through state and university seminars. Customers are educated on her company’s philosophy from the start. "We tell them that we’re not a treatment company," said Broccolo. "They are hiring us for professional advice and consulting on their landscape." To aid technicians, Broccolo maintains a map of high grub incidence areas that the technicians give extra attention. They also scout at times when damage is most likely to occur from mid-August into the fall. Curative treatments are used on a spot-treat basis. Broccolo estimated that in 1997, only about 2 percent of customer acreage was treated. The highest percentage she’s experienced was in 1995, when 25 percent of the acreage was treated for grubs. The savings vs. performing blanket applications is partially eaten up by the extra time technicians spend on the property. Savings above and beyond this are earmarked for technician training and benefits.

The author is Managing Editor of Lawn & Landscape magazine.