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Crabgrass, Nuisance Pests, and Frost
By John Fulton

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[April 20, 2015]  Crabgrass Germination Underway - The forsythia in the area has been blooming for a week or two now. This coincides with soil temperatures where crabgrass germination starts to occur.

Crabgrass germinates over a long period during the spring and summer, so germination inhibitors applied now would still be useful. However, you’ve most likely missed the first flush of germinating seeds.

If you have missed some early germinating crabgrass, you can try one of the post emergence chemicals (put on the actual crabgrass when it is small) such as DSMA or MSMA. They may temporarily discolor lawns, and all the statements about not applying to new seed you have intentionally sown apply to these herbicides – the same as using the germination inhibitors.
 


Nuisance Pests

As we get warm spells, we will have the usual “nuisance pests” appear. These include millipedes, Asian ladybugs, ant swarms, box elder bugs, and elm leaf beetles to name a few. Throw in some migrating millipedes, and you can have a real inconvenience. Together they are called nuisance pests because that is what they are. Very few will do any damage to anything, they just cause that feeling of disgust when you find them in the house. The “no damage” comment only applies if you don’t smash the insect, because that sometimes leaves a stain on surfaces.

The best controls are foundation sprays using a chemical such as permethrin or bifenthrin, spot sprays of the same chemical to control grouped insects, bait stations, and sticky traps. A combination of methods will actually give the best results, even if they are not perfect. The best control for the Asian ladybeetles and box elder bugs in the home is simply a vacuum cleaner. If you do want to use an insecticide in the house, it should be an aerosol product. Many of the so-called flying insect aerosols contain something for quick knockdown and permethrin, with the latter chemical lasting for up to a month. This combination makes these products ideal to use along baseboards and door thresholds.

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 Frost

There has been much concern about recent frost and the potential damage to several crops. We do have to remember it is still April, and the last spring frost date with some certainty is about May 7 in our area. In general terms, it usually takes temperatures below 28 degrees to really affect fruit crops, rhubarb, etc. If you had tomatoes out early on a gamble, then you may have lost that bet.

Fruit trees most at risk would include the apricots and peaches. Bloom and early fruit set are critical times for frost and freeze damage. That’s one reason peach orchards aren’t very common in our area of the state, with an anticipated crop about every third year. Of course, the flip side is a late frost or freeze at a critical time can kill the flowers of other trees as well. We experience this a couple of years ago with sweet gums, and I didn’t hear one complaint about not having to pick up the sweet gum balls that fall.

[By JOHN FULTON, COUNTY EXTENSION DIRECTOR SERVING LOGAN, MENARD, AND SANGAMON COUNTIES]

 

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