Entomopathogenic nematode for cutworms
Cutworms hide in the thatch or a shallow burrow by day and come up at night to clip grass and seedlings at the soil line, which puts them squarely in the ambush zone of this nematode. UC IPM gives 25 million per 1,000 square feet for cutworms and armyworms in turf. UF/IFAS notes that steinernematid nematodes kill black cutworm larvae but normally need to be released to reach high levels, and that they depend on soil moisture. In beds, collars remain the first line of defence.
Before you order
Sprayed or watered onto moist lawn and bed soil against pests that move on the surface: cutworms, armyworms, sod webworms, billbugs and flea larvae outdoors. How it works, how to tell it has established and the supplier list are on the full Steinernema carpocapsae profile.
How many do I need?
Area and infestation level in; quantity, cost and a weekly schedule out. Open the calculator →
Other controls for cutworms
- Ground beetlesWild predator · Nothing to release — give them cover
- Bacillus thuringiensis kurstakiMicrobial insecticide · Label rate — DiPel DF lists cutworm (Agrotis ipsilon) and variegated cutworm, 0.5–2 lb per acre; on berry crops the label says to use the higher rate for cutworm
- Braconid waspsWild parasitoid · wild, attract it