Chigger problem

[mech1369dlw]

Sat down a couple places on the lawn to get some grass seed in place. 3 days later, I have chigger bites all over the waist area, legs and stomach. Never had anything like this before. The grand kids used to play and roll around in the grass and about the only thing they got was green marks on the clothes. They are going to be here the first of July for a 3 week vacation. Here in North Central Kansas, like most of the country, the temp has been playing with the 100 degree mark for a week. Never saw chiggers like this before. Is there anything I can put on the grass to make it as safe as possible for when the kids get here so they don't spend most of their vacation with us scratching to death? Thanx

[rainbowgardener]

You can get beneficial nematodes that attack them, but they take some weeks to be effective, not sure if you have time left.

You can dust the area with sulfur powder (but it is kind of stinky ).

Otherwise, chiggers mostly like moist shady places, so keep grass trimmed short and weeds pulled. Remove any dense foliage that isn’t part of the landscaping as well as piles of decaying leaves and plant matter. Flood all remaining foliage with a mixture of soap and water to kill off adults and larvae. Repeat the flood once a week for a month to get newly hatched larvae and you should have eliminated most of them.

Make sure you have soap (not detergent, which can burn your plants) and spray your whole lawn with soapy water solution. This drives them away for awhile, but is definitely not a permanent fix.

[catgrass]

You can buy insecticide/pesticide in a bottle that attaches to your garden hose to spray your lawn down. Do it in the morning so it has time to dry before dark. Keep pets and people off the grass until it dries-Amdro, Off, Ortho and others make this product. I do it several times during the summer to control mosquitoes, flies, fleas and gnats in my South Louisiana damp, muggy yard. Yeah, somebody will fuss about the "chemicals", but it works. Be prepared when you turn that sucker on, it sprays fast and far! And should be effective for several weeks.

[PaulF]

When we went to Grandma's house here in southeastern Nebraska we and the kids always went home with lots of chiggers. So many years later when my wife and I retired to live in Grandma's old house the chiggers were still there. So when it was time for our grandchildren come to visit there was no way I was going to allow the discomfort to continue.

I agree with catgrass about the really only way to get rid of the pests....chemical spray bottles hooked to the garden hose. I also extended the short grass as far out as possible, but where we live it is pretty wild with long grasses. Chiggers live in the long vegetation at the edge of a lawn and move into the short grass to feed (on people and pets). So not only did the lawn get sprayed, so did the perimeter back about twenty feet. It took several sprays but the chiggers are gone.

I hate to put the good insects at peril, but we made the choice to get rid of chiggers. Amazingly, pollinators are still plentiful and the kids still have a great time chasing fireflies. If we ever have chiggers show up, the chemical solution comes out.

[mech1369dlw]

Thanx for the replies. I went out and got some Bayer Complete Insect Killer. I didn't want the chemicals, but when it came down to the grandkids scratching themselves to death, or insect on the lawn, the bugs lost out. Cut the grass one evening and the next morning, I applied it just as the label said to do it.

As I was doing it, had one guy stop and tell me that I shouldn't use chemicals. I asked him if he had paid for my yard and house, He said no. I then told him if he didn't pay, then I didn't want to hear his voice any more. As he drove down the hill, we both gave each other the peace sign, with the pointer finger missing.

[ButterflyLady29]

We've had them very bad this year. So bad that we've resorted to applying OFF before we go outside. I don't want to kill the other bugs in my yard so I spray myself instead.