ANR-910, New April 1995. Patricia Cobb, Extension Entomologist, Professor, Entomology; Austin Hagan, Extension Plant Pathologist, Professor, Plant Pathology

---

Common Insect and Disease Pests of Turfgrasses and Ornamentals in Alabama

Common Insect Pests of Turfgrasses

[To view an enlargement of any photo, just click on that photo.]

1. Ground pearls cannot be controlled effectively with chemicals. Proper turf management is essential.		2. White grubs are the root-feeding immature stages of scarab beetles.		3. White grubs from pupae (middle) from which adults emerge.

4. Green June beetles are daytime fliers and are commonly know as "Junebugs."		5. Green June beetle grubs come out of the ground and move on their backs from place to place.		6. Four mole cricket species in the Southeast: tawny (in Alabama); southern (in Alabama); short-winged; and northern (in Alabama).

7. Mole crickets go through several immature (nymph) stages. It is important to know when these stages are present.		8. Mole cricket tunneling uproots grass plants, causing roots to dry out and die.		9. Tawny mole crickets feed on all parts of grass plants. Their feeding often results in sudden, severe turf loss in untreated infested areas.

10. Red imported fire ant mounds are often located in less trafficked areas of the landscape.		11. Imported fire ant workers vary in size but are all stinging, sterile females.		12. Chinch bugs are major pests of St. Augustinegrass.

13. Two-lined spittlebug adults are pests of turfgrasses and ornamentals.		14. Two-lined spittlebug nymphs, embedded in "spittle masses," are often found deep within the turf, piercing plant tissue and extracting juice.		15. Two-lined spittebug damage appears first as yellow spots in shady areas.

16. Fall armyworm has a yellow, inverted Y on the "face."		17. Fall armyworm damage results when chewed foliage dehydrates and turns brown.		18. Soap flushes (1 gallon water plus 1 or 2 tablespoons liquid dish detergent) can be used to monitor mole crickets, green June beetle grubs, cutworms, and sod webworms.

19. Digging may be required to monitor grubs and other soil pests.

Common Insect Pests of Ornamentals

1. Wax scale, a soft scale. Soft scales produce honeydew.		2. Pine tortoise scale, a soft scale. Mature pine tortoise scales resemble bumps on bark.		3. Euonymus scale, an armored scale. Males (white) are seen here on top leaf surface but can also be found on other plant parts.

4. Tea scale, an armored scale. Males (white) and females (gray) occur on undersurfaces of leaves.		5. Scale "crawlers" (nymphs). Newly hatched scale crawlers migrate to new growth.		6. Mealybugs embedded in waxy filaments.

7. Aphids or "plantlice" have a pair of cornicles (prominent bumps or tubes) on the rear end that produce a defense liquid.		8. Whitefly nymphs are immature stages that pierce tissue, extract plant juice, and produce honeydew.		9. Whitefly "pupae" are nonfeeding stages from which adults emerge.

10. Whitefly adults on the undersurface of leaf during reproductive stage.		11. Lace bug damage on azaleas resembles other feeding damage done by pierce-sucking arthropods such as spidermites.		12. Lace bug excrement under leaves appears as dark spots that are rough to the touch, unlike residue left by other pests.

13. Lace bug nymphs are immature stages. Nymphs are spiny-bodied and lack wings.		14. Lace bug adults are about 1/8 inch long and have lacy, translucent wings.		15. Two-spotted spidermites are insect relatives that pierce plant tissue and extract juice. They are about the size of a period at the end of a sentence.

16. Two-spotted spidermite damage shows up as stippled, bronzed foliage.		17. Spruce mites attack narrow-leaf evergreens. Spruce mite damage causes yellowed needles (left) compared to undamaged needles (right).		18. Thrips slash plant tissue and suck up the extruding juice.

19. Thrips are about the size of pepper grains. They are attracted to light-colored blossoms.		20. Bagworms are caterpillars that chew foliage. They live in bags constructed of webbing and foliage debris.		21. Bagworms can severly damage narrow leaf evergreens if not controlled.

22. Two-lined spittlebug adults are pests of ornamentals and turfgrasses.

---

Common Diseases of Turfgrasses

1. Spring dead spot on 'Tifway' bremudagrass.		2. Spring dead spot in late spring on 'Tifway' bermudagrass.		3. Dollar spot on bermudagrass. Note the cottony growth of causal fungus on blighted leaves.

4. Dollar spot on bermudagrass.		5. Severe brown patch damage to St. Augustinegrass lawn.		6. Brown patch on 'Meyer' zoysiagrass.

7. Gray leaf spot on St. Augustinegrass.		8. Yellowish cast associated with zoysia rust on zoysiagrass.		9. Thinning of turf canopy associated with leaf spot and crown rot on 'Common' bermudagrass.

10. Typical symptoms of leaf spot and crown rot on leaves of 'Common' bermudagrass.		11. Pythium blight on seedling turf.		12. Pythium blight on bentgrass green.

13. Typical fairy ring with associated mushrooms.		14. Sting nematode damage on bermudagrass.		15. Dollar spot on centipedegrass.

16. Take-all root rot on St. Augustinegrass.		17. Fruiting bodies of slime mold fungus.		18. Slime mold on all turfgrasses.

Common Diseases of Ornamentals

1. Phytophthora root rot of 'Snow' azalea.		2. Azalea petal blight of azalea.		3. Leaf gall on 'Gumpo' azalea.

4. Shot hole or bacterial leaf spot on cherry laurel.		5. Apple scab on crabapple.		6. Cedar-apple rust on crabapple.

7. Fireblight on crabapple.		8. Powdery mildew on crape myrtle.		9. Dogwood anthracnose on flowering dogwood.

10. Spot anthracnose on dogwood leaves.		11. Spot anthracnose on dogwood blooms.		12. Anthracnose on euonymus.

13. Crown gall on euonymus.		14. Fasication (mycoplasma) on euonymus.		15. Fireblight canker on limb of flowering pear.

16. Fireblight on flowering pear.		17. Root-knot nematode on dwarf gardenia.		18. Tomato spotted wilt virus on double impatiens.

19. Crown gall on Japanese holly.		20. Phomopsis blight on juniper.		21. Fusiform rust on loblolly pine.

22. Alternaria leaf spot on marigold.		23. Endothia canker on live oak.		24. Hypoxylon canker on oak.

25. Oak leaf blister.		26. Black root rot on pansy.		27. Pythium crown rot on pansy plugs.

28. Armillaria root rot on photinia. Rhizomorphs on dead roots.		29. Entomosporium leaf spot on photinia.		30. Cedar-apple rust gall with spore tendrils on native red cedar.

31. Cedar-quince rust spore mass on limb of native red cedar.		32. Anthracnose on red maple.		33. Limb dieback on rhododendron.

34. Blackspot on rose.		35. Canker on rose cane.		36. Downy mildew on hybrid tea rose.

37. Powdery mildew on rose.		38. Rose mosaic, a common virus disease of rose.		39. Leaf gall on sasanqua camellia.

40. Bleeding necrosis (canker) on sweet gum.		41. Nectria canker on sweet gum.		42. Leaf scorch (bacterial) on sycamore.

43. Bacterial wilt on tomato.		44. Root-knot nematode on tomato.		45. Pitch canker on Virginia pine.

46. Phytophthora root rot on vinca.		47. Web blight, Rhizoctonia, on vinca.		48. Alternaria leaf spot on zinnia.

For more information, contact your county Extension office. Look in your telephone directory under your county's name to find the number.