Hairy Chinch Bug Control on a Home Lawn in Butler Co., Pa, 1986

The lawn consisted primarily of fine leafed fescue. Treatment plots were 5 x 6 ft, arranged in a RCB design and replicated 3 times. Liquid formulations were applied by using a C02 sprayer with four 8504 Tee Jet nozzles mounted on a 6-ft boom, operating at 30 psi with a 4 gal/1,000 ft2 spray rate. At treatment time, the following soil and environmental conditions existed: air temp, 68°F; soil temp, 72°F; % RH, 67; amount of thatch, 1.25 inches; soil type, clay-loam; % soil moisture, 12.7; soil pH, 7.2; % organic matter, 3.1; water pH, slightly acidic; no rainfall was recorded over the posttreatment period. Posttreatment counts were made 1 day and 6 days after the initial 30 Jul treatment date. Hairy chinch bugs were sampled by driving a 6 inch stainless steel cylinder into the turf, filling with water, and counting the number of chinch bug numphs and adults floating to the surface over a 10 min period. Three floatation samples were randomly taken from within each replicate, and the total number of chinch bugs from each sample was recorded and converted to a ft2 count.