Mole crickets acquired their name because they look like moles. Much like moles, they nest in lawns, feed on grubs and worms and can cause damage to valuable root systems. Though located in many states, Mole crickets are more of a problem in the southeast and southwest. In fact, this species of cricket is thought to be responsible for more than $30,000,000.00 of damage each year in the state of Florida alone!

MOLE CRICKET BIOLOGY

Mostly nocturnal, mole crickets forage for food in the night. In the southern most regions, they will remain active year round. Eggs will be laid continuously and since adult females lay hundreds of eggs, lawns can become infested within a year if left unattended. Eggs hatch in less than a month and immature crickets will quickly be foraging through the turf looking for small organisms on which to feed. This tunneling causes damage to plant and grass root systems. Although young crickets can jump fairly well, they will loose this ability as they mature and eventually rely on moving through the ground as their main means of travel.

Mole crickets are good fliers. They have been observed to fly more than 5 miles and may do so during mating periods. Mole crickets are attracted to lights which leads to houses. Once they land and begin looking for food on residential property, mole crickets will more than likely want to stay. As they begin creating nests, you will start to notice burrows or holes which resemble moles. Although smaller, many people mistake them for moles and try trapping with conventional mole traps. Needless to say, this method of mole cricket control will not work.

MOLE CRICKET DAMAGE

If the damage mole crickets cause does not concern you, the damage their predators will cause may prompt you to treat. Mole crickets are nutritious and once populations begin to grow, expect several species of wildlife to come looking for the bounty. Common predators of mole crickets include birds, rats, skunk, armadillos, raccoon and foxes. These animals will not have any noticeable impact on the mole cricket population but they certainly will destroy your lawn! Anyone of the above predators will readily pull up and peel away turf in search of mole crickets to feed. This is a common problem and if you need assistance dealing with any of the above animals, go back to our article archive section where you will find in depth information for just about all of them.

MOLE CRICKET CONTROL

To prevent or stop any of this from happening, you will need to either prebait so that mole crickets cannot establish themselves in your yard or, if they are already active, you will have to take a more direct approach and start a chemical treatment program. If you have seen a lot of mole crickets in the spring during mating season, chances are some have found their way into your turf. If a neighbor has a problem, it is only a matter of time before some nest in your yard. Either of these situations are more than enough reason to do some preventative maintenance. This is easy and inexpensive.

MOLE CRICKET CONTROL BAIT

Although baiting for mole crickets won't work well on existing infestations, applying bait before they nest will. Simply treat your turf in the spring just after mating season and one treatment will probably last all year. In southern zones where populations breed throughout the year, you may have to apply some twice. The best product to use is MAXFORCE GRANULES. This bait is formulated as small granules and is easy to apply. Simply sprinkle it around the yard and wait for rain. Mole crickets like to forage for food around the surface of the soil after a rain. Maxforce performs better when wet so it is most readily accepted following a rain. Mole crickets in your area which are looking for food will find the Maxforce, feed and die off before they have a chance to establish themselves. Since Maxforce goes a long way, it is the most cost effective treatment procedure as well. However, baiting will not work if you have a significant population. Once nests are prevalent throughout the yard, you will need to do a liquid treatment with another product. This is why applying some of the bait in the spring is a smart thing to do. Anyone who has dealt with mole crickets know they are both persistent and stubborn. For this reason it is wise to do a little pretreating and try to get them before they get your yard!!!

Mole cricket populations that are established will require some chemical treatments. Due to where and how mole crickets behave and live, expect to do several treatments over the course of any growing season. If you are persistent and stick to a regular schedule and do your applications on time, you should be able to get them under control. Be sure to start treatments as soon as you know you have a problem. Furthermore, don't expect to do one treatment. The best approach is to treat once a month for at least three months. At the end of this time period do a good inspection to see the impact your effort has had. If you are confident no more are thriving, you can stop treatments until the next outbreak occurs. Since Mole Crickets will reproduce rapidly and can migrate, it is quite common for any lawn and turf area which had a problem to be plagued again some time in the future. Since mole crickets live down in turf, it is best to treat right after a rain and late in the day. Mole crickets tend to forage to the surface in the evening so treating right before this time is your best bet. Here is another tip: Add 1 tablespoon of Lemon Joy to the sprayer for every 1000 sq/ft you are treating. This means the Lemon Joy will get them to come out and move around a lot more then normal. This moving around insures they will come in contact with the product being applied. The Lemon Joy will also help the product being applied to work better.

MOLE CRICKET CONTROL SPRAY

Since Mole Crickets are hard to kill, you need to be sure and use an active ingredient that will work. For the longest time, we had a product labeled for Mole Crickets called Orthene WP. It had a 75% Acephate active and worked great for mole cricket control programs. It's no longer being made but the same exact active is used in another formulation we sell called FIRE ANT KILLER. If you know of the old Orthene formulation and would like to get something like it, the Fire Ant Killer is as close as you'll find on the market today. It does have a strong smell - like rotten eggs or bad cabbage - but it works.

MOLE CRICKET CONTROL GRANULES

Another product which has become quite popular in the turf industry for Mole Crickets is Talstar. You can get either TALSTAR GRANULES or TALSTAR CONCENTRATE. Both forms are odorless and highly active on Mole Crickets. Since Talstar uses an active which is relatively new in pest control, the Mole Crickets are very vulnerable to it and we have seen good results. The basic difference between the two forms is that the concentrate will go to work immediately where as the granular form needs to be watered and takes some time to become active. The other big difference is that the liquid will have an immediate impact and be gone within a month where as the granules will take a good week to start working but could remain active for 1-2 months. Though most people will choose one over the other for a host of reasons, follow these simple guidelines when determining which form to apply.

MOLE CRICKET CONTROL

1) If you don't want to get any mole crickets and you want to use something stronger then the Maxforce listed above, apply the Granules every 2 months during the growing season in your region. Not only will it keep the mole crickets away, but the granules will prevent fireants, roaches and just about any nuisance insect.

2) If you have a small amount of activity and don't feel like doing the work required to spray your yard with the liquid form, applications of the granules may not work immediately but they will resolve small populations effectively.

3) If you have either a small amount or a large population of mole crickets, you can opt to use the liquid form. This will go to work immediately and knock out all which are active though you will have to perform a little more work to get it applied. Remember also that you will have to reapply some every month to get complete control.

4) If you have a big population and want to do the very best application, use both. First, apply the granules over the targeted turf. Next, spray the Concentrate over the top. The water from the spray will help to get the granules going and the liquid Talstar will provide some immediate relief. Clearly this is the best approach to use if you have a current infestation and want to get quick control.

If you decide to do some spraying, the use of a lot of water is suggested. This will help insure your efforts make it down into the turf far enough to impact the mole crickets residing there. Mole crickets like to hide and go deep when it gets hot or dry. For this reason wet, damp turf is better suited to both reach the crickets better and to distribute the product being applied more thoroughly. Though there are many types of sprayers that can be used, the best is a hose end sprayer. These are types which attach to your garden hose and use a lot of water when spraying. We have a 6 GALLON HOSE END which is ideal for this job. It is both easy to use and accurate. Furthermore, it forces you to apply a lot of water which is critical to the success of any mole cricket application.

Mole crickets can cause a lot of damage in the yard. Their activity disrupts and kills plant roots. To keep Mole crickets from nesting in your turf, treat with Maxforce Granules once or twice a year. If you want to use something a little stronger, apply the Talstar Granules. For treating current activity, use some Talstar Concentrate and be sure to add some Lemon Joy to the sprayer. This will help "flush" resident mole crickets so they are sure to come in contact with the material being applied.

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