Question: I cut down an old locust tree (stump still exists) Now, DOZENS of little locust sprouts are everywhere!!!! My asphalt driveway, which is about 5 feet from the stump has a new little bulge about a foot across, I am thinking a locust tree is trying to sprout through from below.

Any suggestions on how to stop these things from overtaking my yard? I have been pulling out some, and squirting weed killer on others. Their spread has slowed down, but new sprouts are still popping up.

Should I grind or dig out the stump? Any advice would be appreciated.

Answer: You are correct. Your locust is trying to re-sprout from below. Even if you grind out the stump, the sucker shoots will continue to emerge. I suggest drilling holes into the stump and filling them with concentrated Quick Kill. Also apply dilute Quick Kill or Tiger brand Brush Killer to the new sprouts. These weed killers will translocate to the roots and kill sections of roots. Eventually all of the roots will die and the sucker sprouts will cease.

Question:  We have a row of tall Leyland cypress and they are loaded with bagworms. I can only, even with a ladder, pull off the bags halfway up the trees. I know I should have sprayed earlier, but I didn't and my trees are being devastated. With my sprayer, by standing on the roof of my shed, I can reach the top of the trees. Is there any point in spraying now or is there some other solution? I really don't want to lose my privacy.

Answer: You can achieve partial control of the bagworms if you spray with Acephate now. The key is drenching the bags so that they absorb the pesticide. Two to three sprays, spread over one day, will be better than one long drenching spray in which the bags absorb the pesticide rather than dripping most of it onto the ground. Drenching is an absolute necessity and requires more patience than most people have.

Question: I saw brown patches in my lawn and when I checked them out the grass had no roots. I explored with my trowel and I discovered lots of large grubs. They were about an inch long, much larger than Japanese beetle grubs. Are these grubs left over from some beetles last year or are these new grubs that had just grown from eggs that were deposited this year? Should I be concerned, if so what should I do?

Answer: You have the grub from the European chafer which lays its eggs about 3 weeks earlier than the Japanese beetles. Thus your grubs are already nearly full-sized now. In quantity, they can be just as damaging to your lawn as Japanese beetle grubs. It is too late to apply Mach 2 for European Chafer instead you need to apply Dylox now before the grubs do more damage.