How can I keep grasshoppers from chewing up my landscape?

Question

I know about regular bugs, I don't really need help with them. Grasshoppers seem to be an entirely different problem.

Answer 1

Method One -- Remove all of the live plants from the area.

Method Two -- Cover the area with a screen. An alternative is to use plants like cilantro or horehound as a barrier.

Method Three -- Try a deterrent. Garlic Oil Spray works!

Method Four -- For long term control, Blister beetle and ground beetle larvae attack the egg pods of grasshoppers. A good gardening center should be able to order these for you.

Answer 2

Good luck. Grasshoppers are migratory. You kill one group and another comes hopping in. So chemicals would have to be contstantly applied. Not a good idea.

There is a grasshopper spore that will kill the pupae in the soil over winter. Problem is where to apply. If they suckers are migratory, you'll have to apply "out there" and not in the garden.

Actually one of the best answers is the small guinea hens, but if you live in the city, that won't work. The birds will bother your neighbors.

Instead you can concentrate on bringing wild birds to your garden with seed, water and shelter. Let the birds eat the hoppers.

On the bright side, cool, wet Springs slow down grasshopper growth or kills them outright. Some years you may be lucky.

Most of the time the plants being eaten have had enough time to build up enough food energy they will tolerate being eaten.

Answer 3

Encourage the birds. I have so many jays in my yard the grasshoppers don’t stand a chance.

Now where we used to live, I had a real problem with them. One day my husband saw me chop one in half with the garden clippers and he decided I was having way too much fun. So after that he would take the clippers and go look for them.

Answer 4

Not sure if this works for grasshoppers, but it may be worth a shot. There's a product by Bayer that works for Japanese Beetles, which are just as bad. You mix it up, pour it into the soil around the trunks of trees and shrubs, and it keeps them off the plant. I guess they don't like the taste. (Or even better - it kills them!)

http://www.bayeradvanced.com/garden/products/details.cfm?id=12

Answer 5

buy you some Guinea Hens and turn them lose in the yard
man they love to eat them grasshoppers! and if you call a feed store in spring you'll find their cheap

learn more about them here
http://www.feathersite.com/Poultry/Guineas/BRKGuineas.html

Answer 6

get a little bit of blue dishsoap and mix it up with water and spray on your flowers/plants. It helps keep the bugs down.

Answer 7

get yourself some praying mantis they love them