What to do about locusts/flying-grasshoppers and how bad are they? - Page 2

kath · May 30, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojave

Is EcoBran safe around wild birds?

They claim it "contains 2% of the chemical carbaryl"; "does not harm birds"; "and has little or no effect on beneficials"; that it "only affects insects with chewing mouth parts that are attracted to the bran bait".

Mojave · May 30, 2012

I was reluctant to kill the baby grasshoppers in my yard because I wasn't sure of what they were. So far this year I've only had to deal with snails, and I'm on to them, they're no longer a threat. Guess now it's open season on grasshoppers! We have many many wild birds here (including an insomniac Mockingbird in the big tree out back) I imagine they will be helpful catching these guys.

kath · May 30, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojave

I was reluctant to kill the baby grasshoppers in my yard because I wasn't sure of what they were. So far this year I've only had to deal with snails, and I'm on to them, they're no longer a threat. Guess now it's open season on grasshoppers! We have many many wild birds here (including an insomniac Mockingbird in the big tree out back) I imagine they will be helpful catching these guys.

We live on the edge of woods but there are open fields nearby, too, as well as a river, so we've got lots of birds and I love listening to them all when I'm in the garden. Spring is especially fun with the songs of migrants and returning summer residents announcing the latest arrival. But the other day we had a pair of mockingbirds in the yard- very unusual up on the hill. I have to say, by the end of a day of listening to their nonstop imitations of the other birds I was seriously hoping they'd find somewhere else to nest! Haven't seen or heard them since so I think we dodged a bullet.

Sun City Linda · May 30, 2012

I have LOTS of allegator lizards, which, I hope like grasshoppers.

Mojave · May 30, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by kath

We live on the edge of woods but there are open fields nearby, too, as well as a river, so we've got lots of birds and I love listening to them all when I'm in the garden. Spring is especially fun with the songs of migrants and returning summer residents announcing the latest arrival. But the other day we had a pair of mockingbirds in the yard- very unusual up on the hill. I have to say, by the end of a day of listening to their nonstop imitations of the other birds I was seriously hoping they'd find somewhere else to nest! Haven't seen or heard them since so I think we dodged a bullet.

These guys have been here about 6 or 7 weeks now. They are 24/7

Don't they ever sleep??

And Linda, yes the alligator lizards are your allies!

=)
-Bill

kath · May 30, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojave

These guys have been here about 6 or 7 weeks now. They are 24/7

Don't they ever sleep??
=)
-Bill

My sympathies, Bill.

I really think they even annoy the other birds.

z_willus_d · May 30, 2012

I'm blessed with a plethora of lizards (not sure of the type) myself. Now I just want to get lucky and see one of them sucking down a locust that's twice their size. Yes, that one I want to see for myself.

Thanks for the pointer on the product Kath.
-naysen

kath · May 30, 2012

You're welcome- hope it does the job for you, naysen- too bad we can't get a picture of those things.

z_willus_d · May 30, 2012

I'm always to freaked out chasing them around to find my camera. I feel like it might be bad taste to post a picture of the demolished carcass. It's pretty gross in any case. :-~
-n

saltmarsh · May 31, 2012

Early this morning as I was sitting in the shade of the gate post with ice water packs on my wrists trying to cool off from crushing stink bugs in the squash and pulling nut grass and pig weed from the cantaloupes, I wondered what I was going to do about the locusts because they were too fast for me, when about 60 feet away, I saw a large locust fly up followed almost instantly by a mockingbird who caught it in midair and carried it back to its nest and I smiled.

Mojave · May 31, 2012

Quote:

Originally Posted by saltmarsh

Early this morning as I was sitting in the shade of the gate post with ice water packs on my wrists trying to cool off from crushing stink bugs in the squash and pulling nut grass and pig weed from the cantaloupes, I wondered what I was going to do about the locusts because they were too fast for me, when about 60 feet away, I saw a large locust fly up followed almost instantly by a mockingbird who caught it in midair and carried it back to its nest and I smiled.

Well that was cool! I guess I won't complain about the mockingbird

anymore.
I know they'll be movin on soon.

Dewayne mater · May 31, 2012

Any thought of using Kaolin clay? I don't know if it would work, but, I would think leaves covered in clay would be less attractive than other edible options? I haven't used it before, but, I believe Suze and others use it for stinkbug control. Anything that can stop those bast*!@# is powerful stuff.

Dewayne mater

z_willus_d · May 31, 2012

In addition to the Locusts, I now have their little evil brothers -- leafhoppers. I'm going to grab some neem oil and give it a try on them, as they clearly don't take any offense to a face full of spinosad or take-down garden spray. I hear sevin also works, but that one isn't organic.
-n

rnewste · May 31, 2012

Naysen,

I gotta ask - - when you go outside and look straight up, do you see a dark cloud hanging overhead?

I've never seen anyone have such poor luck growing tomatoes. Your persistence is highly commendable as many of us would have given up on gardening and would have taken up building a Lionel train display in the basement instead.

Seriously, keep up the good fight!!

Raybo

JohnWayne · June 1, 2012

I happen to have a line of bug killers that will kill almost any bug. It is very selective by the way you use it so that no bees will be killed or no birds poisoned by the dead insects.

It comes in a kit with instructions _ Contents = 1 blue block, 1 red block. Place bug on red block, hit firmly with blue block.

The above is a joke but then again - Last year, caught between not wanting to kill bees and having green beans covered in bean beetles, I was left with killing them mechanically. I crushed them in my fingers and did the same with the eggs. Its gross and it worked and no bees were harmed.

Grass hoppers make great fish food if you have an aquarium or bait if you like to fish btw.

May 30, 2012	#17
Mojave Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2012 Location: SF Bay area Z9a Posts: 821	I was reluctant to kill the baby grasshoppers in my yard because I wasn't sure of what they were. So far this year I've only had to deal with snails, and I'm on to them, they're no longer a threat. Guess now it's open season on grasshoppers! We have many many wild birds here (including an insomniac Mockingbird in the big tree out back) I imagine they will be helpful catching these guys. __________________ Bill _______________________________________________ When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe. -John Muir Believe those who seek the Truth: Doubt those who find it. -André Gide

May 30, 2012	#19
Sun City Linda Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: SoCal Inland Posts: 2,705	I have LOTS of allegator lizards, which, I hope like grasshoppers.

May 30, 2012	#22
z_willus_d Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Eastern Suburb of Sacramento, CA Posts: 1,313	I'm blessed with a plethora of lizards (not sure of the type) myself. Now I just want to get lucky and see one of them sucking down a locust that's twice their size. Yes, that one I want to see for myself. Thanks for the pointer on the product Kath. -naysen

May 30, 2012	#23
kath Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: zone 6b, PA Posts: 5,664	You're welcome- hope it does the job for you, naysen- too bad we can't get a picture of those things.

May 31, 2012	#25
saltmarsh Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: 2 miles south of Yoknapatawpha Zone 7b Posts: 662	Early this morning as I was sitting in the shade of the gate post with ice water packs on my wrists trying to cool off from crushing stink bugs in the squash and pulling nut grass and pig weed from the cantaloupes, I wondered what I was going to do about the locusts because they were too fast for me, when about 60 feet away, I saw a large locust fly up followed almost instantly by a mockingbird who caught it in midair and carried it back to its nest and I smiled.

May 31, 2012	#27
Dewayne mater Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2008 Location: DFW, Texas Posts: 1,212	Any thought of using Kaolin clay? I don't know if it would work, but, I would think leaves covered in clay would be less attractive than other edible options? I haven't used it before, but, I believe Suze and others use it for stinkbug control. Anything that can stop those bast*!@# is powerful stuff. Dewayne mater

May 31, 2012	#29
rnewste Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Campbell, CA Posts: 4,064	Naysen, I gotta ask - - when you go outside and look straight up, do you see a dark cloud hanging overhead? I've never seen anyone have such poor luck growing tomatoes. Your persistence is highly commendable as many of us would have given up on gardening and would have taken up building a Lionel train display in the basement instead. Seriously, keep up the good fight!! Raybo

June 1, 2012	#30
JohnWayne Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2012 Location: Hickory,North Carolina Posts: 470	I happen to have a line of bug killers that will kill almost any bug. It is very selective by the way you use it so that no bees will be killed or no birds poisoned by the dead insects. It comes in a kit with instructions _ Contents = 1 blue block, 1 red block. Place bug on red block, hit firmly with blue block. The above is a joke but then again - Last year, caught between not wanting to kill bees and having green beans covered in bean beetles, I was left with killing them mechanically. I crushed them in my fingers and did the same with the eggs. Its gross and it worked and no bees were harmed. Grass hoppers make great fish food if you have an aquarium or bait if you like to fish btw.