Managing Grasshoppers: Protect Your Garden from These Pests 🦗
Grasshoppers can devour large amounts of foliage. Here’s how to manage them:
1. Row Covers: Use row covers to protect plants from grasshoppers.
2. Neem Oil: Apply neem oil to repel grasshoppers and inhibit their feeding.
3. Beneficial Insects: Encourage beneficial insects like spiders and beetles that prey on grasshoppers.
4. Diatomaceous Earth: Sprinkle diatomaceous earth around plants to deter grasshoppers.
5. Nosema locustae: Use biological control by introducing Nosema locustae, a pathogen that targets grasshoppers.
Tips:
- Regularly inspect for grasshopper eggs and destroy them.
- Maintain healthy soil to support strong plant growth that can withstand grasshopper feeding.
- Encourage birds, which are natural predators of grasshoppers.
