Vegetables, Berries, and Grapes: Grasshoppers

Problem
Large holes are chewed in the margins of the leaves. Greenish yellow to brown jumping insects, ½ to 1½ inches long, with long hind legs are eating the plants. Some fruit and corn ears may be chewed.

Analysis
Grasshoppers attack a wide variety of plants. They eat leaves and occasionally fruit, migrating as they deplete their food sources. In vegetable gardens, they are most numerous in the rows near weedy areas. In late summer, adult grasshoppers lay their eggs in pods in the soil. The adults continue feeding until cold weather kills them. The eggs hatch the following spring. Grasshopper problems are most severe during hot, dry weather. Grasshoppers migrate into green gardens and yards as surrounding areas dry up in the summer heat. Periods of cool, wet weather help keep their numbers under control.

Solution
Treat the plants with a bait containing carbaryl or an insecticide containing diazinon as soon as grasshoppers appear. Repeat at weekly intervals if the plants become reinfested. Make sure that your plant is listed on the product label.