Swarms of grasshoppers are gobbling up Pueblo gardens. Here's how to get rid of them

The pesky prevalence of gluttonous grasshoppers is perturbing Pueblo gardeners, farmers, and just about anyone with vegetation or trees they would like to keep healthy this summer.

There are two occurrences to blame for the profusion of greedy grasshoppers — last year's grasshopper population explosion and this year's spring rains, said Kristi Bartolo, agronomy specialist for the Colorado State University Extension office in Pueblo. Surprisingly, there are more than 100 species of grasshoppers living in Colorado.

"This year they had plenty of food when they emerged in the spring. We needed the rain, but sometimes it brings things we don't want and that is part of the cyclic pattern — we are on a turn where we are getting a lot of grasshoppers," Bartolo told the Chieftain.

Because grasshoppers are so mobile — they don't just hop, they fly — the voracious vermin are difficult to get rid of. If possible, Bartolo advises gardeners to get rid of the grasshoppers at a young age before they multiply and grow into bigger, hungrier pests.

"I had sunflowers yesterday, but when I went to check on them today they had no leaves left — the grasshoppers literally mowed them. They come in like a herd and eat everything they can," she explained.

Although wild birds, lizards, adult robber flies and coyotes can help control the grasshoppers, sometimes Mother Nature's defenses are not enough to combat the insect invasion.

Pueblo chile farmer Bryan Crites of Crites Produce has encountered the grasshoppers since the chile plants were tiny this year.

"When their food source dries up they move into crops and it's sad seeing them eat the pepper plants like that," Crites said, pointing out he relies on insecticides to save his crops.

How to get rid of grasshoppers

Bartolo said methods of getting rid of the grasshoppers can range from chemical and cultural to mechanical.

When it comes to chemicals, the extension service has compiled a handy chart to help growers decide what they might want to use in either bait or spray form to kill off the garden-gobbling grasshoppers. That chart and other information about grasshoppers can be found on the CSU Extension office's website.

The extension service has other suggestions for those who may not want to use insecticides.

You may be able to protect your garden by watering plants in grasshopper breeding areas outside of the garden to promote plant growth. That could keep the grasshoppers from migrating into the garden.

Susceptible plants may be protected by screening or using cheesecloth barriers, however, grasshoppers can chew through most fabrics. Repellants such as garlic-based preparations may actually increase grasshopper feeding, according to an extension office fact sheet.

Poultry can feed heavily on grasshoppers. Turkeys, guinea hens, and chickens have all been used to help control grasshoppers.

One clever internet hack suggests setting up a clear pane of glass vertically so that grasshoppers fly into it and then fall into a container of soapy water below. Some gardeners prefer the hand-to-hand combat method and will stomp, swat, or crush the offending invaders.

Ways to get a jump on grasshopper mitigation for next year

All grasshoppers lay their eggs in soil.

There are a couple of tips to help avoid the recurrence of grasshopper guilds, such as mowing wide areas around the garden you want to protect in late summer or early fall to try and stop grasshopper nymphs from migrating across the mowed boundary when they hatch in the spring.

Tilling cropland in late summer can also eliminate areas where grasshoppers might lay their eggs.

You can also get in touch with your local cooperative extension office, as staff often host classes to help residents learn about grasshopper control.

In Pueblo, the office website is pueblo.extension.colostate.edu and the phone number is 719-583-6566.

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Chieftain reporter Tracy Harmon covers business news. She can be reached by email at [email protected] or via X, formerly Twitter, at twitter.com/tracywumps. Support local news, subscribe to The Pueblo Chieftain at subscribe.chieftain.com.

This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: How to keep Pueblo grasshoppers from destroying your garden