Look what we found in a flower bed yesterday. (That's my husband's hand, which is not small and dainty.)
Nearly got an eye put out when it was hit dead on by one of these nasty b........
That was 18 years ago.
Sidney
The Lubber Season has started in Volusia County.
Killed 5 nymphs this morning...
Candace
I loathe those darn grasshoppers. They are just so destructive, but way to big to squish with your foot. Well, I guess you could, but who want all that goo all over your foot. They are like cuban tree frogs, youve got to get rid of them, but no really easy way.
Soap and Water!
Mix a small amount of biodegradable dish soap with water in a sprayer.
Spray them as soon as they hatch. It coats their breathing apparatus. I leave them where they fall and the bodies are usually gone in a few minutes. I'm guessing ants...
“Patrol” daily in the early morning and late afternoon.
This has drastically reduced the number of adult Lubbers in my garden.
Candace
Yes. They are hatching out again here too. I had a great thought (at least I thought it was then!),...that the Chickens would devour them if I scooped them up and threw them in the coop. No dice! They had no interest and must taste nasty I figured!........Soooo,....now I spray them with them with Spinosad A and B sold by 'Fertilome' as Borer, Leafminer and Bagworm or Tent Caterpillar killer, (something along those lines and am too lazy to go get and read the 16 0z. bottle,...Ha!)
...and it works geniously. I highly recommend this product. It is the only insecticide I have found that will eradicate leafminer on Tomatos and other veggies also that is safe for consumption. It is one of those new bacterial type things that effects the digestive system of the bugs without enormous toxicity. I have been using it for years now and it is my favorite. It can also be used as a mix in the watering can. Water the plants with it and it will be sucked up and kill Borers on plums, Chikasaw Plums (a favorite Florida native and love those trees!), Peaches and the like... It is a good thing to research further for those interested....
David
This message was edited Mar 11, 2013 4:42 PM
We loved them when I was a kid in Augusta , GA. That was about 1945. They were fun to catch, collect and watch. Sometimes there were many many of them.
The lubber grasshoppers have started hatching again this year and of all the bugs we get in Floridian yards, I hate these the most. Luckily I have a 10 years old boy who likes to catch and kill them!
I found this bit on info on a site about the insecticides that will kill them:
Among the insecticides that will kill lubber grasshoppers are carbaryl, bifenthrin, cyhalothrin, permethrin, and esfenvalerate (note: these are the technical names, which appear in the 'ingredients' section on the label). You likely will have to apply the insecticide directly to the insects; the small amount of insecticide residue remaining on sprayed plants may not be adequate to kill the grasshoppers.
Scissors and a calm manner.
;)
I use my clippers and sneak up on them! It's quite the sight to see me sneaking up behind a lubber, then snipping him in half with lightening speed, lol ! I've found nothing else that will touch them, no matter what I spray directly on them, I've even tried to drown them with pesticides.....but nada....so the ninja approach will remain.
MerryMary - LOL at the "ninja approach"! That's what I do as well.
It's nice if you can catch them when they are still nymphs and can get squished easy. My 10 year old likes to kill them and I am quite happy to have him and his friends play with them and kill them.
Found a small bath of the nymphs yesterday in a tubby that was upside down. Remember the mashed potatoe dance well now there mashed potatoes. Good thing no cars were going by. I'd hate to be committed just for killing bugs. LOL
Bonnie
The Lubber nymphs showing up en mass in my yard this week. Going after the Cannas, Crinum, and Brugmansias . Let the war begin!
New one! They hate garlic. I put my italian pasta inventions that didn't work in my compost
pile and the grasshoppers left!
Three has been quite a Harlequin bug presence in my garden this spring. Have destroyed a considerable amount of Coles. Especially Mustard greens and Chinese cabbage. Any hints besides squishing them all? I don't want to spray poison at all.
Found these buggers eating my tomato plants. Anyone know what they are?
As much as I don't like things creatures I just can't bring myself to kill anything, especially something so beautiful. Yes, I know how that must sound....crazy, I know! But I just pick them up off my plants and move them out of my garden. As I said, I hate killing anything. I was telling my husband about some of the comments here and how everyone cuts them in half or stomps on their heads....my husband agrees, but I just can't.
Moving them out of your garden will not solve the problem! It simply puts it in someone elses court! Get over it! They have no redeeming value! Birds won't even eat them! Do your neighbors a favor! Send your husband out if you can't do it! :-)
The first time you wake up to see a plant that took you 4 years to grow, eaten down to the soil line, you'll be just fine with eliminating them!
"Get over it".... Kinda mean to say...
Everyone has their quirks and this is mine. It's who I am, I can't just simply "get over it". Sorry....
Sorry Nefitara…Meant no offense…Sometimes the printed word sounds different then the spoken.
This message was edited Jun 2, 2013 12:21 PM
I hate them (lubbers) I do the stomp treatment too . They do eat everything the trick is stomp treatment when they hach out in spring !
Adult's get beheaded !
I have started finding the full grown yellow ones over the last week...but I have not seen as many as I have normally seen years before.
I've been killing these (stomp method, unless I have my pruners in hand) for months now. Found 2 on my Alligator plant yesterday. Of course I did not have my gloves on & got impaled by the spines of the plant trying to get them off. I WON!!! They DIED!!!!! Hoping I'll eventually win this war. Wish my neighbors had more plants so they would go elsewhere to eat!!!!
Norma, I have seen the occasional "lubber" like the one Charlie holds. Also have seen one like Cyber's pic. And of course the browns. But they don't seem to do any real damage here. I have a hard time keeping up with the weeds, I do not have the time to take my scissors to those hoppers. Just as long as they stay out of my shirt.
Norma, I forgot...as to the gaillardia, start with the native blanket flower. Throw in some "Fanfare". Deadhead them early to keep them blooming, but as the season wears on, let them go to seed first before cutting them. Then throw the seeds down in the bed. They will eventually realize they like your gardens. And they will come back every year........not like the ones in the picture above. I am envious of those.
Molly
I havent had any this year. What I do have my eyes peeled for are the hornworms. They get me every year, right when you think the tomatoes are doing so good.
I have been getting the lubbers in waves. Today wasn't too bad but they are still in all phases of growth.
What I havent had this year...knock on wood, are the hormworms. They do me in almost every year.
A few weeks ago I was finding lubers everywhere. I ended their lives. I've not seen any, or even evidence of them, in a couple weeks. I'm hoping they have moved to a friendlier yard!!!!
As a new owner of a FL house, in Port St. Lucie, It would really help me to know what treatments you use to [successfully] get rid of the various pests. I use Sevin mostly in NC.
Thanks,
Paul
Problem with Sevin is it will also kill the "good" bugs.
I use DE whenever possible & there are some herbal oils now being marketed that seem to be working.
Luckily, we don't have roaches. A good fire ant killer is always good to have on hand.
Have killed 3 HUGE lubbers inthe past 2 days - YUK!!!!
Tlm1, no worries! I just have a really big problem with killing things (my problem) and well my plants are all half eaten and I could just cry, but I did it to myself since I just cannot kill things. Many times I wish I could be like you all and off those little critters. :(
I hate these things! I have nothing but plants that are in the amaryllis family which they love very much. They ate the leaves and bulbs and now nothing is growing. I've only had two blooms and then they came back and ate those.
Hi KhatWoman, and Welcome!
Yeah, those lubbers sure are voracious, and a pain! Got to get up and after 'em early, and hopefully when they are just babies. hehe. Much easier to kill at that size! Birds don't even like them! Sorry to hear about them decimating your Amaryllis.
Welcome aboard, nice to meet you, and Happy gardening! :-)
Always nice to see another local gardener.
Tara - how in the world do you kill the babies??? They are so small & fast I couldn't catch any of them.
hehehehe! I do the stomp! They are very fast, but when they're babies they tend to mass together. I don't always get them all, but a good amount at a time. You can't miss them…Juveniles are black with a red stripe, and usually tend to congregate on lower level plants. You can also flush them out into the open with the water hose. They don't like to be sprayed. And do the stomp! Just make sure you're not barefoot! hehehe! yuck!
I do a stomp n twist! Sometimes just stomping on those nasty things is not enough. This past weekend, I cut one in half with my clippers and it still kept going!
I haven't found as many in my yard his year as I have in years past. Has anyone else noticed a decline or increase in the number of lubbers you have found?
