“Grasshoppers Really Suck”

Farmers and ranchers tease that production agriculture is a game.  It’s a gamble to try and predict what Mother Nature will throw at you from season to season.  The work may be cyclical but it seems like every year brings something new like some game of “Never have I ever” as farmers and ranchers have to find a new remedy or face a new challenge.  They literally play “Whack-a-mole” as they bounce across their fields cutting hay.  Trying out new crops or holding out for a better contract often feels like high stakes “Truth or dare.”  Swapping stories with fellow producers often makes you wonder if the game is “Two truths and a lie,” but more often than not, all the outlandish stories really are true.

Lately, ranching and farming seems to feel like a twisted game of would you rather.  Would you rather have terribly harsh winters that can cause frost damage and freezing calving conditions or warm dry winters that allow pests to multiply, better soil health and fall planted crops to thrive?  Would you rather have plenty of spring rains that will bring sufficient range feed but also extra fuel come fire season?  Would you rather comfortable summer temperatures for cattle that will promote their growth or the hotter temperatures that will help corn and sorghum to grow?  Richard “Dimples” Fields had it right when he sang, “If It Ain’t One Thing It’s Another.”

The most recent challenge western farmers and ranchers are facing- grasshoppers.  It might not be as devastating as the hordes of locust Pharaoh faced but it certainly seems like a plague.  

The current influx of grasshoppers isn’t due to only this summer’s weather patterns, but those of the last year.  A long warm summer and fall lends to more healthy females with more time to lay more eggs.  More of those eggs will survive longer and hatch into grasshoppers if there is a lack of fall rains, wet and cold winters, and spring rains.  In essence a dry year promotes better conditions and survival of grasshopper eggs.  

Farming practices can hinder or help grasshopper numbers.  No-till farming or fallow years leave the soil undisturbed where the grasshopper eggs are laid, once again promoting their growth into adult grasshoppers.

The number of grasshoppers coupled with the summer heat wave leads to the perfect setting for grasshoppers to swarm ag country.  The hot dry weather is difficult for plants to grow as they deal with the effects of dehydration at the cellular level.  Stunted growth means smaller and less leafy plants which in turn decreases the canopy, allowing for more airflow and drier conditions, just the sort of environment a grasshopper thrives in.

Grasshopper infestations in the blooming stages can severely hinder plant growth and maturation as they destroy flowering buds.  As the flowers are stripped away, it not only reduces the potential pods that will grow from the flowers, but will setback the entire plant’s growth as it compensates for the lost biomass.  

The heaviest crop damage comes as grasshoppers strip the plants of the nutritious leaves.  They can easily leave plants to stems alone.  With significant numbers, the grasshoppers will even eat the more fibrous stems. They will eat on grain heads such as wheat, corn, oats, and barley, and even if they don’t consume or ruin the grain, they will often clip off the head making it unable to be harvested.  Their damage will dramatically decrease a crop’s nutrient value as well as overall yield.

They can cause further damage to crops that have already been harvested if there were large numbers of grasshoppers living in them.  A high number of insect parts can lower the food quality potential, although some foodies out there might appreciate the added protein with their grains.  Grain cut with a high infestation can lead to odor or staining that can also downgrade the quality.    

Just like the grain heads, grasshoppers often clip off grass stems or leaves to the ground, not even consuming them.  Left on the ground, the cut forage is once again lost since livestock won’t eat it, proving that grasshopper damage can be just as devastating in grazing fields and rangeland as it is with crops.

Managing grasshopper numbers can be done in several ways over the various life stages.  Depending on the severity and time of year will determine the best way to reduce grasshopper numbers.   Implementing different practices like tilling up fields, reducing fallow fields left with weeds and treating field margins can significantly reduce grasshopper numbers without having to treat crops directly.  Still, chemical insecticides can be appropriate when infestations become problematic.

Would I rather fire over grasshoppers or terribly cold calving winters over grasshoppers?  I’m not too sure which hard I would pick.  But I do know that with every hard situation, there is always a solution to be found and through it all we find ways to better our operations.  It might be time for a new game for rancher’s.  A new game like “Do you love your neighbor?” that gives them a safe space to rest for a moment and maybe even a moment of affection.  Until then, “Would you rather” will have to suffice for those willing to put a little skin in the game