Our e-mail address format will be changing as of August 4th. Please click here for updated addresses. Contact our webmaster . By Ian Bell Brandon bureau Controlling grasshoppers on pasture and rangeland can be costly. Wyoming researchers have experimented with applying insecticide in 100-metre alternating bands across pastures, which cuts spraying costs in half.
Grasshoppers are mobile and often move between bands.
If the insecticide has a residual effect that lasts a couple of days, the method can offer 80 percent or greater control, Gavloski said. The bands can also help producers preserve natural predators of insect pests. When controlling grasshoppers in grain crops, producers should remember that young hoppers are often most numerous early in the season on field edges and roadsides. They should scout field edges in late May and early June. If it's found to be necessary, controls can be used before the grasshoppers begin spreading throughout the field.