Most nymphs start feeding within one day after egg hatch and usually feed on the same plants as the adult. Just after hatching, nymphs are vulnerable to adverse weather. Grasshopper nymphs go through five instars. Grasshopper nymphs reach the adult stage in six to eight weeks. Only adult grasshoppers have wings and readily move out of hatching areas.
Grasshoppers begin egg laying one to three weeks after becoming adults.
Adults live two to three months, depending on the weather. All developmental stages are influenced by temperature, and their growth can be advanced or retarded by favorable or unfavorable temperature. Management Grasshopper management can be effective and practical if the area you are protecting is relatively small and isolated. However, protecting a garden from grasshoppers moving out of a large area of adjacent grassland or cropland may be impossible. Row covers and screens can help protect the more valuable plants, but grasshoppers can eat through all but the heaviest fabric or window screen.