Bulbs
Flower Basics
Flower Beds & Specialty Gardens
Flower Garden
Garden Furniture
Garden Gnomes
Garden Seeds
Garden Sheds
Garden Statues
Garden Tools & Supplies
Gardening Basics
Green & Organic
Groundcovers & Vines
Growing Annuals
Growing Basil
Growing Beans
Growing Berries
Growing Blueberries
Growing Cactus
Growing Corn
Growing Cotton
Growing Edibles
Growing Flowers
Growing Garlic
Growing Grapes
Growing Grass
Growing Herbs
Growing Jasmine
Growing Mint
Growing Mushrooms
Orchids
Growing Peanuts
Growing Perennials
Growing Plants
Growing Rosemary
Growing Roses
Growing Strawberries
Growing Sunflowers
Growing Thyme
Growing Tomatoes
Growing Tulips
Growing Vegetables
Herb Basics
Herb Garden
Indoor Growing
Landscaping Basics
Landscaping Patios
Landscaping Plants
Landscaping Shrubs
Landscaping Trees
Landscaping Walks & Pathways
Lawn Basics
Lawn Maintenance
Lawn Mowers
Lawn Ornaments
Lawn Planting
Lawn Tools
Outdoor Growing
Overall Landscape Planning
Pests, Weeds & Problems
Plant Basics
Rock Garden
Rose Garden
Shrubs
Soil
Specialty Gardens
Trees
Vegetable Garden
Yard Maintenance
Homemade Tonic for Killing Grasshoppers
Homemade Tonic for Killing Grasshoppers. Grasshoppers are devastating to gardens and crops when found in large numbers, and even small numbers of grasshoppers can destroy home gardens. You can control grasshopper populations with homemade tonics that kill the bugs and let your garden grow in peace. Make your own grasshopper insecticide so you know...
Grasshoppers are devastating to gardens and crops when found in large numbers, and even small numbers of grasshoppers can destroy home gardens. You can control grasshopper populations with homemade tonics that kill the bugs and let your garden grow in peace. Make your own grasshopper insecticide so you know exactly what went into the tonic, with no questions about harmful side effects.
Things You'll Need
Blackstrap molasses
Spray bottle
Garlic
Food processor
Mineral oil
Glass jars
Strainer
Fish emulsion
Castile soap
Mix 4 ounces of blackstrap molasses with 1 quart of water in a spray bottle and shake well. Spray directly on grasshoppers to clog their pores and suffocate them to death.
Process 3 ounces of garlic to a pulp in a food processor or spice grinder and mix with 1 ounce of mineral oil in a glass jar. Let steep for 24 hours.
Strain the garlic and oil mixture into a clean glass jar and discard the garlic pulp.
Mix 1 teaspoon of fish emulsion and 1 tablespoon of castile soap with 16 ounces of water and slowly pour the mixture into the garlic-infused oil.
Mix 2 tablespoons of the garlic oil and fish emulsion mixture with 1 pint of water in a sprayer and spray grasshoppers directly to kill them. The garlic oil mixture keeps for several months in a glass jar with a well-sealed lid.
Tips & Warnings
Encourage good bugs and garden predators such as birds and robber flies that feed on grasshoppers and their eggs in the garden.
For biological control of grasshoppers, use the single-celled protozoa Nosema locustae, which kill the grasshoppers from the inside once ingested. The protozoa can stay active for several years.
