Green-Living-Tampa.com Meeting and Man-Eating Grasshoppers

The lubbers are here!  Let the killing begin.

I know that sounds harsh, but if you are a gardener, these "cute" little black grasshoppers are a scourge. They grow up to be those 3" long golden, garden ravishing monsters.  A biblical plague.  

So, how do you get rid of them before they eat everything in sight?  

Gardeners in the know use an organic natural remedy.  A bacteria called nosema locustae attacks their gut after they eat it and it kills them.  An added bonus is that they are cannabals, and when they feast on their dead, they are also infected with the bacteria and die.  Nosema locustae does not affect bees or any other beneficial insects.  Do not confuse it with the nosema that kills the bees the same way.  Nosema ceranae kills the bees.  

The only problem is that nosema locustae is hard to get, and the fact that it is hugely expensive.  The good part is that after a few years of using it regularly, you greatly reduce the numbers of grasshoppers in the area.  

Usually, nosema locustae is purchased over the Internet, and in addition to the pricy price, you must add the postage.  Most people just give up and use something that will kill the already under-seiged bees, too, like Sevin dust.  

A good plan is to gather a group together and buy in bulk, thus spreading the postage cost across several buyers.  That is one of the reasons we started Green-Living-Tampa.  We'll meet at Piccadilly in Carrollwood off north Dale Mabry at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, March 20.  Grab a tray of food and join us.

Come to the meeting tomorrow and let's learn other ways of making green living easier for all of us.