If you are concerned about ecology and health factors, you may want to avoid pesticides or toxic chemicals. Then, vinegar can be an easy and effective option for you to get rid of grasshoppers.
Now if grasshoppers are destroying your lawns, plants of home gardens, or fields? Stop these animals before they create massive damage. You can destroy the leaves and stems of your lovely plants in a short time.
Here, I have described TWO methods to get rid of Grasshoppers with vinegar that’s works. You can use vinegar in two ways to expel or eliminate grasshoppers from your farm, home garden or lawns.
- In the first method, you have to use vinegar as bait for a grasshoppers trap.
- On the other hand, in the second method, you have to directly spray an effective mixture of vinegar and other elements on the body of grasshoppers and the plants.
So, keep reading to know the complete step by step process to get rid of grasshoppers with vinegar.
When to Use Vinegar for Getting Rid of Grasshoppers?
The Grasshoppers enjoy eating plant leaves. If it happens to your lawn or garden, you should think about controlling them immediately.
Now, when you are concern about organic vegetable growing, and the health of your family members and pets, it will be better to use a natural pest-controlling method.
Farmers with a large area of farmland use toxic pesticides to kill the grasshoppers of the trap. They use vinegar as bait to attract the grasshoppers.
Vinegar baits bring a large number of grasshoppers to a smaller place. The farmers can easily spray pesticides in small areas. They can control the area and can prevent birds and other useful insects from the toxin.
If you are an organic farmer or have a small garden or lawn you should not use pesticides and toxic chemicals.
Method One:
Get Rid of Grasshoppers with Vinegar Trap
Making a grasshopper trap is an easy task. The mechanism of the trap is that vinegar will be used as bait. The scent of vinegar will attract the grasshoppers and the grasshoppers will try to check its test. When they jump on the vinegar mixture, they will fall into the trap of water and will be drawn in the water. Let’s check the steps.
1. Collect a Vinegar with an Acute Scent
I recommend Apple Cider Vinegar. This vinegar has an acute scent and grasshoppers cannot but deny their attraction. If it is tough to collect apple cider vinegar, then you can choose one of your choices.
2. Choose Perfect Containers
You can use any container with a cylinder or rectangular shape with stiff and smooth sides. If the sides of the container are not on smooth and stiff slopes, the grasshoppers can climb up the container and flee. You can use-
- Large plastic freezer bag
- Bucket
- Plastic bottles
- Jars
- Big water glasses
So, you may ask a question. How many containers do you need? You need one container for one trap.
Keep in mind that the larger quantity of traps will ensure a larger output. But, you also need to be a cost-effective person. I think, 1 or 2 traps for every 10 square feet is enough.
The container cannot be shallow. Some grasshoppers are nearly 2.5 inches long. So, make sure the water level has at least 4 inches depth and another 4 to 5 inches vacuum part is in the container.
If you use plastic bottles it will bring you a very good result. You need to cut the below the neck of the bottle keeping 2/ 3 inches with the neck. Then you will get a funnel. Place the funnel on the bottle and pour one-third of the bottle with the vinegar mixture. If the grasshoppers enter inside they cannot escape.
3. Prepare Traps with an Efficient & Efficient Mixture
Fill the container with the mixture of vinegar, water, and canola oil. You need to be careful about the ratio of vinegar to the water. I recommend one part vinegar to three parts water. That means to prepare a one-liter mixture you need to mix 250ml vinegar to 750ml water. At least try to keep 30% vinegar in the solution. Then mix one tablespoon of canola oil in each liter.
How much mixture will you prepare? It depends on the size of your container and the number of traps you will make. If you have a large field you may need handers of traps. But you have a very tiny garden or lawn, two or three traps may be enough for you.
4. Place the Trap in Most Affected Areas
Make an investigation in your lawn or garden and find out the most affected zones. They live near the soil and lay eggs on the soil. You will find large amounts of eggs on the soil of the highly affected zone.
Newly hatched grasshoppers and which wings have fallen don’t move a lot. Rather they tend to stay near the hatching place to give birth and feed new ones. So you should place the trap near them.
5. Pick out & Dispose of the Grasshoppers
The grasshoppers will be attracted to the bait that has been prepared with vinegar. When they enter into the trap, they will fall into the water. When grasshoppers will fall into the solution, canola oil will make them heavy. As a result, they cannot use their wings. Besides having no support below their feet they cannot jump.
You need to pick them out and dispose of them. As you have not used any toxic chemicals you can use them as food for your domestic birds. Your chickens, turkey, pigeons, and ducks will love to eat them. If you have no pet birds you can keep them for wild birds.
Method 2:
Direct Spray on the Grasshoppers & the Plants
This method is also easy but slightly laborious. You need to prepare a liquid solution of vinegar, sops, and water; and spray them with a sprayer.
1. Collect Necessary Materials and Tools
You need some materials and tools to execute the process. Don’t worry all these elements are very convenient and hope you do not have to face the hassle to collect them. Look at the following checklist.
- Vinegar
- Pure soap flakes/ dish soap
- Water
- Garden sprayer/ Hand-held sprayer
2. Prepare the Mixture of Vinegar, Soap & Water
You need to make a mixture of one part vinegar, one part dish soap or pure soap and three parts of water.
After mixing these elements stir the solution properly and pour them into a suitable sprayer.
3. Pick the Perfect Time for Spraying
Morning time is very perfect for spraying. In this time the grasshoppers become active and find food. You can find them easily in these early hours of the day.
The afternoon can be the latter option. But, the output will be poorer than that of the morning.
4. How to Spray
You need to find out grasshoppers and direct spray upon them. Different species of them have different colors. So, you will find them in common green to rainbow-colored.
These pests have to go through five to six molting periods in their one-year life cycle. In this time they regain their feathers and skins after a loss of them.
The acidic acid of the vinegar prevents the moulting process. When they hinder the moulting process they fall ill and refuse to eat. That ensures the early death of them.
Give an optimum focus on the stems, buds and leaves of the plants. Grasshoppers make these sophisticated elements of plants their first target for their meal.
Keep in mind one thing, buds of plants are very sophisticated. So, a repeated spray of soap can cause problems. So you should spray at the interval of two or three days.
5. Gather the Dead Grasshoppers & Capture the Injured
After spraying you will found grasshoppers are lying dead here and there in your area. If it is your lawn or house garden, you must gather the grasshoppers and dispose of them off.
Conclusion
The bottom line is, use of vinegar for repelling grasshoppers is a convenient and easy way. The use of vinegar does not harm the life of birds, useful insects, and human beings; rather protect the ecology and environment.
You can protect your family, pets, and loving plants using only a simple mixture of one part vinegar, three parts water, and 0.2% of canola oil (for the trap)/ one part of dish soap (for spray). So, apply and share this idea to contribute to the protection of the environment and ecology.
