Grasshoppers Causing Problems

DALLAS � Noticed more grasshoppers lately? The folks at Texas Agrilife Extension Service have been fielding lots of calls from folks who are seeing more of the insects. They�re especially more noticeable in Northeast Texas, from Fort Worth to Smith and Rusk Counties. The Extension�s Dr. Chris Sansone says it�s all courtesy of the drought. According to Sansone, �It�s dry, grasshoppers are moving off their natural feeding deals and coming into hay pastures, so producers are trying to defend their hay pastures. Homeowners still are trying to keep their landscapes alive, and grasshoppers are coming in and eating their landscape.� Sansone says people normally think of insect outbreaks happening when it�s wet, but drier conditions lead to an uptick of these critters.