I usually dip them in chocolate!

Lee

I have tons of grasshoppers every year, but soon my little "secret weapons" show up to take them on.

If you can find some, I would introduce Black and Yellow Argiope Garden spiders.....

I have a literal army of them and they really keep those darn grasshoppers (and a few other bugs) in check.

They don't creep around like other spiders...just spin a web and sit there...rarely travel...

You have to protect their egg sacs during the winter (trying not to rip them out with old plants).

Here is one from last year in action:

Every year I use a non-toxic Bt from groworganic.com and have lowered my population to just a small handfull each year. It costs about $12/year, only affects grasshoppers, and made a huge change in my grasshopper population (and eaten tomatoes and peppers) the first year I started it.

There is a product called NOLO. It's a grasshopper bait that kills only grasshoppers and doesn't harm anything else. If you google NOLO you'll be able to find a place to buy it. It completely got rid of my grasshoppers!

I have been trying to catch them and then releasing them by where I work which is a field. The most I have taken at a time are 5. The grasshoppers are eating my Banana Tree, my Smoke Tree Bush and my Roses.
I do have one black and yellow garden spider but as yet have not seen any grasshoppers in her web. I have thought about getting some praying mantis's next year to see if they help in keeping the hoppers down.

Stevi

stevi, keep an eye on your garden spider...if she is plump right now, after she builds her egg sac, she will be noticably slim. Find the egg sac and then take care to protect it during the winter months....

I would bet there are more if you have one...hopefully there was a male in there somewhere (much smaller and difficult to find).

One spider isn't going to be very good defense against grasshoppers....once you have an army, then you will be getting somewhere. I find grasshoppers in my webs daily.

Thank you all for your suggestions!

Di