ticks maybe. I have not seen them at all this year. so hopefully they all drowned

Nah, the ticks moved up to Oklahoma. Fer sure.

Ticks are pretty bad here, near Tahlequah, OK. So are chiggers. But, I am delighted to have only seen ONE grasshopper, so far, this year, and I killed it! I am anticipating a great crop of pole beans. When grasshoppers are bad, it always seems that its the pole beans which go first. This is because they like to sleep up high, at night. So, the pole beans are a natural roost for them, and they snack while they're there.

George

I think all of your grasshoppers must have moved in on me, south of Ft. Smith. I went to the back side of my place yesterday and saw many very small grasshoppers. I also have a good crop of ticks.

Uh, oh. That's bad. The real plague will hit in a month or two. I can tell you, on a bad grasshopper year I'd recommend trying bush beans much more than pole.

Larry, I have lots of small grasshoppers also. I try to stay out of the tick territory. Fire ants are working over time also.

I think that persistent wet and cool weather usually results in a smaller grasshopper population, mostly because that sort of weather encourages the spread of a disease (Nosema locuste) that kills grassshoppers. However, what I've noticed over the years is that the weather needs to be persistently wet and cool over a long period of time in March, April and May so that the disease gets them shortly after they hatch out. If March and April are warmer and drier, and then May turns significantly cooler and wetter, more grasshoppers survive. So, I think in various areas it may depend on whether you were dry until the May deluge or if you were cooler and wetter for a longer period of time. We have been persistently wet here since rain started falling last June, and I did not see nearly as many grasshoppers hatching out in March and April as in previous years. In most of May I didn't see many. Now? Little ones are hatching out all over the place. They are the worst in the unmowed pastures, and I've seen the fewest in the garden. That's probably because I spread Semaspore (the active ingredient is Nosema locuste) in the garden every year.

Ants, ticks, and flies are horrible here, and there's tons and tons of caterpillars of all kinds. I like the caterpillars that turn into beautiful butterflies and moths, but don't care for the ones that destroy vegetable crops. I selectively kill the cutworms, corn ear worms, imported cabbage worms, cabbage loopers, Eastern tent caterpillars, etc. and leave the rest to morph into butterflies and moths. It is a great swallowtail year---my fennel, dill and parsley are disappearing at an astonishing rate.

Normally, wetter weather encourages larger pest populations, so I wouldn't be pinning a lot of hope on there being fewer pests this year because there likely will be more. My garden is out of balance in an odd way, though. Usually the pest population builds up really big and then the beneficial insects show up to eat the pests. This year it seems like there's a lot of beneficials all over the garden actively searching for something to eat. It might be that the huge population of frogs, toads and turtles are eating a good share of the pest insects, leaving fewer for the ladybugs, assassin bugs, green lacewings and predatory flies and wasps to eat.

About the only pest insects I've noticed in the garden, other than all the caterpillers, are a few squash bugs (though not very many), two harlequin bugs, a few leafhoppers and cucumber beetles. It isn't a very bad pest year yet, but I probably feel that way because I just stand and watch the beneficial insects devour the pest insects. A person whose garden is lacking in beneficial insects might feel like it is a really bad pest year.

The fire ants are horrible here. We've caught them carrying dirt to the roof of the house to, presumably, build a mound on top of the roof, and they were doing the same with the wooden arbor that is the entry to the veggie garden. They climb all over the exterior of the house and try to find their way in. Needless to say, they are in every raised bed in the garden. I've got some Come And Get It, but haven't used it on them yet.

The mosquitoes are bad at night, but I try to make it indoors before sunset so I can largely avoid them.

This year, Brood IV of the 17-year cicadas are supposed to emerge. The last time that Brood IV emerged, they were found in some parts of OK, but not in all. So, I guess there is some chance that at least some of us will see (and hear) them this year. I'll link a recent news story about them.

Brood IV, 17 Year Periodical Cicadas In Oklahoma

Believe it or not, I just got back in from a short noisy drive and was wondering about the cicada population. They were about 1/4 a mile away from the highway and drowning out the sounds of all but tractor trailers.

They must not be here. I haven't heard or seen any of them, and the general cicadas that make the loud drone that drives me up the wall usually don't start this early.

If you like the cicadas, you'd probably enjoy the Cicada Mania website.

cicadas are out in NE Edmond. haven't seen any ticks since before the rain. Mosquitos are bad. Ants are bad. Haven't seen any cicadas on the ground yet or the cicada killer wasps but I bet they'll be out soon.

The day I posted this question/comment....I had NOT seen ANY grasshoppers. But that evening out by the potatoes...a little itty bitty young hopper just jumped in front of me. Kinda like "HEY! DON'T GET LAZY!". I squished him. Haven't seen one since but I'm really spooked by the reports of cicadas. If you all are seeing them, we will soon too here in rural NE Norman. I'll watch for the purple/grey moths too. Where's our resident "butterfly" persons Lisa or Moni? They know those critters!

Cicadas are harmless. My dogs love them. Tasty snacks