Grasshoppers: identify, prevent, control

Updated June 2026

Worst in late spring and summer, especially after wet winters, October to March.

Grasshoppers and locusts chew through leaves, stems and fruit and can arrive in destructive swarms after wet springs in inland and rural areas. They are hard to control once numbers are high, so exclusion is the most reliable defence.

Australian plague locust, a brown grasshopper with red hind legs — Australian plague locust (Chortoicetes terminifera), New South Wales. Photo: Chortoicetes terminifera (Australian Plague Locust), iNaturalist observation 67840301, dhfischer, CC BY 4.0, resized, via iNaturalist

How to identify it

Large irregular pieces chewed out of leaves and soft stems
Plants stripped quickly when numbers are high
Adults and nymphs jumping or flying up as you walk through the patch
Damage spreading inward from garden edges near long grass

Giant grasshopper clinging to a plant stem in a garden — Giant grasshopper (Valanga irregularis), Western Australia. Photo: Valanga irregularis (Giant Grasshopper), iNaturalist observation 75132626, pimelea, CC BY 4.0, resized, via iNaturalist

How to prevent it

Cover valued crops with fine insect netting in outbreak years
Keep surrounding grass and weeds short to reduce egg-laying and shelter
Cultivate bare soil in autumn to expose and disturb egg pods
Encourage birds and lizards, which are major natural predators

Organic control, step by step

Hand-pick or sweep with a net in the cool of early morning when they are sluggish
Spray eco-neem to deter feeding on prized plants, repeating after rain
Use pyrethrum at dusk for a knockdown during heavy invasions
Net crops as the surest protection, since sprays only dent large mobile populations
Run poultry over cleared beds to clean up nymphs and eggs

Track it in the app. The free Planting Season planner lists the pests and diseases to watch for on every plant in your garden, tuned to your region.