- Location
- NSW, Newstralya
Believe me - you don't want to see a locust plague !
Ah, Grasshopper
- Thread starter Pasty
- Start date
- Location
- S E Glos
We've had a run of cold, extended springs which have done for insect populations. This year is noticeably different, flies, butterflies, wasps, even saw a ladybird recently.
Grasshoppers are fine.
Until they're not.
They'll eat your crop and pasture to the dirt. Seen them cause traffic accidents as they make the roads slime when they're run over. Vehicles smell like dead, rotting animal because of all the bugs smushed in the rad. And that's not the clouds of them that used to fly around the country side in giant, devastating miasmas. Just bad years.
Plus, they hurt when you're quading.
Until they're not.
They'll eat your crop and pasture to the dirt. Seen them cause traffic accidents as they make the roads slime when they're run over. Vehicles smell like dead, rotting animal because of all the bugs smushed in the rad. And that's not the clouds of them that used to fly around the country side in giant, devastating miasmas. Just bad years.
Plus, they hurt when you're quading.
to much of anything is not good
just the same as @farmerclareNever reached a point of too much ice cream being bad
I must say, the more I hear about 'abroad', the more terrifying it sounds. Things like that just don't happen in dear old England. I did get stung by a wasp last year. That was annoying.
No, you have hoards of badgers spreading TB, rabbits and foxes everywhere and have a serious issue with people's dogs attacking livestock.
What's a grasshopper year here and there in comparison
mikep
Member
- Location
- Arse end of Surrey, UK
We do get odd plagues when conditions allow. The worst i experienced was the aphid plague in East Anglia in the seventies unbelievable day and night billions of the buggers, driving was like in a snowstorm and we ended up wearing scarves and had to clear radiators of machines very often yuk.
Old McDonald
Member
- Location
- Harray, Orkney
You really should try it for a while. All farmers should have at least one other farm's experience in another country before they moan and complain about rules and regs in their own.
Also you can add to the knowledge and experience of the local population. I once arrived at a local small fire with my bag of hessian sacks. They had never seen them used before!!
The one thing that I really, really should do is send a couple of years in rural France. I am sure they would benefit from my passing through. It is probably the one place in the world where I would not expect to feel welcome, but I just know that they need to be told a few home truths.
well you seem to be doing your best to tell a few farmers in france a few home truths since joining this forum
Old McDonald
Member
- Location
- Harray, Orkney
Not me. Those who post on here are British. Completely different to the native French. They have chosen to live in France - most if not all, on a permanent basis. That is their free choice and I have nothing against them for that.
I do object to people (wherever they live) knocking the UK and other Brits in general terms. There are a few posters on here who do it continually and yet have no intentions of leaving, or in most cases it would appear, doing anything about improving things. Moaning is easy. Doing something about the problems is not.
I do object to people (wherever they live) knocking the UK and other Brits in general terms. There are a few posters on here who do it continually and yet have no intentions of leaving, or in most cases it would appear, doing anything about improving things. Moaning is easy. Doing something about the problems is not.
KMA
Member
- Location
- Dumfriesshire
Don't think any grasshoppers would get past my flocks of sparrows, starlings and healthy population of common toads, used to love listening to them in the long meadow gasses then trying to spot them.
Old McDonald
Member
- Location
- Harray, Orkney
Some of them are nearly as big as sparrows.
- Location
- Highland
We are noticing the same thing up here. Usually rarely see a butterfly these days, but a few more about this summer.
Re: clover, if fed to cattle and it passes through into the bedding, if this is done over the winter and the dung spread on the field, it is still viable after composting? Or does it need to go in and then out onto pasture right away?
twill upset the moaners
Old McDonald
Member
- Location
- Harray, Orkney
I really liked that.
twill upset the moaners
... and that bothers you of all people? Put it up again, please, pretty please, pretty pretty please!
Old McDonald
Member
- Location
- Harray, Orkney
There was some work done at Cockle Park at one time (cannot remember how far back) that showed that most seeds - pasture and weeds, passed through the cow and were still viable.
I fed clover seed in a mineral mix with a little cereal when in Australia and had great success in spreading clover across the whole place.