12 Farmers’ Bulletin 1140. 
the soil to a depth of 1 or 2 inches (fig. 9). The eggs are deposited 
with a secretion which later dries and forms a waterproof pro- 
tection for each egg mass. From 20 to 100 eggs may be deposited 
at one time. The egg pod or mass is completely sealed up before the 
abdomen is withdrawn from the ground. 
Thoroughly cultivating and pulverizing the soil to a depth of 3 
inches late in the fall will break many of these pods and expose the 
eges to the action of the weather. Eggs thus exposed will mold 
with an abundance of moisture and will dry up if there is a lack of 
moisture. Alternate freezing and thawing of the exposed eggs aids 
greatly toward their destruction. 
Spring cultivation, hgwever, is of less value in destroying grass- 
hopper eggs. Soil kept loose and pulverized throughout the sum- 
- mer is not selected 
by the grasshoppers 
as a place to deposit 
their eggs. 
BURNING OVER 
DRY AREAS. 
Fire has _ fre- 
quently been used 
with splendid suc- 
cess in connection 
with grasshopper 
control, and is prac- 
ticable where the 
vegetation is dry and dense enough to produce a hot flame. These con- 
ditions frequently obtain in the regions to which this discussion par- 
ticularly applies. The danger of fire can not be too highly emphasized, 
and every possible precaution should be taken to safeguard buildings, 
ranches, forests, and orchard trees. Burning over waste areas and 
fence lines during daylight frequently proves unsatisfactory because 
the flames drive the grasshoppers from the dry grasses into adjoining 
fields and orchards. Very few grasshoppers will escape the flames 
if the burning is done at night. Their migration from the ranges 
into farming communities frequently can he checked by burning over 
an area from 20 to 40 rods wide between the cultivated fields and 
the open range country. 
Fie. 9.—Grasshopper laying her eggs. (Webster.) 
USE OF TURKEYS. 
Large flocks of turkeys are sometimes secured to feed upon and 
reduce the numbers of grasshoppers. Turkeys are of value in utiliz- 
ing grasshoppers in such a way as to turn them into human food, 
. 
. 
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