Larry, I usually have the black ones. When the striped ones would show up, they'd strip the Sweet Autumn Clematis naked and then leave. The black ones would stick around and eat tomato plants. After they had striped the Sweet Autumn Clematis naked during the drought of 2008, it died and didn't come back and we didn't replace it. We haven't had many striped blister beetles since then. I think you're right about the insects invading heavily in search of food. That's exactly what happens here. It will seem like they are too bad around us for a long time, but not here, and then all of a sudden they reach us too and they're everywhere. That's one reason I don't think it pays to water heavily. If your garden or lawn or landscape beds are gorgeous and green when everything else around you is brown and dormant, guess where the insects will go? It drives me up the wall. I am seeing much more damage in the garden from grasshoppers the last week than I did prior to that. They're really eating the leaves of the okra and southern peas, and I need to do something about it quick. To think...when we first moved here, I was only concerned that cucumber beetles and tomato hornworms might be a problem. I had no idea many how problem pest type insects would show up in our garden every summer. Helen, Spraying garlic spray makes me hungry for anything Italian too, and it does a pretty good job of repelling all kinds of insects. I think it may repel mosquitoes because we just don't have them here near the garden or house very often at all. Dawn

They're really bad here this year, they're eating tomatoes and iris. I scattered a big bag of Nolo bait around the perimeter of the property when I spotted them. It was probably late May/early June when they started hatching. I did the perimeter as I'd been advised not to lure them in by laying bait in the beds. Next year I'll put it down everywhere as I think they are laying eggs all through the property. I've come to the conclusion that I'm not luring them in, they're being hatched here in the beds. I'm glad the Nolo bait plant is back in business after they burned down in 2017. I think not having the bait last year created a banner year for them this year.

It is a very generic grasshopper, no distinguishing features, other than fully formed wings typical of an adult rather than a nymph. How big is it and how many are in your yard at one time? Grasshoppers of course chew a variety of leaves. The pictured grasshopper is missing its hind jumping legs. This can occur during a problematic molt or after an attack. Katydids can be confused with green grasshoppers. Katydids have antennae longer than their body.

Katydid.