When grasshoppers descended on Ponteix

The plague of grasshoppers is not something any farmer wants to see descend on their field, but it does happen, even today with our modern methods of controlling pests.

In 1923, Ponteix dealt with an almost biblical plague of grasshoppers that swept across the land, eating every crop in sight.

By June of that year, the grasshoppers were in such numbers that many oldtimers were saying it was the worst they had ever seen in their time there. The grasshoppers began to destroy crops but there would be a temporary reprieve when rains fell on June 11, suppressing the pest. This was after every effort was made to supply farmers with poison to deal with the grasshoppers.

That wouldn’t be the end of the plague though. They would soon return to start eating crops, but again weather helped to alleviate the problem. Four inches of rain fell on June 25, the most since 1916, and while it caused problems with bridges and culverts being washed out, it took care of the grasshoppers and there was a lull in the amount of poison farmers were requesting to fight the pests. Thanks to the two periods of rain, there was a light impact by the grasshoppers during that time.

Once again, they returned. Throughout July, the grasshoppers continued to devastate crops in the area and the demand for poison once again increased as local farmers renewed the fight.

Then, the grasshoppers began to move. On July 27, 1923, residents of Ponteix reported millions of grasshoppers flying in a flock one mile wide at a height of 100 to 200 feet, blowing to the southwest with the breeze. It was estimated at the time that the grasshoppers were in the air for three hours, taking their appetites to other areas of the province, and finally leaving farmers in the area alone with their crops.

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