Get Out! And Get Ready for Once-Every-17-Years Invasion of the Cicadas

Cicadas - Photo by USDA

by Peggy Robin

 If you’ve never lived through The Great Cicada Awakening before…..that means you are either under 17 years old, or you were living outside the Great Mid-Atlantic Cicada Invasion Zone (see map at https://wjla.com/news/local/cicadas-2021 and scroll down to the 2021 map) the last time the swarms emerged.

For a good description of what we’re in for, listen to Sir David Attenborough narrate (in his usual, calm, plummy Queen’s English) the ferocious burst of noise and activity that will soon be upon us:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWr8fzUz-Yw

Whether you’ve lived through it before or not, it’s good to be prepared for what’s coming. Think of ways to deal with the noise. Want to hear it now? Listen to this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqys8lKsu4ssound). You will also want to consider how you are going to avoid the crunch of insect shells beneath your feet. If you’re at all squeamish, you might consider learning and using calming relaxation and breathing techniques. Or maybe just get away to Hawaii for the duration. (Get your negative covid test and book a vacation at a resort that will act as a “bubble”.)

Don’t want to cut and run? Then get ready to protect your garden from the invaders….as much as you can. Here’s a free online course that can help:

Preparing Your Garden for the Seventeen-Year Cicadas
FRIDAY MARCH 26 AT 10 AM EDT – 11:30 AM EDT

Price: Free · Duration: 1 hr 30 min
Public  · Anyone on or off Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/events/488865382126483/  

Event by Virginia Cooperative Extension - Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia and VCE Arlington 
Online: mgnv.org 

Hosts
Virginia Cooperative Extension - Master Gardeners of Northern Virginia

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The Get Out!/Stay In! column is published on the Cleveland Park Listserv and on All Life Is Local on Thursdays.