If you are familiar with Guineas, you know two things: they are LOUD and they are NOT SMART. Unlike chickens, home is where you’re flock is, not a specific place. Also, unlike chickens, they won’t destroy your garden plants by eating them or digging them up (according to Wikipedia). They are singularly focused on pests: bugs, snakes, creepy crawlers, etc.

So when my mom called me almost in tears because of a grasshopper infestation in her greenhouse, I grabbed a couple of my guineas (easier said then done since they are pretty wild) and took them over to have a sleepover inside her greenhouse for a few days.

First, we had to make sure that everything was closed up properly, because they will escape if they can. Then we set them up with a water bowl. After turning them loose, they began admiring their new home.

So mom called me the very next day and told me that she had walked in to check on the Guineas just in time to see them eat the very last grasshopper.

She had thrown them some table scraps for food, but apparently they like fresh pak choy and were pruning it (contrary to what Wikipedia claims). It is notable that they did not show any interest in the kale, lettuce, tomatoes or any other crop at all, only pak choy.

Overall, the mission was highly successful. I do recommend getting a fish net to catch them with when on the loose because it wasn’t easy returning them to our farm, even at night!