Mother Nature's free bait

[CTom]

Does any one ever harvest the Goldenrod galls and collect the grubs for bait?

Last week each day I took an hour to take my daily walks in field corners and some road ditches along a few minimum maintenence roads and picked a 5 gallon pail full of galls for my winter bait supply. Last year I went past the five gollon mark in using them but I generally get one winter season out of that quantity.

I usually crack a couple dozen the night before I plan to go fishing so I'm not playing with sharp knives on the ice with cold wet hands. I either put them in a 35mm film canister or in an empty bait along with some fine sawdust. Like spikes, once they get very warm they are shot so at the end of the day if any remain I toss them in the driveway for the chickdees.

I know that up here in the ice box region of the country these grubs were an old staple bait-wise. Back in the 60's the old timers used these and thats where I got in the habit of gathering them. Man they can sure help fill a pail if you want a fish fry. Still, most of the younger anglers have no idea what you are talking about when you mention goldenrod grubs. I was just curious if other parts onf the country used these critters.

[fishermen50]

The problem I have had with golden rod grubs is they are hard to get out at times and so very small. When hooking them on a ice jig they pretty much get ruined. Rich

[CTom]

Yep....gotta have a sharp hook. I find the perfect for a diamond jig or a gill pill.

[thudpucker]

I hope I never need to know about this "Ice Fishing" business, but I'd sure like to look at what you guys are talking about. Can you link to photos or show some of yours?
Dick

[CTom]

My camera decided to take a dump so pics are not able to be gotten by me. At least not right away. Getting a shot in the field might be a challenge anyway since we've had close to 45 inches of snow already and these things are only found maybe 25-28 inches high up. I'll dig thru my archives to see if I have any old photos of these but just off hand I'd say not.

[Lowellhturner]

Have used them with very light #12 long shank hooks. GOOD bait, just takes somr time as you said to remove them from their warm winter "beds"...

[thudpucker]

"it just takes some time to remove them from their winter beds..."
Use a Hatchet and take your chances!!! :O

[thudpucker]

I looked this up. I dont know if we have it down here though. For the rest who dont know about it, this is from Google.

A casual observer will notice swollen lumps on the stems of goldenrods. Some will be round and others will be spindle-shaped. These are called galls and they are the homes of two different types of insects that are parasites on the goldenrod. Gall-making insects may be found on a wide variety of plants, but each species of insect is specific to a given species of plant and their galls have a characteristic and recognizable shape and location. The insect larva receives protection from most predators by living within the gall and it uses the inside of the gall for food.


The round ones are home to the larval stage of the goldenrod stem gall fly (Eurosta solidaginis). In an undisturbed field one can usually find the previous year's galls along with this year's, so you can compare an inhabited one to an empty one. Carefully cutting a new one open will reveal the maggot in a chamber in the center of the gall. That is, unless it was previously discovered by a certain small beetle which specializes in burrowing into the galls and eating the hapless inhabitant! The surviving larvae finish their metamorphosis the following spring and emerge to find a mate and start the cycle anew.


The spindle-shaped ones are home to the larval stage of the Goldenrod Gall Moth (Gnorimoschema gallaesolidaginis). The moths emerge in late summer through a hole at one end of the gall. They mate and lay eggs in the foliage near the base of the plant. The larva overwinters and burrows down the stem of the new growth the following spring to make a new gall.

The yellow of goldenrod makes a pleasant scene with the varied bronzes, russets, oranges and purples of the fall prairie. It is a sure sign that the first frosts of winter are not long away.

[tail chaser]

I have used the goldenrod bugs back in the 60's & 70's. We also would collect nut bugs. They are a lot easier to collect. We would go out in the fall to oak & hickory groves, & rake them up as they fall. We would put them in onion nets & keep in ice coolers or 5 gal. pails. Move them in a slight heated area like a basement or furnace room. Every couple days , shake the bags , some already would crawl out of the nuts because of the warmer temps. They collect at the bottom & we would mix dirt & sawdust in little cups & keep in the frig. Great baits for late fall & icefishing. Today , even being retired, with waxworms, & spikes , (maggots ), being so easy to buy. I don't fool with the other stuff. Good Luck, Don.