The 17-year cicadas will die out soon. Here’s what to do after they’re gone

Soon, the Chicago area will stop buzzing with the noise heard only every 17 years.

The periodical cicadas, which emerge from underground in the spring every 17 years, are expected to die off by the end of June, according to Morton Arboretum scientists. When they die off, millions of the dead insects will cover the ground in suburban Chicago and much of northern Illinois.

So what do you do with dead cicadas and exoskeletons?

Cicada carcasses and exoskeletons that have been shed make an excellent fertilizer. To pass on their benefits to plants, scatter them in gardens or other areas you want plants to grow, suggests Stephanie Adams, the arboretum’s plant health care leader. The exoskeletons are made out of a material called chitin, which is rich in nitrogen. Nitrogen is necessary for most plant processes and is a common element in fertilizer.

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