Is it likely since I had a squash bug problem last year that I will again this year? Any advice on how to keep the evil guys away!
THANKS!
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Garden Girl Jo
- Full Member
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Wed May 21, 2008 11:42 pm
- Location: Northern Indiana
Zucchini & Squash bugs question
Last year I planted zucchini for the first time and was thrilled with how well the plant grew. However, my excitement ended quickly when squash bugs took over and then moved on from there to my melon!
Is it likely since I had a squash bug problem last year that I will again this year? Any advice on how to keep the evil guys away!
THANKS!
Is it likely since I had a squash bug problem last year that I will again this year? Any advice on how to keep the evil guys away!
THANKS!
It's likely they will be back. Moving your plants year to year in the garden to a new site will help greatly to keep them under control.
Check the plant when you are picking the squash, and look for their eggs. They look like small, bronze colored seeds, often found on the underside of the leaves, usually near the stem or on the edges. I usually use my fingers and roll/crush the egg clusters, and sometimes just tear the leaf around the eggs and toss them out of the garden. Also, you will likely see young squash bugs on the plants. They look like the large ones, but are pale green and or white. Mash em whenever you see them. These are the ones that will lay eggs, when they mature, that will be next years problem.
Be sure to remove any dying vegetation from the squash as it matures. The young and older egg laying bugs thrive amidst the dying/dead leaves.
Check the plant when you are picking the squash, and look for their eggs. They look like small, bronze colored seeds, often found on the underside of the leaves, usually near the stem or on the edges. I usually use my fingers and roll/crush the egg clusters, and sometimes just tear the leaf around the eggs and toss them out of the garden. Also, you will likely see young squash bugs on the plants. They look like the large ones, but are pale green and or white. Mash em whenever you see them. These are the ones that will lay eggs, when they mature, that will be next years problem.
Be sure to remove any dying vegetation from the squash as it matures. The young and older egg laying bugs thrive amidst the dying/dead leaves.
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Garden Girl Jo
- Full Member
- Posts: 26
- Joined: Wed May 21, 2008 11:42 pm
- Location: Northern Indiana
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opabinia51
- Super Green Thumb
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- Joined: Thu Oct 21, 2004 5:58 pm
- Location: Victoria, BC
Get some wedding net (tulle) from a fabric store, and make a tent that will serve as a barrier to bugs. You will need to open it when the female flowers start showing, but meanwhile your plants can grow unbothered by squash bugs. Make sure the plants are clean before you cover them, though.
Tulle doesn't heat up the way rowcover does, and it actually looks pretty. You can make support hoops out of inexpensive plastic pipe, sold at hardware and box stores by the foot. If you need to attach two pieces and don't want to use a needle and thread, an ordinary paper stapler will work.
Tulle doesn't heat up the way rowcover does, and it actually looks pretty. You can make support hoops out of inexpensive plastic pipe, sold at hardware and box stores by the foot. If you need to attach two pieces and don't want to use a needle and thread, an ordinary paper stapler will work.
I found some organic squash bug killer on Google called mr. malcolm's squash bug eliminator that kills eggs and adults. I've tried everything else in the past but this stuff works. I tried neem oil but it left a taste after using it for a while. Little devils are persistent. There are probably pesticides out there but I'm afraid to eat the veggies.