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borderokie

squash bugs "their baaacckk"

borderokie
9 years ago

Went to the garden just a few minutes ago with the flashlight. Stinking squash bugs were already doing their thing all over the place on my squash. Read diatomacious earth works on them. Anyone tried it? The squash bores had already hollowed out a few too. I swear I will find some way besides standing on my head killing those things by hand this year!! Sheila

Comments (7)

  • Okiedawn OK Zone 7
    9 years ago

    DE can discourage them but I haven't found it eliminates them. It works better if you use something like a Dustin-Mizer to distribute it. I think Surround WP would be a better solution if you can find it in a small quantity. The year I bought the Surround, I bought a 25-lb. bag which likely will outlast me because I don't use it all that often.

    There's a thread further down on this page where we have a major discussion of favorite squash bug control techniques under discussion.

    The only way to really avoid the SVBs is to grow the squash plants underneath floating row cover. I usually uncover the plants when they start blooming, which means the SVBs will get them anyhow, but not before I am able to harvest some good squash first. I could leave them covered and lift the row cover just long enough to hand-pollinate, but that takes up precious gardening time that I don't have to spare in the summer months.

    I also tend to sow new seeds in a new spot as far from the existing plants about once a month and keep them covered until they start blooming so that I always have a new generation of plants coming along to replace the ones the SVBs get.

  • slowpoke_gardener
    9 years ago

    I have a good crop of squash bugs also.

    My first female blooms appeared this morning on my Spaghetti squash, looks as though I will have to hand pollinate because I don't see any bees.

    Larry

  • chickencoupe
    9 years ago

    Oh yeah. I can hear their wedding bells from my house. They must be having a union about every hour.

  • borderokie
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Lol! Maybe more often than that considering the couples I killed. Killed a bore this morning too. Good grief!!

  • shankins123
    9 years ago

    Larry....spaghetti squash question. I just found seed and planted them this week. From what I understand, they're about a 100-day crop. That would take me into September, so I think I'll be ok. Do you recall when you planted yours? I'm just trying to figure out when they'll bloom. I hope the squash borers don't realize that I've planted this this year :)

    Sharon

  • slowpoke_gardener
    9 years ago

    Sharon, I would like to be more help, but I have never grown these before. I got these seed the last half of March, planted them on a heat mat in the house the first half of April, planted them in the garden while still small after the first of May.

    Here is a picture of them now, at about 2 month from seed.


    Larry

  • shankins123
    9 years ago

    Hmm...ok - mine just "burst forth" today, so we'll see!
    I'm excited at the prospect of having a fair amount of these, provided there are female blossoms, the squash bugs/beetles don't get them, etc., etc....in other words, it's a gamble!

    Thanks for the info,
    Sharon