I'm surprise no else has responded. I know people here wrap the stems. It's where I learned it from. I do it a little differently. I use it to prevent cut worms when I'm first planting out. I don't use nylon stockings. I use drinking straws. I cut them into 1 1/2" strips. Then I cut a slit length wise (so it forms a cuff). Then wrap the straw around the base of the stem. Push some of the straw into the ground. I haven't had trouble with cut worms since I started doing this. I don't know if it works for SVB.

That's a great idea, but don't the stems get too big for the straws? The vines were over an inch in diameter last year. I hope some others will respond to this too. Thank you for your response.

I do it mostly for cut worms. When the stems get bigger, they're no longer desirable to the cut worms. The straw wrapper pops off as the stems get bigger.

Hi,

Last year I wrapped all my squash and melon stems with aluminum foil. Before wrapping I smeared each one with a Vicks Vapo-rub type ointment. This treatment was suggested to me by another gardener and though it sounded like an old wives' tale it really did seem to work. I eventually lost some of the vines to SVB but it wasn't until the end of the summer, and since i had not kept up with wrapping and smearing the stems, the foil had mostly come off by that time. I had harvested plenty of squash by then so I didn't mind losing the plants at that point, but if this year I want more squash I will try to keep up with the stem's growth. Before this I lost almost every plant to SVB--they are really bad here.

I have been wrapping with aluminum foil and setting out aluminum foil backed , Fourth of July type pinwheels in my squash patch for some years. I not only appear patriotic to Right Wing neighbors, but I do not have SVBs.
I don't think the bugs like the light interruptions from foil reflections.... or maybe I have just been lucky; probably the latter.
Victor

Do you have any photos of your foil-wrapped squash vines?

The summer squash vines are so stubby and I see borer damage so high up that I'm having a hard time picturing how you do it.

I am happy with the C. moschata for winter squash, but I have been mourning the inevitable demise of my white pattypans every summer since I moved down here to SVB country.

Last year I didn't wrap and was sorry for it. This year I am putting forth the effort to wrap. I never heard of vic's vapor rub, how ever, but hey another weapon in the war is fine with me! They got all my zuke last year.

IM3KB, they're not a white pattypan, but I did enjoy the c. moschata Trombochinos I grew last summer, and nary a SVB.

Okay, so WHEN do you begin to wrap? The thing that scares me is how small those stems are at first. Do the wrappings have to be pretty snug to the stems? I am definitely going to try SOMETHING this year. My early and late crops were decimated last year.

I've heard of the trombocinos, but I don't want to grow any more moschatas this year since I'm trying to save seed for one of my winter squash. I'm not very good at hand pollination so I'm limiting my varieties and growing them in separate areas with barrier crops in between.

White patty pans are my #1 favorite summer squash. Yellow squash and zucchini are good, but nothing else is the same. :-D

Then you should definitely grow your white pattypans with whatever means necessary!

(But just in case, I have also heard rumors that Tatume, a vining, round, c.pepo zucchini, is SVB resistant - haven't tried it yet but will be this year, hopefully)

I don't have strong preferences in summer squash, so I'm just choosing the path of least resistance (or most resistance, actually!)

Unfortunately, in my area blossom time and SVB time are one and the same. I lose my summer squash each year just as I've harvested the first few squash.

Then, if I replant, I lose the second crop again in just the same way to the second generation of SVBs.

:-(

If it helps, you're not alone. I tried all sorts of varieties of squash last year and SVB eventually took them all out. Even the Trombocino had SVB damage! They ate the stems from the side, all the way up the trellis! Big orange frass covered chewed spots that ended up killing the top portion of the vine. I wrapped my zuch's with panty hose, and it sort of worked. The SVB's had to eat the plant from higher up the vine. Might have worked better if I had been more vigilent about wrapping as the vine grew. It's hard work to get between all those leaves. My plan for next year is as follows: Grow more of what worked. Forget anything that isn't FAST growing or C. Moschata. For me that eliminates yellow squash and patty pan. I'll plant several Trombocino's, (several zuch's cause they grow fast enough if wrapped), and a small butternut variety called Metro, from Johnny's seeds which yeilds smaller but more fruits per vine. If I don't go with something fast yeilding, then what the SVB doesn't get is consumed by the powdery mildew come August. It's a race against bugs and mildew and she with the fastest fruits wins!
Susan

iam3, I love the white patty pan too =) It's my favorite summer squash, without a doubt. Try burying the stems at the leaf nodes, they will root. You reduce the damage from each SVB that way... if a lower section is killed, the part above the new roots will still survive.

Also, last year, some huge overwintered parsley plants fell over into my squash patch and flowered... they attracted tons of tiny parasitic wasps, and the only squash that weren't really hit by SVB were the ones directly UNDER the parsley. I know parasitic wasps go after SVB eggs, so maybe I stumbled on something accidentally that helped? I'm trying to overwinter parsley in my squash patch this winter, so hopefully we'll see if it works again!

And no, the wasps never bothered me... too tiny, and too interested in the parsley flowers. I worked around them with no problems.

I'm going to try row covers over parthenogenic zucchini and also try the fastest maturing squash I can find planted as early as I dare under soda-bottle hotcaps in hopes of getting a harvest before the devastation.

My parsley is off in a separate herb bed, but maybe something in the same family like dill or coriander would have a similar effect?

I have tried the hotcaps. All I got was squash seedlings covered in mildew. One died. A hoop house may regulate moisture better, followed by tulle over the hoops when the season warms.

My dad and I had moisture issues when I was growing up in western PA -- yellow clay soil with so many springs seeping all over the hillside that the ground didn't dry out enough to plant until Memorial Day -- way, way past our last frost. No cool-weather crop ever did well. They either drowned or died of heatstroke.

But here in the NC Sandhills I don't think it would be possible to get a moisture problem unless our 3+ years of drought turned into monsoons.

im3,

From what I've read, any small, shallow flowers will work... parsley, dill, cilantro, cosmos, etc.

In my garden, I noticed the most pronounced effect when the flowers were mixed RIGHT in with the squash vs. even a few feet away. Once I started noticing the difference (and figured out that the wasps weren't going to bother me), I definitely loved seeing clouds of them hovering over the flowers!

Its worth a try. I could make the hills a little wider and plant a few flower seeds right in the middle of the squash grouping.

As far as wrapping goes, are you talking about wrapping the entire stem? If so, are you running all your squash types on trellis?

I've had problems with fertilization and then last year got good fertilization but lost out to SVB.

Okay. So based on this input and what I have been able to glean from other sources, this is my plan for this year. I am going to plant my summer squash under row covers and allow them to grow on until they begin to set blooms. At that point, I am going to try wrapping at least some of the stems starting as near the ground as I possibly can. I figure by then, the stems should be fairly sturdy. I may also try keeping some plants under the row covers and hand pollinate them to see which is easier and/or more effective. To my knowledge there are no summer squash varieties that do not require pollination (parthenogenic), only cucumbers. If anyone else wants to sound off on this subject, I will certainly appreciate all the experienced viewpoints I can get. :)

I ordered parthenocarpic zucchini "Perfect Pick" from Jung seeds to try this summer.

I couldn't find a yellow squash or a pattypan, only zucchini.

3kb's,

I tried the Cavilli F1 Hybrid parthenocarpic zuch's under Tulle hoophouse tents last year. Kept getting aborted baby squash. Lost about 10 before I removed the cover and started hand pollinating. Others here on GW had similar experience with this cultivar. Maybe your "Perfect Pick" will fare better. Definitely let us know if it does.

I'm very interested in the parasitic wasps idea! I've ordered some eggs, and I'll plant some small flowered plants around the zuch's for the wasps to enjoy. Feels good to have a new plan of action! This might also help with the hornworm, ear worm, and army worm problem I had last year. Very exciting!
This has been a great thread! Thanks for everyone's input!
Susan

I lost all my squash last year to stink bugs. They seemed to just love the squash varieties, avoided the other parts of my garden, thankfully. Any organic methods to prevent them? I was picking them and removing seeds but went on a two week trip and it was all over with!

Any more ideas for small flowered plants? The herbs suggested are either biennials or flower too late for wave 1 of SVBs here. I love cosmos, so I'm all for planting some admidst the squash, but more is better if you ask me. SVBs are our big enemy, and I'd love to attract more parasitic wasps.

I'm a little leery of importing insects, even beneficials, though. Two years ago, I let my son (my gardening buddy & a future biologist) get a praying mantis egg case. We both noticed a big reduction in overall insect activity last year - we even wondered if there were fewer bees of all sorts. Those PMs were sure something! We decided as much fun as they were to watch hatching (a bit gross, too - they ate one another) - it's just too imbalancing to our previously healthy ecosystem. I'd imagine parasitic wasps wouldn't be like dropping a bomb like PMs, though. Anyone have experience importing them? (the wasps)

This is my first year growing squash. In my research before getting started, I found a video showing how to cut sections of panty hose for the bottom of the plants to keep the cut worms from getting in. Don't remember how she secured them at first but I remember as the plant g t own the stocking stretch with the plant. Anyone ever tried this?

I wrap the stem near the ground with aluminum foil shine side facing out. When the sun hits the foil it reflect to the underside of plants which the bore moth does not like. I also red that if you plant some radishes they also deter the moth. I have never tried the radishes but I will this season. The nylon sounds interesting but will the larva be able to get through.

Len

I just read an article on Wikipedia that mentioned using nylons or foil. Nylons seems easier for me to use. I would imagine the moth can't penetrate either one to lay her eggs. I just don't know at what size of the stem I should wrap the stems.

"I just don't know at what size of the stem I should wrap the stems."

zzackey, What do you mean by "size of the stems..."? Do you mean 'how far up the stem'?

As long as you do not see the fash from the boring maggots. If you do, your to late.

len

I don't wrap stems on my squash. I wash or spray the stems with "insecticidal soap" and leave them soaked with the stuff. It dries, and seems to protect the stems for maybe a week, or until the next rain.
I grow tatume in addition to yellow crook neck and zucchini. Tatume has a slightly tougher stem, which might deter borers, but it's "resistance" is more from the way it spreads and drops roots from every node that touches the ground. If a border does get in, it only kills a small part of the vine.

One advantage to washing/spraying frequently is that if I get a borer, I can cut it out and kill it before it kills the plant. The hole will heal and the plant will recover if you remove the borer early, before the plant starts wilting. Use a sharp knife and slit the side of the stem along its length (not across) until you find the borer grub.

I live in Downtown Atlanta, and the SVB is terrible. I only have luck with butternut squashes. This year I am trying Burpee's butterbush. I wrapped my zucs in foil last year and had no issues on the stems, but every time a fruit formed,the darn svb would bore into the fruit and cause it to be aborted. I had some minor boring into the butternut, but not enough to kill the plants.

For me, more effective than wrapping the stems is preventatively spraying the stems. Btk, spinosad (as noted by others), and now someone is noting insecticidal soap also works (I thought that was contact only?) All organic options. It needs to be reapplied every few days. I saw SVB in the garden last year and I had no problems with consistent use of Btk on the stems. You could even try spraying it on the fruit... or try putting the fruit in pantyhose maybe?

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/3230732/squash-vine-borer-success

Planter Jeff, you probably had another awful southern pest in the fruit, pickleworm. I have even had them bore into tan hard butternuts, usually don't get into upstate SC until mid-July. Bt works if you are very diligent, spraying every few days. Good news is you only have to spray the fruit. They love the fruit of any cucurbits.

Put them under water and the worm will come out, like the pic. If you can get them all to come out the squash will heal and still keep fairly well. Worst squash pest out there in my opinion. They particularly love cukes, but can be found in any squash.