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Texas Gardening

Squash Bug Sucky solution

10 years ago

Just a quick brag, there are now SIGNIFICANTLY fewer squash bugs in the garden than there were an hour ago. One of the neighboring beds at my community garden had a bit of a squash bug infestation. And by bit, I mean huge. Being a neighbor's bed, I did not want to attempt to spray or apply anything to deal with them, and hand picking them just wasn't something I had time for in addition to caring for my own bed. However, in a community garden, my neighbor's bugs are my bugs tomorrow. So today at work I pondered a solution. And then it hit me.
Some time last year, Mike McGraff (of You Bet Your Garden fame) suggested to a caller that she use a shop vac to suck up hornets that were hovering around her blueberries. I couldn't help but wonder if a similar solution might work for squash bugs. and I have to say, with the crevasse tool in place, the little crawlies were on the receiving end of something that sucked. The young nymphs were particularly easy to suck up but even the adults didn't stand much of a chance.
So, just goes to show, there are ways to solve problems "organically" that don't even involve all natural sprays and treatments.

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Comments (3)

southofsa
10 years ago
I'd heard of that before but I always figured the sound of the vac would scare them off before I could get to them. I guess not, huh? I might have to give that a try.

Lisa
wantonamara Z8 CenTex
10 years ago
I bought a small dust buster On the recommendation of a woman at the Natural Gardener in Austin, and that was useless. I sprayed and picked things off and threw them in a tub of soapy water., but alas, it was a huge out break and I gave up. IT did work with a outbreak of Harlequin bugs. I think the trick is don't wait , start early and do it for several days.
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Squash bugs are very susceptible to soap spray. Provided they are completely covered, they - or their hoards of larvae - die within minutes. I use a mixture of rubbing alcohol, soap, water, and either cooking oil or maple syrup. Insecticidal soap is best, but I've used both baby shampoo and dish soap... the latter two won't cause damage if they are rinsed off after the bugs are dead. The alcohol temporarily paralyses them on contact. The oil or syrup are asphyxiates, they clog the breathing holes & prevent recovery when the solution has dried. This solution works on a wide array of insects, including wasps - it will knock them right out of the air. Also good for killing spiders outdoors; my house tends to get covered with large orb spiders right about now, I kill those near doors & walkways. I keep a spray bottle with me when working in the garden.
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Not sure what the coffee contributes to the mixture... I've used a similar formula for years, with just purified water (hard water tends to clog the sprayer). I also add rubbing alcohol to mine, it paralyses the bugs long enough for the soap solution to do its work. It works wonders on squash bugs, aphids, and ants, but you do need to cover the entire insect for it to work. Soap solutions make great low-toxicity bug killers, but soap & oil can cause leaf burn on some vegetables. Using a potassium-based insecticidal soap (such as Safers) will reduce the likelihood of damage. If dish soap is used, you can rinse the leaves off after the bugs are dead, maybe 15 minutes after application.
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For the last few days we have seen squash bugs on our bush zucchini. I have been trying (not very successfully) to remove the eggs, and the bugs were sent into a soapy water bath. The bush zucchini is in a container on the deck, all by itself. But in the main garden (40-ish feet away) we have a whole row of various squash and cucumbers. My question is this: should I leave the squash bugs alone on the bush zucchini and use it as a trap crop? I don't mind sacrificing that one plant to save the whole row. We have not seen any squash bugs in the row at all. Or should I put row cover over the bush zuc and just trap the bugs in there? There was a baby praying mantis eating the little bugs yesterday but there are way too many for it to eat them all. Also, if the bugs stay in the potting soil, does that mean that I should not reuse the soil the bush zuc is in next year? Thanks in advance for any advice.
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As soon as I see any eggs or adults I start a daily patrol I take some masking or duct tape and use the sticky side to pull the eggs off the leaves check both sides of the leaves I also have a pump spray bottle with soapy water to spray any adults or nymphs kills them in a few minutes , Once a week I use my hose end sprayer ( the kind with a mixing tank on it and use a strong soapy mix and soap the entire patch I make a lot of suds and soak it in ( I call it nuking the squash ) I also put some flat boards around each hill as they like to hide there at night and can be collected after dark or early in the A.M. it also helps to have no mulch they can hide in I use black plastic. It can be a battle but you can control them . Good Luck
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cygnwulf
Original Author
10 years ago
I will say they are pretty fast and it might work even better early morning when they're still sluggish.

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