Im trying to figure this out also they have a hard shell some are glossy with a gold stripe on there back they started invading my apartment i think they come from the desert landscape at my apartment im in Henderson and have ask other people nobody seems to know are even heard of them they love crawlingon the stucco then squeeze there way thru my window

Beetles? Beetles are not gross. Not hardly. Now if you had thousands of slugs ... that would be gross. Ladybugs congregate in large numbers this time of year, looking for overwintering space. But surely you know what ladybugs look like. Ladybugs are beneficial insects. Box elder bugs are another possibility. Not as familiar as ladybugs. Black and red, but long instead of round. Still not gross, and not doing any harm. Don't try to kill them until you know what they are, and what damage they're doing.

Thanks guys! Definitely box elder bugs! Good to know they are reletively harmless, we have some organic spray with a "patented" blend of thyme oil, rosemary oil, peppermint oil and so forth, also I think it is a soap as well, which says it will control and repel box elders. I read something about diatomaceous earth also helping. When they are so numerous, I've read about them possibly rarely damaging some fruits, and invading homes, so hopefully we can at least repel and control the population explosion that seems to be happening. No box elder trees around here that I know of.

You don't have to wait for a frost before harvesting. Doesn't really make any difference to the tubers although those that eat them raw claim they are sweeter after a light frost. But they should be fully mature and usable now. The alternative - and one that probably makes the most sense - is just to cut back the plants now, get rid of the diseased foliage and leave the tubers in the ground until you need them. Apparently they do not store well out of the ground but can last pretty much all winter in the soil. And in z7, there is little concern about soil freezing, so they will remain accessible. In full disclosure, while I have grown Jerusalem artichokes, it was completely unintentional and with no intent or desire to harvest the tubers. The plant was just sold as a perennial sunflower, which it is. It wasn't until after growing them a season and recognizing how aggressively they spread and how hard they were to control that I realized my mistake :-)) Took me about five years to finally get rid of them......not a plant for an ornamental flower garden!!