Thanks, Dave! I looked up the squash vine borer and performed surgery on three plants, removing a fat borer from each. I hope each plant has a one-borer limit, because I didn't want to try digging for more. A fourth plant appears to be affected, but the stem at the base of the plant is so thick and short that I didn't want to cut further after the first cut, which yielded nothing. Instead, I cut off two badly affected leaf stems. Instead of white borers, I found several dark brown (or dark red) millipede-type critters inside the stems. I wonder if they're a side effect of the squash borer, or a separate problem. Any idea? I covered all the slits with soil and am hoping for the best.

Homebody, your suspicion about bacterial wilt is probably correct, if you have cucumber beetle problems. You should also inspect the stem of any dying squash vines, to see if squash vine borers are responsible. If you find their larvae, or the holes left by them, then prevention next year is your best hope for success. And if your "white aphid looking creatures" look like this, then you should try to kill them before they reach adulthood. The symptoms of squash bug infestation can appear very much like bacterial wilt. Butternut squashes (Cucurbita moschata) are more resistant to beetles & borers than C. pepo (pumpkins & summer squashes) and C. maxima (buttercup, hubbard, banana squash). I quit growing zucchini for that reason, and now grow Tromboncino (a butternut relative) instead. It has few problems... but it does take up a bit of space, unless trellised. You can protect young squash plants with floating row cover, until they either blossom, or outgrow it. This gives the plants time to build up strength, so they have a fighting chance. For me, this prevents SVB, and by delaying the start of attack, reduces the population of cucumber beetles & squash bugs. I could not grow most winter squash successfully without the use of row covers - I highly recommend their use. The use of nylons or some other impenetrable wrap (around the base of the squash stem) can prevent the SVB moth from laying their eggs there. Also, try to grow squash varieties that root at the nodes; bury the stems early, to encourage early rooting... this will help the plants to survive, if SVB does kill the main stem. The last thing that you should do (after killing the squash bug nymphs) is to eliminate any pests that might otherwise over-winter. SVB pupae lay dormant underground, so a Fall tilling will kill many of them. Cleaning up any debris in or near the garden will help to reduce the population of squash bugs the following year.

What does this look like? A white powdery dusty covering of the leaves is most likely Powdery Mildew which is mostly moved around in the air. Bacterial wilt presents more as the whole plant just falls apart, mimiced somewhat by the Squash Vine Borer.

Kate- Hoping it isn't bacterial wilt, but if it is, welcome to the club. Here's what I've done to get around: I grow my indeterminate tomatoes, eggplant and peppers(my wilt killed my peppers and eggplant too) in 5 gallon containers in a pine bark based mix(see container growing forum). I've take some special steps based on my experience and the hot, humid climate of the SC coast, including converting my containers to self-watering containers by elevating over 2 gallon plastic wash basins($1 at dollar store)using wicks all season long, and draping white plastic garbage bags over containers and basins to beat the heat/reduce evaporation. (First season in containers I made the mistake of putting containers on the ground exposing roots to the wilt). While my tomato plants may not be as large as in ground plants, I have a few more to make up the difference. My eggplant and peppers are more productive than they were in the ground. For comparison, this year I made and used two homemade E-box containers...plants in these have not done as well. In past years, my plants were done by now, whether in ground or in containers...this year they are still producing in the heat and humidity, I assume from the conversion to self-watering, which also has conserved water and fertilizer. If you want more details/opinions justlet me know. As for where I used to grow tomatoes, etc., I now grow just about everything else I want to and can in my climate, including carrots, onions,lettuce, kale, chard, beans,raspberries, blueberries, cucumbers, summer and winter squash and okra....all seem unaffected by the continuing presence of the wilt(put a few tomato plants in the ground to test and now four years later it is still there) Good Luck! Tom