I had the same problem. But since I have my garden in my back yard, it was easy for me to just spend a few minutes a day picking them off. I just crush them with my fingers. I've killed hundreds, and finally have them under control... I have not seen many the past few days. Part of what I did was to really prune many of the leaves off of my plants, so to make the bug inspections easier to do. Also keep an eye out for their egg clusters... they look like tiny cylinders, tan-and-black. If you don't care about plants I would pull them out as you said. Otherwise they will multiply quickly.

I tried this and then confirmed it from another website: Spray them with a mixture of water and Dawn dishwashing liquid. You have to drench them directly so you might have to come back for another treatment, but it does killed them (by suffocation?). Labor intensive but not as bad as hand picking them off of the plant.

I'm not sure where to begin here........:-) 1) Foliar 'feeding' is extremely inefficient. Plants absorb the bulk of their nutrients via their roots. I doubt molasses sprayed on foliage provides any significant nutrient benefit as any natural/organic product has to be digested/assimilated by soil organisms before it becomes converted to a plant accessible form (a soluble salt, just as any other synthetic fertilizer presents). 2) Molasses can be a microorganism stimulant but not much in the way of a fertilizer. 3) Epsom salts is only of benefit if you have a magnesium deficiency, otherwise it does nothing for plants - it doesn't control pests; it doesn't control diseases; it doesn't make your plants any healthier or grow bigger and better. 4) We already addressed foliar feeding so spraying milk on your plants is not particularly helpful.........unless you have certain fungal issues. Milk contains lactic acid which alters the surface pH of plant foliage so that it is not hospitable to the development of powdery mildew spores. It also has anitbacterial properties that can be beneficial. But providing calcium just by spraying??? Nope!! Plants cannot process materials like molasses and milk in the same way that humans or other mammals can. If you poured the milk on the ground around the plant you might get some nutrient benefit but there are far more inexpensive methods to accomplish the same thing. 5) Neem oil is NOT a fertilizer!! It is an organic or natural pesticide but it has NO nutrient value. Its mode of action as a pesticide is to disrupt hormones which can have numerous implications - inability to mate or lay eggs, inability of insect larvae to moult or metamorphize, disruption of the digestive system. And it can smother soft bodied insects and act as repellant against some insect pests (grasshoppers and caterpillars in particular). It also has fungicidal properties but is of no value as a fertilizer. 6. The last two statements don't even make sense - does potassium contain blackstrap molasses and other nutrients and minerals?? Or is it the other way around?? In either case, neither is very accurate. Potassium is just potassium and molasses is pretty darn low on the plant nutrient scale, only providing 8% K, 12% Mg, 4% Fe and 4% Ca. Many other far less expensive and much better and broader sources of plant nutrients available with other organics. This is the Internet and all sorts of dubious sources publish all manner of nonsense that gets passed around and accepted for fact but before you repeat all that hokum it makes sense to research where it is coming from. Anecdotal reporting has no basis in science and is really not valid, although it can make for some entertaining reading. Look instead to science based websites - the extension service .edu websites or published scientific papers are a great place to start.

Harlequin bugs are members of a larger insect family that includes some beneficial insects. I am not sure that there would be any "trap" crops for these buggers but companion planting can help by providing a food source for the predators of these buggers, and sometimes by disguising the plants they want to get to so they do not find them. A diligent search for eggs on the host plants can help keep them under control, Insecticidal Soaps may be of some help in control, Neem products may also be some help in control, but due care in use is necessary as it would be if pyrethrins were to be used. For next year start by looking closely at you soil and start to make that soil into a good, healthy soil that wil lgrow strong and healthy plants that are less attractive to insect pests and plan on other steps, such as using Floating Row Covers, that can help keep these wee buggers away form the plants. Here is a link that might be useful: About Harlequin bugs