In our last eNewsletter we talked about how the squash bugs were wreaking havoc on our squash, zucchini and pumpkin plants. We asked our readers to talk to us and let us know their ideas and experiences in dealing with this critter that destroys otherwise healthy and productive plants overnight.
We found out that these bugs are a serious threat all across the US and Canada as well, so no area is more vulnerable or immune to them. Several people shared their experiences with companion planting, with mixed results. Some had good results, some had no change and some had differing results depending on the year. Many of you have said this is the most difficult garden pest to deal with, as it doesn’t seem to respond universally to anything or any approach. The bugs will overwinter under almost any debris, woodchips or other small shelter and re-engage their destructive behavior in the Spring, making their control a multi-year program.
The two most successful methods were spraying of Neem oil, either by itself or mixed with water, or Guinea hens in the garden. The Guinea hens seems like the most reliable method of controlling the bugs, if you’re able to get and keep the hens. They also seem to be the favorite bug controlling critter, regardless of what bugs you have. The Neem oil not only smothers the bugs, but slows their feeding and greatly reduces their reproduction if they ingest it. Several resources mentioned Neem oil as one of the foundational treatments for the squash bugs.
We were hoping for a somewhat universal approach, and one of our readers, Joann from Michigan sent us this recipe, and she says it will kill the bugs, not just drive them away! This looks to be a promising approach that will not only help with the immediate problems but speed up the decrease in population for next years program.
Garlic juice concentrate-
4tsp baking soda (anti fungal properties, also stops powdery mildew type problems)
1tsp vegetable oil (smothers) Neem oil would work well here. The amount could be doubled.
1tsp soap (emulsifier/sticker) Best to use a natural soap such as Dr. Bronner’s.
1 to 2 tbl garlic juice (kills)
Juice: 1 med bulb of garlic blended with 1 to 2 cups of water. Let sit a minimum of 15 minutes and strain.
Add concentrate to a gallon of water and spray liberally. Repeat as often as needed to drive off or kill the squash bugs.
We will be trying this recipe to see how it works for us. Please let us know your experiences, or if you have a different approach that has proven to be effective, please let us know so we can share it!
I use this stuff. Completely organic–is a fungus/microbe that kills squash beetles:
Bacillus thuringiensis
Thanks, Linda! I forgot about Bt. It has been so misused by the GMO companies that I had forgotten its usefulness in its basic state.
We did not find guinea hens to be helpful in our garden because they ate the buds on my peas and beans, and possibly other plants, too, but this was a while ago so I don’t recall. We use a neem oil spray and mix it with soap and equal parts water and rubbing alcohol, which does kill or at least harm the pests. I am currently making my second attempt at growing summer squash, though, because the heat kept me out of the garden and I let up on my spraying regime. Squash bugs seem worse this year, and showed up earlier, than ever before.
Thanks for the input on the Guinea hens, as I don’t have any experience with them.
I agree, the squash bugs seemed much worse, both in timing and population. I’m guessing it is a seasonal response to the cold wet winter we had for the past couple of years.
Wow, I really would have wished for these suggestions earlier in the season. My pumpkins have been wiped out/nullified (one heirloom, one hybrid) and not one pesticide I’d tried worked.
I won’t be trying pumpkins again, however, because the surviving ones never pollinated despite “direct intervention” and they take up too much space.
We would have had these earlier, but didn’t have quite the problems that popped up later in the season.
I would recommend not giving up entirely on pumpkins. Give it a year or so, then try a smaller type, like the New England Sugar Pie. They are physically smaller, and the vines don’t sprawl quite so much, so might be an option.
I have been infested with red bugs with black dots and legs ALL OVER my tomato plants that are in raised bed with other vegetables. Only eating leaves and vines, not tomatoes themselves. Would you recommend neem oil for those?
Yes, I think that Neem oil is a good foundational application for undesirable bugs. As one of our readers pointed out as well, Bt is also a good deterrent.
I have used Neem Oil with some success, but nothing seems to work on all of them.
At the beginning of the season, I thought I could pick them by hand. I do believe I was winning the war until we strawed the tomatoes which were near the squash. I lost all seven plants even though I was picking over 100 bugs a day morning and night and squashing eggs that they were producing. Then they moved to my cucumbers and killed them too.
Meanwhile in the pumpkin patch which was on the other side of the yard, my sons newly hatch baby chickens skittered through the garden fence without there moms and ate every squash bug they could find, obviously doing a much better job than me!
A friend of mine is a certified organic farmer, farming approximately 1000 acres. He gave me an ounce of something called Pyganic, the adults fell over dead on the leaves. When I looked up the price of Pyganic, my heart skipped a beat I think.
Something else I found that worked when you spray, no matter what you are spraying neem oil, soap or even water, the adults come to the top making them much easier to catch and kill if you don’t have a big garden.
I haven’t had a garden in many years and I don’t remember dealing with squash bugs when I was a kid in my father’s garden. They have certainly made raising squash a miserable experience.
Thanks so much for your invaluable information and experiences, Jacqueline! I wonder if baby chicks or at least younger chickens could be a partial answer to these monsters…
The year that I planted radishes in the late winter and then just piled dirt on top of them instead of clearing out the bed before planting my squash, that year I had no problem with squash bugs. Or cucumber beetles. I also planted nasturtiums and marigolds in the squash bed.
I didn’t do that 2010, but I’ll be doing it again this year.
Thanks for another great tip, I’ll have to try this.
Wondering about the garlic tea and if you might follow up on your experience. Read from another site that detergent could possibly harm the plant (squash) and to be sure to use real soap and was having a hard time trying to figure out where I was going to find soap…but remembered I have some peppermint and lavender soap from the natural food store…yes!!!
Tommie-
We had some success with the garlic/neem oil/soap recipe, but got into it a bit late I think, as there was a full-blown infestation going on. Be sure to use an organic soap, such as Dr. Bronner’s to not harm your plants or the soil organisms.
Hey thanks Stephen. We tried the recipe on 2 rows of squash 400 feet long and there seems to be very little activity on them although there were lots of eggs and a few small, probably just hatched, nymphs before we sprayed 8 days ago.
We did modify the recipe: per gallon, we blended a medium bulb of onion that’s too hot to eat now (stalk and all) from the garden, a tablespoon of dried cayenne pepper, used canola for oil and upped the amount to 3 tbsp, but I’m ordering neem oil for next year, but planting cayenne now and garlic come fall as the bulbs around my neighbors garden made a couple weeks ago.
Our control was a row of Zuchinni which did not get sprayed at the same time as the squash and it is heavily infested with bugs, some with 100+ bugs/plant. We are now spraying with the mix; yesterday we sprayed the zuchinni, and I could see bugs dying, but the plants (more like the bugs) need to be doused multiple times with the spray. Today the number of bugs was reduced, and we are spraying again tomorrow.
I’m thinking the recipe is good, especially for eggs already on the plant.
Do you think canola oil, or any other type of oil, can be picked up by the plant and deposited in the fruit?
I think that the oil will not be ingested by the plant, but will remain on the outside of the plant.