Who planted squash, zucchini, and pumpkins this Spring? IF you did be on the lookout for squash bugs!
Squash bugs are one of the most important pests of squash and pumpkins AND they sometimes damage melons as well! Adults are brown or dark grey, while the nymphs are ash grey. Heavy infestations cause whole plants to suddenly wilt and die. The plant looked fine yesterday, but not today. This damage is often not recognized as insect damage and is attributed to disease or lack of water instead. Look carefully around the bases of wilted plants, or around the bases of live plants growing near dead plants, to find the real culprits.
Squash bug adults and nymphs concentrate at the base of plants where they suck sap from the stems, injecting saliva into the plant as they feed. This saliva is toxic to the plants and heavy squash bug feeding can cause plants to suddenly wilt and die, a condition known as “squash bug wilt.”
Infestations that are not heavy enough to kill plants can still result in poor growth and reduced yields. Squash bugs also vector an important bacterial disease known as cucurbit yellow vine decline. This a damaging garden pest that needs to be controlled if you want to make a good crop of squash or pumpkins, especially if you hope to keep picking squash throughout the summer.
Control: Control squash bugs in home vegetable gardens with sprays containing zeta-cypermethrin or permethrin. Both products have one day preharvest intervals, which doesn’t much matter with pumpkins, but is important with zucchini and yellow squash. Products with 3-day PHIs just don’t work well for these crops. Direct sprays to the base of the plant where adults and older nymphs are concentrated, as well as to the leaves, where egg masses and newly hatched nymphs occur. Start spraying weekly as soon as plants are well-established and growing well, especially if you see squash bugs or their eggs on the plants. There are no good organic treatments for squash bugs, but regular hand-picking of adults, nymphs, and egg masses can be helpful if one only has a few plants and is diligent.
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Original source can be found here.
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