Timed planting and row covers. Row covers eliminate the squash bugs too. Hand pollinating is easy to do and much more productive. Lots of other suggestions in the previous discussions linked below.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: SVB discussions

Dave,
I've done lots of reading and have tried many different things including row covers...none have worked and by mid June I'm done. I've tried planting crops at different times after that, but multiple cycles of SVB here do them in before they have a chance to produce anything. Was hoping someone had something new....thanks.
Tom

Do you till for larvae? Studies show In addition, it seems that most growers with severe SVB problems are farming rocky upland soils or have usually discontinued plowing (tilling) in favor of harrowing (or no till). The practice of moldboard plowing buries overwintering SVB larvae deep in the soil and reduces the number of moths that emerge. Over time, plowing can reduce the SVB population. UCONN IPM

Have you been able to determine how they are getting under your row covers? Are they snug at the base of the plant? Have you tired the combo of Bt dust and row covers? Resistant varieties like Trombocino or Cucuzzi?

Dave

It still reigns supreme in my Texas garden. They have multiple cycles here in Dallas also. I tried planting in late September last year, but my plants were decimated very quickly.

My best results come by planting as early in the Spring season as possible(mid-March). My plants should start flowering very soon, but will be gone by the first or second week of June at the best. I read somewhere to use aluminum foil around the plants, so I'm trying that. I might go out and buy a row cover also. I think one of the biggest problems with them is that once they are established in your soil they keep coming back each season.

Pete

Dave-I assume they are coming up from the ground under the cover. I've turned the soil to different depths with no impact. Have also tried Bt. Haven't gone to Trombo or Cucu...I like zukes and yellow summer!

Suburban- Have done the foil also...not easy to fully cover stems and they found spots to attack

Dave-I assume they are coming up from the ground under the cover.

Actually the larvae, the ones that do the damage, are laid as eggs on the stems by the moths. They hatch on the stem and then burrow in. So if the moths can't get to the stems to lay eggs then you don't have any problems. Covers, cinched in around the base of the plant ASAP after planting, really has eliminated the problem for me. Only lost 1 plant last year out of 15 when the armadillo rooted up one of the covers and I didn't catch it for a couple of days.

The tilling kills the emerging moths that have pupated in the soil. Sorry I called them larvae above. That was a mistake.

Dave

OK, Dave, I AM listening!....(and I really like to eat squash)....

What do you use for covers? How do you cinch in around the base? How big(old)are your plants when you cover and cinch them? Mine went into the ground(transplanted) this past week (in a late start) and are maybe 2-3 inches tall....as you know, zuke plants get rather big and sprawling pretty quickly...how big is your cover? How long do you keep them covered... here the multiple cycles will get the plants as soon as the covers are removed, so it would seem the cover has to be very big?

I use Reemay Insect Barrier. Lasts for years and is very light weight so no trapped heat problems. Some are stitched (but not required) that wife made up for me into 5' wide x 4' tall bags. You can also use inexpensive tulle from WalMart .

Set a 3' stake right next to each plant to support the bag. Pull the bag down over the stake and snug the open end right up against the plant and stake base with bricks or rocks. String cuts into the stem. Each morning I hand pollinate.

Or you can cut it into 8-10' lengths depending on variety size and snug it down with the bricks. Just roll up the extra and store it under the bricks until needed. As the plant grows you just unroll some of the extra to give it more room.

The important part is to cover as soon as planted and to bring the bottom open end into as close to the plant base as you can.

Dave

I had 0 SVB last years after 2 years of performing "plant surgery" to remove the grubs. 'Though it doesn't sound like you want to go to that much trouble. I thought I would put that out there. I'm not sure actually if I just got rid of a very localized population or if something else was going on with them last year... if I'm still in the same location this summer it will be interesting to see if they return or not.

Cheers!

Sunni

Has anyone tried the organic route? Interplanting Nasturtiums, garlic, marigolds? I'm trying it this year, does any of it work?

I decided to go with a cover also. I tried to buy one at a local store, but they were out. I went to a fabric store and bought some tulle and made an 18x9 ft cover---plenty of extra room for growth. My plants have been planted for a while and are getting large, but no sign of the borers yet and no eggs. Also, this bed is a squash virgin. You can bet the cover will be tight with no ground-level leaks. I decided to pull up the foil I had put down.

I am a little concerned about heat buildup, but excited about getting more than just a week or two of squash. I hate the bees won't be able to pollinate; they'll still have the cucumber and melon flowers though. Do you think a borer will slip in while I'm hand pollinating? I wouldn't be surprised!

I'll keep you guys posted.

Pete

Would bug zappers work? something set RIGHT up in the plants that would maybe attrack the moth and then FRY it :)

Do you think they would get distracted JUST long enough from their task of destruction to "come into the light"?

since I believe I have read that they are active at night, and the zappers would operate only at night?

SVBs are active during daylight hours.

My greatest success is spending hours on the ground inspecting every square inch of vine insuring no eggs are present,

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followed by heavier-duty specific chems containing lambda-cyhalothrin or esfenvalerate.

Sitting in the patch all afternoon with a fly swatter works wonders too.

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Hope this helps.

scarletdaisies - The so-called "companion plantings" have not been shown to be effective.

I didn't have problems last year, and I did nothing. We might have eliminated the local population by leaving the dirt exposed all winter. Pulling up borer-damaged plants and letting them dry out in the sun until crispy kills the larvae in the stems.

Dave,
Thanks....now I'm debating whether my row cover will cause too much heat and whether I'm too late...

As for the rest of you Folks,
Thanks...but what you seem to be telling me is the SVB still reigns...
Tom

A row cover made of tulle would take care of your concern of building up too much heat, I would think. It's a very fine mesh, so air could still get through.

Just a thought. I'll be trying it this year to ward off cabbage moths.