I will say I haven't planted a trap crop for this purpose, so I can only speculate.

My experience has been that if you have adult squash bugs around, they are laying eggs on EVERY type of squash/pumpkin in the garden. They might congregate in greater numbers on certain plants, but they are on every one. A trap crop would make it easy to spray the life out of the squash bugs on that crop, but surely there would be bugs on the other varieties creating future generations...

So, is the point to have reduced numbers of adults on your favored crops? I guess that could work. For me, the number of adults that show up from far and wide are so numerous that it seems pointless.

I've read that they prefer Blue Hubbard over all other varieties. My strategy is to plant the trap crop as early as possible and spray heavily with systemic insecticide.

Plant the desired crop as late as possible.

I can't claim that this actually works, but it's what I try.

I too am gearing up for a squash vine borer battle. My strategy is going to be tulle netting, and self pollination. My feeling is that manual pollination, which you need to do if you're keeping bees out) is a lot easier than regular spraying, egg-picking, or vine surgery. Takes a few seconds per female flower. We'll see how well it works. Tulle is pretty cheap, and it remains to be seen how long it will last outside.

I have to say that I'm skeptical about trap crops in general. You're just attracting the bad bugs to the general area, and encouraging their reproduction. I would consider trap crops to be the last resort.

Well, the thing with trap crops is that since you plan on growing the plants anyhow, you would be attracting the bugs regardless. Perhaps if they were renamed 'sacrifice crops' it would be better? I was planning on getting the trap crop out soonest, sort of an early bird lunch special for the bugs. I am planning on destroying the trap crop, bugs and all. Anyway, it's all experimental. At worst we'll be out a few bucks for seed if it doesn't work.

Oh, and I'm not really thinking about the svb, apparently they don't care for the stems on the moschata species.

I'm growing Tromboncino this year, moschata for summer and winter squash both to foil the evil SVB.

But that doesn't help with the squash bugs.

Ltilton, sounds like we are trying similar strategies, maybe we can compare notes at the end of the season? Though that's so far off for winter squash, I don't know how either of us will remember...

My strategy involves prevention, and it works fairly well. What I do is to diligently smash any remaining squash bugs [with my shoes] at the close of the season. The bugs will congregate on the last remaining green leaves and fruits. This helps eliminate the bugs for next season.

They have arrived at my garden! I saw them this morning before leaving for work.

I planted 4 crooknecks early, near the garden. For a possible early harvest.

They are covered in eggs and I saw one adult.

It had been to wet to plow, so my others are still young and bug free, I think, for now.

When I get home I'm firing up my propane torch and cooking them!

Sacrifice a few for the safety of the others!

Any suggestions for the others? I've read that sevin doesn't work on the adults.

I spray Sevin onto the vines after they are well-established about once a week, and maybe more if I see the flying varmints that can lay eggs that become squash vine borers. I also use tin foil around the vines that look susceptible. When I have grown squash, this method is so successful that I hope for a later infestation as squash are growing 20 feet or more over the 4' fence 20 feet away into the neighbor's yard, and my neighbor and I have more squash than we can eat in 3 years out of a little 10' x 20' garden with only two hills devoted to squash; the rest of the garden is devoted to various other vegetables such as corn, beans, tomatoes onions brussel sprouts, et. al.

I missed Wayne's post way back when. I've also done " the dance of death" on the squash bugs. Too funny.

It's great this thread resurfaced because 2 days ago when I went to plant out my sacrificial squash I found the very first squash bug of the season here. On the pot of one of the trap squash. I squashed it. I've seen a few others, on my garlic for some reason (squashed them too).

Wertach, a couple of options spring to mind: if you're sure they are free of bugs, maybe a row cover? Well, my other thought is to fight the big fight- sprays and powders and squishing all summer, nothing new there. Really concentrate on irradicating any adults you see now. My understanding is that only the adults that overwintered will be breeding and laying eggs this year. Getting the breeders early cuts down on all subsequent broods. That's why the trap crop is supposed to work. Though I also read that in the deep south they can have a second generation of breeders form, but I think that's like Florida south, not SC south.

I spotted the first SVB last week on my Tromboncino squash, but did not find any eggs there. There were eggs on the regular zuccini, but I have only found one bug.

Seems each day I am taking eggs off the zuccini, but the only place I actually am seeing the SVB is floating in the dish of water and yeast sunk in the soil nearby. I've been meaning to set out more of those 'traps' as they collect many kinds of insects. They were supposed to be for slugs, but have not caught any, so I'm thinking it was something else damaging the plants.

Bottom line is that the 'trap' has caught more SVB than I have squashed this year, but searching and removing eggs is essential.

If it is manageable, hand grab and dispose of the adult squash bugs. I found that if you water the plant with a spout can right in the center it will drive the bugs out of hiding making them easy to capture. They can fly but are easy to grab before taking flight. That is what we have been doing this year. Works well. And of course looking for the eggs EVERY day (twice a day) and scraping them off with the thumb or finger over a bucket of soapy water. It seems that if the adults are greatly reduced the egg laying is much less (makes sense, right?).

I really dislike the buggers.

Thanks for all the great advice. I had never heard of SVB until joining garden web. I did surgery on a declining pie pumpkin this morning. I pulled out two white squishy bugs and fed them to the chickens.

I just planted a second round of squash in a different bed but don't want the tender new plants to be eaten from within before fruiting. I checked for eggs this morning and did not find any. I have been using neem oil to combat aphids on my brussels sprouts. Does anyone know if neem oil helps combat SVB or squash beetles?

I had fun frying them buggers when I got home yesterday!

When I put the torch on the plants the adults came out in numbers and got fried also!

I got a lot of them, but I'm sure some escaped!

Hishigata, I read somewhere that neem helps. I plan to get some on the way home.