Here the SVB only produce one generation per season. The bugs just keep breeding as long as the temps allow only temps low enough to harm the plants drive the adults into hybrenation.

I have read in two places now that state that the bugs only produce one generation per season in the mid west. I find this hard to beleive considering it seems you must do constant battle with them.

I have started painting the egg batches with phosphoric acid to see if anything happens, so far I cant see any positive results. I will try mixing a little soap/ and/or pet flea shampoo in next. I don't want to spray anything because the bee population really seems low this time of year. If I try picking them off it seems as if I drop half of the eggs.

When you stop growing cucurbits, they will leave. I HATE squash bugs and kill them with soapy water.

Well from reading the posts I think the only thing that I have correctly done is get rid of my summer squash plants. That being said I have meticulously removed the eggs from the leaves of just about everything in my garden but I was just dislodging them from the leaf and letting them go to the ground. I don't know why but I just assumed that knocking the eggs to the ground would kill them, guess that may not be the case. I have been hand picking the adults to kill them but I will try the soap and water to see if that works. Is there any way to prevent another outbreak of these bad bugs next year? Also what are the beneficials that eat these buggers, I have seen some spiders and skinks that seem to hang out in the same area and I think they may be taking some of the bugs but the stinkers are still overrunning my garden? I am in my third year of gardening without an experienced gardener i.e. family member, and have had a truly disappointing year but that makes the prospects of next year and this fall that much better, assuming it cant get much worse. Right?

I have been doing battle all season w/ these bugs to limited success. I have lost about half my squash plants to them, (but that means I saved half). I squish bugs and eggs almost daily, but have the same problem as the person who drops half of the eggs, a dustbuster seems to work better for the eggs, dislodging them w/ my thumb while sucking them into the dustbuster, it also works well on the young nymphs, the only problems I have w/ sucking them up in in the center stem "jungle" area. I am loath to spray chemicals but was driven one time this year to spray some seven, I waited until the flowers closed and only sprayed the center stem "jungle" area, but that was before the preditory spiders showed up. It didn't get rid of them, but did let me catch up. Be careful w/ the soap spray as it can burn the leaves. I have tried tobacco tea and soap together, neither one seemed to do anything except make the nymph and adults move so you could squish them better.

This is my first year to seriously garden (not give up a month or two into the season) so my first year dealing w/ these bugs, so I don't know what actually works on them, I have been doing a lot of research on non chemical ways of dealing w/ them and this is what I plan on doing next year, but have no idea yet if it will work. I have found several squash and cuke varieties that are reported as being not liked by the squash bugs, those are the ones I am planting, along w/ ones that bear quicker (get ahead of the squash bug season hopefully). I am going to companion plant w/ old fashioned vining petunias, tansy, radish, and nastursiums, all reported as repelling the squash bugs. I am growing my squash mostly on trellis, and placing a flat small board near the squash to keep check on when the first show up to try and make a pre-emptive strike.

I too was suprised at how many other garden plants they move on to, I have found eggs or bugs on nearly every type of plant I plant in the garden, but haven't seen any damage to anything but squash and cukes, and they haven't over run any of the other type plants.

I am also having my chickens to be in the garden through the non growing season, hopefully they will find the hybernating adults before next year.

Are you sure you're not seeing stink bugs? They look almost the same. I dust very heavily with diamectacous earth. It seems to take care of the babies. I also tear off the leaves with eggs on them and destroy those leaves.
Last year my infestation was bad but since I started doing this I've only seen a few small ones, no full adults.

Tracy - I do the same thing; remove the entire leaf and destroy it. Haven't used DE, but next year I will.
Carol