Last year was our first garden along the lower part of rolling fields/woods. We tilled twice, then planted. I had NEVER heard of cucumber beetles until I checked on my baby a week after everything germinated... from cukes to squashes to pumpkins, everything was destroyed by a little black and yellow-striped beetle. I ended up with a few cukes and 1 zucchini (by the time I got one, the frost came in).

I sprayed Serenade last year, but can't confirm it actually helped. I got a yield, a small one, but I got something! This year, I was prepared and bought a similar spray from Whitney Farms. I only used it once on my kole crops to rid them of flea beetles. I have only seen 1 cucumber beetle this year and squished it.

Is your garden new? Have you had issues before?

My advice is to check your garden daily. The moment you see any pest of interest, flick off and squish as many bugs as you can, then lightly spray your plants (check the weather and wait until after rain). One or two coats should not make a negative difference. I never sprayed the serenade directly on blossoms, but I lightly misted leaves... then picked the bugs out of the flowers..

If you are going the organic route, try mixing in compost or manure. Insecticides are barely needed if the soil is healthy!

I have not had issues before. We have had veggies for the last four years, however this year we went a little crazy and I made several new beds.

My understanding is that Serenade is for fungus, not for killing pests. I just don't want my beautiful, productive cucumber and zucchini plants taken down by some disease the beetles communicate-- but if Serenade is a pesticide I will not use it because my plants are flowering and I do not want to hurt bees.

serenade is a fungacide not a pesticide. i use it for funguses.

to keep cucumber beetles away and it works really great is companion planting. plant radishes around your cucumber plants and just let them go to flower. yellow sticky traps also help. using bacterial resistant seed is good ideal in the future.

Let's get some terminology correct. A "pesticide" is any product that is used to control a pest. A pest may be a fungus, a bacterium, an insect, a mite, a weed, a rat, etc. Serenade is a pesticide...a biological pesticide that is used to control fungal and bacterial, and other such pests of plants.

I worry about greenmtngal using it to control beetles and other insect pest.....NOT!

All the more reason to repeat, once again, that we need to read the labels of our pesticides carefully....before we buy them, before we mix them, before we apply them on our plants or on the soil, and before we store or dispose of them.

And I'd have to say that Serenade can demonstrate rather limited effectiveness as a funicide. The PNW Disease Management Handbook typically lists Serenade as having minimal efficacy on controlling various fungal or bacterial pathogens. YMMV :-)

Diatomaceous earth is a very effective control against flea beetles, cucumber beetles, stink bugs and a whole host of other, common veggie garden pests. It is also entirely natural and an approved organic control. As is the Serenade, but for an entirely different purpose.

And let me just add to rhizo's last words - if your pesticide of choice does not list the problem/pest you are attempting to control and research on its active ingredient does not address it either then do not use it for that purpose. Pesticides are registered for specific uses and/or specific diseases or pests on specific plants or crops. To use them outside of these specific cases is both illegal and irresponsible.