You are assuming there are no other viable alternatives to the two chemicals you mention? Have you ruled out diatomaceous earth (DE) and/or Kaolin Clay for some reason?

There is a great deal of info available on dino available on the web via Google, including vendors and brand names. I'd encourage a thorough reading of all or most of the literature on it before deciding to use it.

And consider this, as discussed in the article you linked the impact of the stink bug is in the commercial industry, not the home garden. Further, the damage they do is appearance-only, affecting the marketability of the fruit but not its edibility.

So while something like this may be economically justified for a commercial grower it really isn't justified for the home garden, is it? Unless you happen to be surround by infested commercial operations or are marketing large amount of your fruits. Are you a commercial grower? If so, then it may well be worth considering.

But for the home gardener, no, not IMO. Especially so when it is a blanket pesticide killing all the beneficial bugs and pollinators as well as the stink bugs. The home gardener would be trading some appearance damaged tomatoes for some chemically coated ones and an environmentally unhealthy garden. And no, I am not an organic gardener, just a careful one.

Further as one entomoligst pointed out in the article, stimk bugs are mobile. "When you spray the crop with completely legal, viable insecticide, you will kill the stink bug, but the problem is that you will do it today, and a few days later you will have another whole group of them migrating from the outside."

Do you just keep spraying?

Ultimately of course, it is your choice. These are just some thoughts to consider.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: Dino info

Saying stinkbugs are not a problem for the home gardener tells me you don't have a stinkbug problem where you live. They are a curse. They do make tomatoes almost inedible and it is more than cosmetic. I don't know about the spray; I hate to use poisons. Surround may help; I've used it but I am not sure it did much good. When it rains you have to reapply. I am personally afraid of DE because if it is grinding the exoskeleton off of bugs what is it doing to your lungs.

Saying stinkbugs are not a problem for the home gardener tells me you don't have a stinkbug problem where you live.

On the contrary. I used to have an extensive stink bug problem until I started using kaolin clay several years ago. DE is also quite effective and can be safely applied with no concerns about inhalation if you just wear a face mask when applying. Just as one would when applying any sort of chemical spray.

Surround is a fancied-up form/suspension of KC but applying plain old KC dust is not only more effective but much less expensive and it holds up to several rains.

As to the type of damage they do, the comments above were taken from the linked article. However, most will agree that unless one has a major infestation that goes untreated then yes, the majority of the damage they do is cosmetic.

There are additional IPM (biological and cultural) controls that when used can also contribute to reducing stink bug damage.

Dave

Here is a link that might be useful: IPM - Stink Bugs

My stinkbug problem is a major infestation. It is untreated because I don't like to use poisons. I have used Surround but it kept raining. I also think it is a pain to mix up and you have to keep shaking it as you spray because it settles. I don't even like to use organic type sprays. It doesn't work for stinkbugs anyway but I suspect Bt makes me sick. I have not proved to myself that is the case but nevertheless I would not be surprised that down the road some of the organic methods turn out to be as dangerous as the poisons. Shape razor like shells of one celled life that erodes the shell of insects sounds worse to me than any chemical. It would be dust in the air if you use it. I bought a stink bug trap and will try that this year. Where do you buy the kaolin clay that works? If I can get something cheaper than Surround I would try it. Shipping is what kills me on Surround.

Dave, I must disagree with you that stinkbug damage is mostly cosmetic. They inject a foul digesting agent into the tomato when they suck. If a tomato only has very minor damage I can eat it. If it's more than 50% blotched it tastes crap. So yes they are a HUGE problem for us homegrowers who love our tomatoes!

I do agree with you that spraying any poisons won't work. Two days later....HELLO! Besides, who wants to spray poisons on their food? Here at the U of Delaware they are trialing a bunch of parasitic wasps from China with the hope that one will attack ONLY the brown stinkbug and not any of the good guys. I sure hope they solve this as I will order an army of good bugs here! I am a firm believer in letting nature control nature. Green lacewings have solved my aphid, whitefly and mite problems years ago.

Someone asked in another thread and nobody has answered yet so I'll ask again. Can you but the KC at Home Depot's, Lowes etc? Also, in applying the clay dust, does it interfere with photosynthesis? I want to trial this...I think. ;-)

The Surround clay product does not seem to hurt the tomato plants. I thought it might even be some protection from the hot sun in July and August. I am sure I did not apply it properly because as I said you have to keep shaking the sprayer; it wants to sink. The first tomatoes I sprayed were white with it and at the end of the tank they were barely covered. I think it may work if you start early and keep spraying every time the rain washes it off.

Stink Bugs. Hate em. Here in Florida I have millions of them. They use my plants as breeding grounds. I have used 7 dust and did nothing. My buddy at the University of Florida said we have a new type of stink bug that is getting out of control. Here is a link

Here is a link that might be useful: marmonated stink bug