Squash Bugs............. (%^%K) time to murder some unborn critters

Technically squash bug eggs. If you have eggs you also have adults beetles and likely hatched nymphs. It is the nymphs that do most of the damage to the plant. Very common pest for all squash and lots of info available on them.

Dave

The feeding of the nymphs will cause the plant to wilt and die within days. I do a twice a week patrol of my squash plants in early morning, squashing eggs and adults. It's laborious, even with only two plants of zucchini and two of butternut, but it works.

Speak for yourself, I have some squash bugs and my plants are thriving. YMMV.

Peter, are you sure you're referring to squash bugs and not the striped or spotted cuke beetle which often gets on squash as well. Squash will not survive the feeding of the nymphs of squash bugs. I've been gardening for 50 years, and I know what I'm talking about.

You can have squash bugs with no or minimal problems. Maybe they are all males. I hope that is the case for you Peter.

But if you have eggs getting laid and hatched nymphs it is a whole other world of problems.

Dave

Last evening in the blazing heat I did an inspection on my Butternut and Acorn squash. I found 6 or 8 clusters of SB eggs and one leaf that had a cluster of newly hatched nymphs. I used a piece of duct tape to remove the eggs and nymphs. I also caught a couple adults mating and dispatched them.

laceyvail,

Yes, I am positive. They are squash bugs. I also have had cucumber beetles, but none this year. The squash bugs I have this year are slowly taking down one of my zucchini plants, but my other plants are showing little or no damage. Of course, it is a light infestation at the moment.

I have no doubt squash bugs can kill a plant, but I have never seen any pest -- save a groundhog -- take down a plant within days, unless it was immature. Granted, I don't have anywhere near 30 years of experience, but I have seen a lot of pests and diseases. Even the dreaded SVB can take weeks to kill a plant, and plants can survive.

I am sure you had a particularly bad infestation and I am not doubting your experience, just saying YMMV.

My favored technique for dealing with squash bug eggs is to tear off part of the leaf that the eggs and then smoosh them between the side of a knife and a brick. I'm on my second planting of zucchini now. The plants are coming along, but still weeks away from producing. I need to start my patrol.