A new Garden Invader in my state.

[digitS']

Well, I'm going to put in a plug for pyrethrin spray, then.

There are synthetic types, just as there are synthetic nicotine insecticides. I seriously doubt that there is an exterminator who uses the organic but . . . maybe.

Here's the deal: I was told by an exterminator that it is the pyrethrin which drives cockroaches out of their hiding places. Yep, he said that they then run into the contact spray that is on the floor or in the cracks. Then they do their "dance of death" and that's it for the cockroaches.

Okay, we know that pyrethrin will kill bugs. It has very little persistence but that may not matter much with bugs that "hide." There's another "problem" with pyrethrin: it may just put the bug "to sleep." That is a dosage problem. I'm not using the term as someone who takes the old pet to the vet's. You gotta really put them to sleep!!

Steve

 

[annageckos]

I HATE harlequin bugs! Hate hate hate them. They showed up a few years ago, I'm hoping with the cold winter we had it will kill them off, or at least a lot of them. I'm not planting any the brassica veggies, and they are some of my favorites. I'm found they will also feed off of nasturiums and cleome. In fact they love the cleome as much as the veggies. If I still have an issue this season I'm thinking of trying pyrethrin.

 

[hoodat]

Thanks for the recommendation, Hoodat. I am going to have to be more faithful about spraying. I have had a hard time this past 2 years with being timely about it. As busy as the kids keep me, anything that I can leave for "later" usually gets forgotten completely. The veggies, I can get away with it. But not my poor roses...

I don't know much about these harlequin bugs' migration, other than they came up from the south. They are drawn to anything in the cabbage family, but will also settle for what they can get. The Asian ladybeetles died back as their food source (aphids) was reduced. I am not sure what it would take to level out the stink bugs. They are much more adaptable.

Steve, the biggest problem we have with the black locusts has been their habit of sprouting from the roots. It's especially bad if you cut down the main tree, then it makes a great effort to reproduce. Some folks will deliberately cut down one tree in order to grow a thick grove of perfectly straight saplings which will later be cut to make some of the most indestructible fence posts you can get your hands on (minus the $8 per post cost!) Not good if you are trying to clear a section of your land for some other useful purpose though. :/

I haven't noticed any stench to them, but my sense of smell isn't all that great anyway from constant sinus problems. I do smell the beautiful blooms in the spring though. It's a really intoxicating smell on a humid evening, similar to how honeysuckle hangs in the air. The black locust doesn't grow well in the lower elevations around here, but we have 1000's of them on my ridge. They are a very important nectar source for my honeybees since they come on early in the spring.

I have seen the locust borers on my marigolds and other flowers. I didn't know what they were. I really need to take the time to make a greater effort to identify all the buggies I see on my property, whether they are harmful, helpful or neutral. Good stuff to know! Maybe DD6 and I will start a pinboard for a science project. She loves bugs.

In defense of black locust it makes the longest lasting fence posts of any wood. I've heard it said in Texas that if you use black locust fence posts the post will outlast the hole. No - I don't know what that means either. Guess it's a Texas thang. Black locust grows in a twisted way and all the locustwood fences look like snakes stuck in the ground but they do the job.

 

[Mel]

In recent years alterative crops such as sunflower, safflower buckwheat and canola to name a few, have become big in using as a rotation crop with the hard red spring wheat which is planted widely through this area. Well along with the canola came a flea beetle with a voracious appetite for, second only to canola , Bassica. Several seasons back the infestation was extreme to say the least so I used sevn for control and after the first few weeks the dead flea beetles lay inches deep in the cabbage leaves and on the ground around them at which point I just gave up on them. They ate the horseradish leaves leaving only the delicate weaving of the skeleton of the leaf. Pretty much quit cabbage and broc for a few years although I have not seen near that degree of infestation since. It varies yearly with the type of weather.

 

[buckabucka]

I keep hoping our unusually cold winter will knock off some of the pests. We have stink bugs here, but I've only actually seen them in my house (I suppose they are easier to spot there).
We do get squash bugs, but not every year is a bad year. They seem to come in waves. I do not use any sprays here (other than Surround), so I am vigilant about inspecting and crushing.

 

[journey11]

I've been squashing every stink bug I can find in the house. They didn't used to come inside, but now I see oh, maybe 30 each winter. They're slow and easy to catch during the winter, but more often then not they escape me in the garden, so I figure I better put a dent in their population while I can.

Those tiny flea beetles sure are destructive. I can't imagine having them in the quantities you're seeing, Mel. I can understand why you've given up brassicas.

 

[Lavender2]

I've been squashing every stink bug I can find in the house. They didn't used to come inside, but now I see oh, maybe 30 each winter. They're slow and easy to catch during the winter, but more often then not they escape me in the garden, so I figure I better put a dent in their population while I can.

Those tiny flea beetles sure are destructive. I can't imagine having them in the quantities you're seeing, Mel. I can understand why you've given up brassicas.

The only place I usually find the stink bugs is in my raspberries, and often I'm not fast enough to grab them also. I've thought about taking my dustbuster out there, or maybe the shop vac! Has anyone ever tried one of those bug vacuums? The reviews don't look very good.

 

[so lucky]

I wonder what insecticide is effective against flea beetles, other than sevin? Mel, your post scares me.

 

[catjac1975]

Many of the organics work well. Rotenone, Pyrethrum, Sabadilla.

 

[digitS']

When I first started to do a little research on flea beetles, I was surprised to see that they are not considered a serious pest in some states.

It seems that they may be more of a problem in arid country but I imagine that isn't absolute. If we are waiting for cold weather to control some pests, I wonder where that puts Mel in North Dakota!

A Flea Beetle can't do much harm all by himself. I have wondered if my gravelly garden soil makes life much better for Mr Beetle and a million of his buddies. Adding a lot of organic matter may just improve his preferred environment.

He is down there, in the roots of your plants and, it is said, he doesn't care too much on which ones he feeds on as a youngster. As an adult, he is still down hiding under stuff on the soil surface. When he comes out, it is the Brassicas that he seems to like best. However, I have seen them do serious damage to tomato plants some years. They will even chew pits in the fruit.

Despite being able to jump and fly, my idea is that they usually don't travel far. I have wondered if they may not come in on the wind since they sometimes seem to show up suddenly.

I like the Pyrethrum sprays and just plan on hitting the ground all around the plants. I'm kinda "gassing" them down there. Now the larva is another story. I don't know if there is any organic remedy for much of any pests in our soil. There is no question that the farmers have conventional pesticides for them. The easiest way, I'd guess, is to just make the entire plant toxic and kill whatever is feeding on any part of it.

I'm happy enough using something that is very short-term. I try to hit them as soon as I see any damage. I think it only takes a couple of nice warm nights and Mr Flea Beetle may do so much damage that the plant will be lost to the gardener.

Steve