Need a squash bug solution that REALLY works for 2012 gardening
- Thread starter ducks4you
- Start date
Kassaundra
Garden Addicted
Rat tail radish are grown on vines and you don't eat the root, but the pods that develop, this coming year will be my first year to grow them so I don't know how they taste yet. They grow in the warm weather unlike regular radish. When I first posted I thought I remembered that they were helpful in controlling the squash (stink type) bugs, but after looking again it seems they are for the vine borers.
catjac1975
Garden Master
- Joined
- Jul 22, 2010
- Messages
- 9,064
- Reaction score
- 9,346
- Points
- 397
- Location
- Mattapoisett, Massachusetts
Yuck!seedcorn said:agree Bt does work great on corn borer. Why 3 different companies put it into the genes of field corn.
back to subject at hand, good luck w/squash bugs.
- Thread starter
- #34
ducks4you
Garden Master
- Joined
- Sep 4, 2009
- Messages
- 13,394
- Reaction score
- 20,810
- Points
- 437
Thanks! That's okay--I get them, too.Kassaundra said:
The Mama Chicken
Attractive To Bees
I agree, yuck! If I need to use Bt I will just use it, I don't want ANY genes in my veggies that have to be inserted in a lab.catjac1975 said:Yuck!seedcorn said:agree Bt does work great on corn borer. Why 3 different companies put it into the genes of field corn.
back to subject at hand, good luck w/squash bugs.
- Thread starter
- #36
ducks4you
Garden Master
- Joined
- Sep 4, 2009
- Messages
- 13,394
- Reaction score
- 20,810
- Points
- 437
I sure appreciate ALL of your ideas. Thanks! Anybody else?
catjac1975
Garden Master
- Joined
- Jul 22, 2010
- Messages
- 9,064
- Reaction score
- 9,346
- Points
- 397
- Location
- Mattapoisett, Massachusetts
And it takes so little BT to do it's job.The Mama Chicken said:I agree, yuck! If I need to use Bt I will just use it, I don't want ANY genes in my veggies that have to be inserted in a lab.catjac1975 said:Yuck!seedcorn said:agree Bt does work great on corn borer. Why 3 different companies put it into the genes of field corn.
back to subject at hand, good luck w/squash bugs.
- Thread starter
- #38
ducks4you
Garden Master
- Joined
- Sep 4, 2009
- Messages
- 13,394
- Reaction score
- 20,810
- Points
- 437
SO GREAT to be able to ask for help from you all!! 
This makes MORE work this year than I'd thought, but this mild winter has allowed for digging, so I'm off and running on my plans to rid myself of the awful
squash bug invasion. I have 5 acres to work with, so I'm not without resources, thankfully. Here's my plan:
1) Dig out the top 8 inches of my beds that had squash bugs last year. 2 are raised beds and 4 were sweet corn/squash beds
These are two of the culpret beds, pictures from 2010~
2) Transport said dirt to the NW corner of my 3 acre North (horse) pasture, where I need to fill in ruts from my 2008 fencing job (It's been impossible to run the mower there, and THIS will help it)
3) Dig dirt from previous manure piles in horse's turnout for the beds and till under used stall bedding in all of these beds.
4) Establish ALL natural predators
JUST saw a Garden Smart program about predatory insects. Sorry, couldn't find the link.
I'm buying THIS book this Spring:
http://www.amazon.com/Organic-Garde...=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330362532&sr=1-2
...more stuff to read~
http://www.gardensmart.com/?p=articles&title=Natural_Insect_and_Disease_Control
This makes MORE work this year than I'd thought, but this mild winter has allowed for digging, so I'm off and running on my plans to rid myself of the awful
squash bug invasion. I have 5 acres to work with, so I'm not without resources, thankfully. Here's my plan:1) Dig out the top 8 inches of my beds that had squash bugs last year. 2 are raised beds and 4 were sweet corn/squash beds
These are two of the culpret beds, pictures from 2010~
2) Transport said dirt to the NW corner of my 3 acre North (horse) pasture, where I need to fill in ruts from my 2008 fencing job (It's been impossible to run the mower there, and THIS will help it)
3) Dig dirt from previous manure piles in horse's turnout for the beds and till under used stall bedding in all of these beds.
4) Establish ALL natural predators
JUST saw a Garden Smart program about predatory insects. Sorry, couldn't find the link.
I'm buying THIS book this Spring:
http://www.amazon.com/Organic-Garde...=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1330362532&sr=1-2
...more stuff to read~
http://www.gardensmart.com/?p=articles&title=Natural_Insect_and_Disease_Control
lesa
Garden Master
According to the research I did on this subject, the cocoon type larva are about 2 inches down in the soil... so your 8 inches may be over kill. I also just saw someone claim that collars (like toilet paper rolls, etc.) have cured their vine borer problems. Not sure if I believe it, but it is free and easy, so I will be trying it!
nachoqtpie
Deeply Rooted
This is what we bought. Do you think it will be enough?catjac1975 said:
