I try not use any chemical pesticides on my garden, AT ALL! Today i will show you how a simple office supply tool, will help keep those squash bugs away. Email me at TheBigBlueHouseHomestead@gmail.com
You are SO patient answering questions. Especially the same question over and over and over. Don't people read the comments and your replies to them see that you already answered their question 30 times!
@@ms.lgraves4147, I did it 3-4 times, about every 2-3 days, after that the problem was gone. I still check every day but nothing for about 3 weeks now.
Just found this video. When you water the squash plants, the bugs will climb to the top then you can easily smash the mature ones. Also, squash bugs don't like garlic so interplanting it with the squash helps to keep them away.
If you squash the bugs, you will attract every neighbouring bug to your property by the smell. Instead collect the bugs in a jar of soapy water to drown them and later dispose of them by digging a deep hole or flushing them down the toilet. Others collect them and freeze them in a zip lock bag. Look under leaves for the brown cluster of eggs. These can be squashed by folding the leaf and pressure applied and then given the soap water or freezing method. It takes longer to kill an egg than the bug. The bugs will drop to the ground or fly when disturbed so place the jar below and have a shop towel above to help catch them.
I've heard that they prefer cantaloupe, so if you place some cantaloupe rinds on a dish, the bugs will flock there to be squashed. Anyone else heard of this?
Excellent idea. I remember those. One problem I just learned, do not squash the eggs and let fall to the ground since the eggs can still (be alive) hatch and the babies will survive. Make them drop into a container with soap and or some bleach. Thank you....
Many people say that you can drop the eggs because other insects will eat them. I have dropped a dead tomato hornworm & a live cabbage worm on the ground and they were swarmed by ants in a minute - so maybe that happens. But, I prefer to drop them in water just to be sure.
Wrap some duct tape around a couple fingers and roll it across the little eggs. The leaves aren't crushed, the eggs aren't dropped. . . and there's something just so satisfying about listening to them all pop after the job when you squish the tape.
OK, an organic farmer, friend of mine, sprayed his squash and cucumbers, with what looked like Sevindust . I knew it couldn’t be, so I asked him about it. Turns out he took a small amount of diatomaceous earth, mix it in a garden, sprayer and sprayed, and covered his squash and cucumbers. From what I understand the squash bugs, injest the diatomaceous earth, which is rock, and it does them in. I can’t wait to try this! He didn’t use a thick layer or spray, it just leaves a slight white haze on the leaves.
I've been using those large white mesh laundry bags from Dollar Tree, and a upright stake support to hold the bag up, the plant can get air and water and it has a drawstring at the bottom that I can undue and check my plants out every other day or so just to be sure I don't have any problems, loving this method so far!
Some things that have helped me: ● I started pinning up my squash with a tomato cage. ●Any damaged leaf I find I cut off. ● I use apple cider vinegar to spray my plants with (mixed with a bit of epsom salt). Every area is different when it comes to how bad of an infestation there is. I have limited time because I am a workaholic. Hope this helps!
Try planting basil around each plant. That seems to be deterring even the adults so that they don't even lay eggs. Found that totally by accident. So planted basil on purpose this year and have no beetles on the squash that have basils.
I had a ton of basil all over my yard and garden even next to my squash plants 3 years in a row and that did NOTHING as far as the squash bugs. I did diatomaceous earth, sevin, wrapped tin foil around the base of the plant when first planting, hand picked them off on a daily basis. Nothing worked. So this year I will try the garlic and onion, planting and throwing raw around and see if that helps. Plus I'm going to trellis them up a wire tomato rack to help prevent powdery mildew. And I'm even doing a few in pots up on my deck to keep a better eye on them and for back up.
Good work! I used ordinary cheap masking tape (like for painting), which tears off easily into small pieces. It will usually pull all the eggs up at once, then you can fold it over and put it in the garbage so that even if the egg hatches it can't get away and will die in place immobilized or suffocated. I also used a cordless car vac on them with lots of success on the tiny hatchlings and adult bugs.
@@TheBigBlueHouseHomestead Thank you so much. I got these kinds of tips from the book All My Secrets of Organic and Container Gardening So Far ... not too well known, but full of ideas like this that were tried before and tested by the author. It saved me a lot of money and time in my struggling garden!
Hi Sarah! I watched your video today while I was working… I am a first time gardener. When I got off work I ran home and checked my squash and sure enough underneath the leaves were squash bug eggs. A couple of the leaves when I flip them over they had hatched and the squash bugs were crawling on the backside to live I pluck that leaf and stomped on the ground. Thank you so much for your video! You saved my squash! Subscribed!
I use duct tape. Stick it on and peel off. The eggs stick to the tape. I put the tape in the trash. I'm afraid the eggs will survive if I knock them off.
Thank you Thank you Thank you!!! I’m going to use duct tape! The thought of a finger full of squashed bug eggs, even on a silicone finger tip is sooo repugnant and turns my stomach (the hubs says I’m a sissy lol)! I am able to grab adults with tongs though, but it’s hard bcz they are quite evasive. I am going to cover my squashes with the fine tulle net and pollinate with a q-tip. I’ll have only 12 plants growing in sand bags, and that tulle is cheap and wide. Hope to never have those AWFUL bugs at all!!
THREE CHEERS TO YOU!! I just discovered your channel & admire your tenacity! The MOMENT you began talking about MANUALLY killing/removing squash bug eggs, etc., I intrinsically KNEW I had to watch your entire video, & after I immediately subscribed. Your method is something even many seasoned gardeners don't do, probably due to the "ick" factor. I too, do a lot of handpicking of bugs/eggs, occasionally venturing out at night with a headlamp to knock slugs/snails into a can of soapy water, except I wear gloves for the slimy stuff because they tend to totally gross me out. Thanks for your channel.
@@TheBigBlueHouseHomestead I use gloves, "rubber/vinyl" the kinds used for cleaning or health care depending on how strong they need to be for whatever I am doing.
thank you for the timely reminder. Just went out and inspected my squash and pumpkin plants and so far only found one small patch of squash bug eggs. They were up the stem of a flower rather than under the leaves.
I buy cedar pet bedding and use it around my plants to mulch I add few drops of lemon grass oil and cedar oil to mineral oil in a bottle Spray on a chunk of wood Lay that down No bugs so far Growing lots of basil and peppermint in pots to grow between plants As well as green onions and other herbs grown in pots Intercropping seems to work However I have a smaller space so not so much work
Great tips!!! Thank you so much! I do have plans, this year, for companion planting more. I'm also making an herbal spray with lemon balm, spearmint, and garlic. Every little bit helps
I use the same soap but I use the lavender and hemp version. Kills squash bugs dead in about 4 minutes. I spray every day around the eggs and now they are all gone for the time being. Not to say it will work for you but in Oklahoma it works good for me. I also mix it with BT and spray all my corn and tomato's. Good luck with the pesky bugs. Happy Homesteading
I've learned to water my squash plants and watch for the grown squash bugs to come to the leaf tips to dry off, then I squish them between my finger and thumb. I'm trying a couple of zucchini squash plants this year, but I mostly grow Tatume Winter squash and pick them between large egg and baseball size to use in stir fry or soup. They're a vining squash and will put down roots at almost every joint. And they make a decent winter squash that keeps all year. Blessings to you and your loved ones...
I had to start Kabocha squash 3rd time over a week ago (each set 18-24 plants) so I can have squash for pumpkin pies. Even though I collected the bugs and eggs morning and evening, my plants all died. I found great pleasure putting the bugs in the freezer and the eggs into hot coals so that I can hear them pop like little fire crackers. That's real justice for all the time and work. Justice for my short lived plants.
yes! It's great fun. The other thing I get satisfaction from is cutting branches of tent caterpillars off of trees and put in hot fire and watch them wiggle to death.
@@notthereyethomestead8413 Shalom and Toda. The Most High told me that I was no longer Vasana when I found out what it really means, and when I asked what name I should have, He said, "I want you to have Esther's Hebrew name."
@@notthereyethomestead8413 I kept that to myself for two weeks. I told my husband right before we were coming back to America. The Spirit called us to Thailand to serve. When I told my husband, he was happy, and as we did not know what her Hebrew name was at the time, we went to look it up. The name is the cure to my former name.
FOR YOUR DEER PROBLEMS - I have found a cheap easy solution, I hang bars of Irish spring soap around areas where I don't want deer. They were eating my beans so I tried this and it worked! When it rains it refreshes the soap and it last all season!
@@TheBigBlueHouseHomestead - Why not just plant a bunch of Swiss chard on the edge of the garden just for the deer? That way you'll have some for yourself?
This is genius!! I find the adults by watering my plant. They come right up and I can grab them and throw them in a glass jar of water. I don’t like squishing them lol, just flush them away. I’ve been cutting/tearing out the leaves where the eggs are, but I like this so much more.
Thanks for this video Christy, I have looked and looked at how to keep the squash bugs from killing the plants and this is the best video I have seen 👍
We plant extra greens around the perimeter for things like deer, and then I plant the stuff for us on the inner garden. The finger cot is a great idea!
To help deter the deer, I use moth ball bags. I hang them all around my garden. I get the flag hangers from the local dollar store to hang them. It smells bad and the deer hate it. I also use bars of the regular Irish Spring soap. I hang them in suet cages a few feet from the moth balls. Dollar stores haves the soap too. Deer don't like that smell either. My garden is in the path to a corn feeder due to these smells, the deer walk right by my garden. I also use food grade peppermint oil to spray on my vegetables to help keep bad bugs off the plants. I put 16 drops into a liter sized spray bottle and. add water. I spray my plants twice a week. For some reason bugs do not like the smell of peppermint.
I use duct tape for the eggs and hatchlings, and a small wet vac to suck up the adult squash bugs. I water my squash, especially at roots, then wait a few minutes for them to show themselves at the top of the plants and vacuum away!
Also consider that all bugs have a 'Life Cycle', if you organize your planting at the right time and in the right planting season for your area, (depending of course on where you are) you can avoid some pests altogether.
@@hollymahler8213 It's not about the area, it's about the BUG itself. Goggle, for instance, HORNWORM LIFE CYCLE and you'll get information on that bug's life cycle which you can then match up with your environment's WEATHER patterns (& the veggie varieties you grow) to determine when your most likely to have a 'infestation' of those particular bugs.
Unfortunately, in the southern half (more or less) of the US, the squash bugs can cycle through two or even three generations, so there's no working around them that way.
Love your simplicity and transparency. Thankfully, you are a beautiful women. Which means you dont have to dress and pretend like gardening isn't dirty work. I love your dress and hair style, it shows honesty and transparency of reality. Thank you for being genuine. And also for sharing practical garden tips.
Another deer 🦌 preventive is fishing line on stacks around your garden. About 2.5 ‘ tall. It spooks them because they can’t see it. You can move the fishing fence around. Or just put it up by your Swiss chard. Or resort to chicken wire over them. You can use row covers for your plants as well. Keeps out unwanted pests. For squash it helps up to when they bloom.
Hi. The best thing I’ve noticed is the fungicide and it’s organic and it gets rit of all the bugs and keeps them off! I use it every single year. That’s a good idea 💡 with the finger thingy. I wouldn’t want those eggs or bugs any where that’s why I use garden Safe brand it has neem oil In it! Marigolds around the garden keeps nasty 🤮 bugs away !!!
Grow your squash vertically. Put a steak in the ground and keep your leaves tied up six inches off the ground. Plant marigolds, sage, cilantro, dill, chives, mints, and there are others near your squash
This is serious and it does work. Dribble human urine around your garden where the deer are bothering your plants and they will not bother anything. Don't put it directly around the plants where they can leach it but around your garden. My daughter had a problem with deer wrecking her garden. An old farmer told her to do that. No more deer. They were unharmed and so was her garden.
So, against my better judgment and with a mask over my face so you can’t see my embarrassment, a virile male’s urine sprinkled around the outside edge of chicken pen, goat pen, rabbit hutch...smallish farm animals in general will keep predators at bay. Might even work for deer.
@@dianironfeather7785 exactly. Needs to be male past puberty. Like a real male. Also - all fresh urine is STERILE and highly nourishing for plants (especially nitrogen). Dilute it 10:1.
I recently saw someone comment on how they keep deer out of their garden. Place a fishing line boarder around your garden on stakes about two feet high. Deer will not jump what they can’t see and when they feel the resistance from the line they won’t proceed. I have never tried this, but it might be worth a shot.
Squash bugs hate water. If you water the plants heavily, the bugs will jump up on the leaves where you can grab them, throw them down, and squash them while they're stunned. Chasing the eggs is also necessary. Good video.
Good morning. That little goody is also called a "finger cot". Since I work in the food industry, I have to wear vinyl gloves for food prep and I use them to squash the little buggers.
A recipe my dad used on our red raspberries. Could work on other areas of garden. Hed pound tposts in around raspberry be and attach a glass jar 2/3 of the way up post. He use fencing wire wrapped around the top area where lid screws on. Wound wire around post and attach protection arounpost where jar might get pummeled against tpost during thunderstorm so jar doesn't break and you have glass all over. Mix up a concoction of white vinegar, sugar and water and fill jar 2/3 full. Bugs will be attracted to smell and climb in and get wet and once they're wet they're unable to climb up the glass jar wall and they drown. For the first couple of days you will have to clear out the bugs twice a day until the population is knocked down. After that you can do every other day. Take a strainer and tilt jar to drain the contents through strainer and pour jiuce back into jar and reuse. Make sure you take all of dead bugs and remove from your property, far away as possible. The smell will attract more bugs.
That's such great information! I was just reading, in an old gardening book, something similar. They used sponges in the bottom of the jar. You could just pinch the sponge and pull it out, taking the bugs with it. Thank you for letting me know 😀
Thanks so much I have been checking for eggs but I cut all the leaves with eggs so now I am going to do it same way with the rubber finger thingy thanks for the tips. Happy gardening season
I bought the. Today found them in the school supply section I definitely will use them I lost 3 plants with vine bores too I will check my plants daily thanks again
Soak strips of rags in ammonia and put around where deer are going. Use irish spring soap in stockings and hang around where you can. I have found tulle netting keeps the chipmunks out if I cover. I am so happy for that. Good luck. Another lady said for squash vine borers plant the white long radishes and it works. Rubber gloves might work to get eggs off too.
Thank you! The garden is a bit of a mess now. I'm getting it back in shape for the fall plantings. I don't mind squishing bugs, i just fell like i don't damage the eggs enough. Sometimes i think that the eggs, after hitting the ground, still hatch. the paper gripper seems to work better.
@@TheBigBlueHouseHomestead I haven't had any issues with bugs until this year, and it's just in one of my big Merritt Tree Collards, but I've now squished a *lot* of bugs. 😩 I'm definitely giving your method a try. ☺️
I never knew about these buggers. I haven't had to much a problem with the squash bug but I will keep an eye out for them this year. Thank you for the advice about the finger rubber things!
I used to plant out of season for squash and plant A LOT of plants. By the time the season ended I was so sick of squash, I'd have my husband pull them up. From one row we'd get at least 200 lbs, plus all we could eat right away.
how do you plant out of season? I'm not sure if i know what that means for zucchini and for butternut or crookneck squash, are you saying plant later than usual? I think i could do that with winter squash but not sure about zucchini and yellow squash
Next year I am going to try a squash bug resistant variety: Green-Striped Cushaw The Green-striped Cushaw (Cucurbita mixta) is an old heirloom and one tough vegetable. This squash has been grown by native Americans since prehistoric times and was prized by them for its ability to tolerate conditions that would send other squashes over the edge. It is drought tolerant and stands up well to insects -- including the squash vine borer -- as well as being an excellent keeper and great-tasting variety for use in pies or for snacking on seeds.
I use original irish spring soap for keep deer from my flowers, vegetable plants and fruit trees. It has worked for me for 4 years now. Tks for the squash bug issue
twice a day and I still find more - might have missed them the first time round, but I am careful - best if I can get the adult bugs and keep them from laying more eggs :) - peppermint, may try that too.
@@TheBigBlueHouseHomestead yup mint seems to do a good job, I have an abundance and use some as mulch. Also checked my neighbors volunteer behind their garage and decimated all eggs, hatchling an bugs I could find, I know they will travel to my garden from there😎
This is the first year I've found eggs. I cut off the leaf and used a bucket of dawn in water. Soaked them. Found a few babies. They drowned too. Perhaps I'll scrape them off into the bucket next time. I read they have a 10 day lifecycles so if I'm consistent every 5 days I should stay ahead of any hatchlings.
It is so satisfying to squash the eggs and plant bugs. It has been so hot & muggy in SC that I go out at midnight with a flashlight and inspect for bugs.
Marry me...lol. Seriously though, you are wonderful. "I'm gonna go lay down for a little while, then come out and squash some more bugs" - absolutely beautiful, lol
I am going to have to give that a try. Sounds like it might work better than what I have been doing. I have just been cutting out the parts of the leaves/stems that have the eggs with a utility knife. If I get an infestation, I usually pull the whole leaf and put it in a bucket about a quarter full with water. I also use gloves and throw whatever bugs I find in the water bucket. The eggs and the bugs drown. I would rather not damage my plants, if possible.
Luckily, squash plants can take the damage. I've had to cut full leaves off too. As long as you stay on top of the eggs, you won't have to deal with too many bugs.
@@TheBigBlueHouseHomestead That's the problem. I am growing 3 kinds of squash and it is almost impossible to keep up with them. I could spend all day out there trying to control them. I am growing vertically, but my crook neck squash is still all squatty, which makes it difficult to detect and reach many of the spots. My butternut squash is vining out all over the place and I can't hardly keep up with the training, much less get to all the bugs. I am using soapy water for infestations and large bugs too, now. It seems to be working pretty well.
@@wesbaumguardner8829 when I get too infested, I use diatomaceous earth. If you get the food grade, its 100% organic. It doesn't hurt the bees either. I grow a lot of squash and it really does get hard to keep up with pests. I am fighting vine borers this year. They are far worse than squash bugs. You're lucky! My butternut squash is gone. I really wanted some this year. Hopefully you can get the pests down, and just grow squash. 😀
@@TheBigBlueHouseHomestead Thanks for the advice. I have tried diatomaceous earth and still have a brand new bag full of it, but it did not seem to work for my squash bugs. The soapy water seems to work like a charm and it's dirt cheap. I just mix dishwashing liquid with water in a new spray bottle I got at the dollar store and spray them with it. They die in about 5 minutes and there is no harm to my plants or my bees and it is perfectly safe for me and my family. I do have bees all over the place all day long, so it is important to me that I do not harm them. Yes, I am very lucky. I have several butternut vines this year and I am going to have to give much of it away because I don't think we will be able to eat it all. I also have spaghetti squash almost as big as my head that aren't even mature yet. Good thing I only have one of those plants. That plant would take over the entire garden if I let it. It is the most tenacious squash I have ever seen. Needless to say, we are going to get tired of eating squash, lol.
As for the deer coming to your garden, put in clothes pieces of original Irish Spring soap!!! This works well. I have used it and they do Not come into my garden. Or near my apple trees!!!
I am 60+ years old and just learned the other day something that probably eliminates the bugs. I asked a few local farmers when I was buying eggs what they do. They said they have no problem with insects. I live a mile from them and get annihilated by insects in my garden. The farmers both rototill the soil. Tilling the soil must just beat the larvae in the ground to death. I am going to try tilling my soil next year. After conversing with the farmers I looked up tilling and squash borers. It should at least control the bugs
@inhibited44 I till the soil twice a year. I till in the early spring, and late fall. The squash vine borers aren't a problem. It's the flying bugs that hatch from eggs. I wish you the best with your garden next year. Good luck 💜
To deter the deer i use a cheese grater and a bar of zest soap and grate the soap around the perimeters of my garden as well as up middle of rows and between raised beds it has worked for me many years
An elderly man taught me to shred up men's Irish Spring Soap bars and sprinkle around garden. The smell keeps deer and critters away and when it rains it just makes things smell great haha.
I have my cucumbers and squash in raised beds surrounded by mint plants and we all love a nice cold glass of mint tea, it seems to work pretty well at disguising the scent of the squash keeps those bugs from finding them. My potatoes need egg and bug searches though daily you can never win but I do not want that much mint you know how it takes over. On the farm I used those zest etc. types of soap grated around the garden to keep the deer away another older method was having the men regularly urinate around the garden edge, women's urine does not work, in a city that would be a no no. I also plant rue around areas where mosquitos and flies bother, and swallowtail butterflies lay their eggs on rue so you get the lovely butterflies and their caterpillars which seem to do little harm to the rue or plants nearby.
Blend two large jalapeño peppers in a quart of hot water and put in spray bottle after you filter it through a coffee filter , spray your plants and they will leave
Ive been starting a garden this year and I had a squash bug infestation with my acorn and butternut squash. I just took whatever squashes were there and removed all my squashes for how bad it was 😅. Im still glad I got 20 squashes out of that last batch :)
Your doing great on the squash!! I wish I could get that much in a season!! I’ve never seen eggs on the front of my Squash leaves!! I live in Texas and I fight squash bugs with all those things the Bonners Peppermint Neem Oil take off eggs on back of leaves the whole nine years and yes I do it daily and they still hatch!! I think I’m gonna plant my squash this August I learned that they only live till July they only have a very short window of life..We still have a fall the Squash can grow in because fact is All Squash is winter..I think you have to have a lot more plants than the squash bugs can eat to get a harvest like yours HAHA 😂 Ive just about given up on growing it!! Thanks for the advice my finger kill them all I smush them against the leaves.. I had kill the parents at night time with flash light What else can I do 🤣🤣🤣
I saw your title and clicked on it because I just lost five of my squash plants and will lose more. I didn't realize it was so simple to look and squash. I just subscribed because I just planted more zucchini plants. Now I can save them. Thank you, thank you. Take care.
Maybe plant a big patch of Swiss chard somewhere else for the deer? This is my first time having a garden as an adult and I'm living all of the information and tips in getting from so many amazing homesteaders and gardeners. Thank you! 😁
I would put squash bugs and eggs into a jar of neem oil. The smell eventually turned me off to eating pears because some pears began to taste like the smell of dead squash bugs.
I've crushed the eggs and adults. I've picked up the eggs with tape. I've used neem oil. I've used BT and insecticide soap. All to little avail. This year I put a ring around the plants with food grade diatomaceous earth (DE) and dusted the leaves with DE. I have not seen eggs, adults, juveniles, this year and it is mid July. I like the act of spreading the DE. I also have a large bag of red DE not food grade. I don't think that would be an issue since the red will certainly not be ingested.
For deer: chicken wire, not netting. For bugs on squash, try spraying on kaolin spray. It's the only thing that allowed me to get squash this year. The first time ever! You have to respray after rain every time. Works for stink bugs, too.
I am going to try growing my squash in big containers on my cement patio with at fabric over them to keep the bugs away. I will plant a second shift for planting in normal soil in August when the adults should have moved on. I am also trying to have lots of those deterrent plants as well
I’m going to use tulle net (the fine kind) to cover my plants, it’s pretty cheap and wide! The west gets strong winds from time to time so I’m hoping it will help the plants not get beat up so bad
Expecting the last frost mid May so not putting anything outside yet. My squash plants are blooming on the shelf unit in the house, mostly male flowers yet
@@patriciafrancis5663 I use the large laundry bags from Dollar Tree, it has a draw string so I can just draw it as tight as I can and I'll use a stalk support to hold it up, it can get water and air, loving this newly found cheap tool!
I always bring a stick lighter and just torch them where they sit... The small burn spot doesn't hurt the plant but quickly disposes of the eggs and babies. I also found a fungus that kills any bug with a shell but have not yet tested it on squash bugs.. It's called Botanigard es and is not cheap but may be considered organic. Squash bugs suck.
Check into companion planting with flowers and herbs that deter either wildlife and/or pests. Some flowers used are also edible to boot! So check out that also.😁
I found a new herb to use this year. Tansy. It's supposed to deter pests even better than marigolds. I love companion planting. I'm growing a lot more plants to use for it, this year.
@@TheBigBlueHouseHomestead Keep it away from horses, cattle, cats and dogs it is toxic to them. Marigolds on the other hand only irritate dogs, deter pests, and have edible flowers that I have read so far.
I use 7 dust now after visiting various farms I learned the dust of used properly over night at the base and rinsed away in the morning is not anywhere near as bad as I thought. The squash bugs in our area come in hot and very heavy I don’t have problems with anything else nothing but these are the only possible way to ensure they are gone
Your rooster (ChiChi) is chiming in....😂😂. I’m enjoying your channel. Best of luck getting rid of those bugs. Here in South Georgia, I have plenty of pests to deal with.
