My entire garden sucked this year except for the fine collards I grew. The pumpkins that volunteer out of the compost heap every year looked great until about mid-August when they ripened too early and the plants died. As they died I found these bugs all over them and many of them were rotted. I salvaged what I could but the bugs came back. Anyone know what they are and how to control them?

Thanks

 

squash bugs, they drink the sap from the plants and than inject them with a poison that kills the plant or at least severely stunts it. the only way I have found to control them is with diazanon (sp) you can also pick them off and drop them in a can of gas but that has to be done every day. even spraying you have to do it every few days to eradicate the entire cycle.

 

Thanks for the information. Never heard of them but they were bad. Goes right along with the late blight that wiped out the tomatoes and the way excessive rain that stunted the corn and the birds and rodents that ate what the rain didn't ruin.

 

Ahhhhhhh, gardening, what a great stress reliever.

 

Yeah. Between the heavy early rainy season, and the tomato blight....I think the Almighty was conspiring to throw the 'root' at my peace and harmony this gardening season.

My tomatos sucked, big time. I brought very little to work for others to enjoy. Last year I was bringing in a couple of grocery bagfuls every few days. Had enough to can also. This year, I brought in a couple of bags....and barely had enough to satisfy my own needs.

Bugs were killing the eggplants....But a couple of doses of 'Sevin' cured that. Peppers kicked ***.

 

I had similar looking bugs like that on my zucchini, but they were tannish in color. The plants seemed to die over night. I was amazed. Then they ran over to my one little ole watermelon and I beat them off before they killed it too (I don't use poisons). I'd never seen these bugs before. My tomatoes were very small this year and not very plentiful either. I didn't get to take many to my local Sheriff's, and neighbors, this year either. I did have a pretty good peach and grape yield from one tree and one vine though, thanks to nets, flashing CD's hung on branches, toy snakes, and a bee bee gun. I tried corn for the first time and got a few ears from that adventure, and I sure do have a better appreciation for farmers now because of it.

 

I hear ya! The good Lord decided we needed a good size hailstorm back in the early part of summer and it really did our garden in! It never recovered after that 20 minute beating with quarter size ice pellets!

 

Peaches !?!?!

Oh boy, I had a peach tree that I cut down....

No matter HOW many neighbors came over and picked it clean,
they still made too much of a mess for us !

And STINK - Whew - rotten peaches and the pits do a number coming out of the lawn mower

 

Squish one between your fingers and you will find out what I call them.

 

They are stink bugs. Thats what they are called around me. They get into everything. Including our houses. Big time pest.

I had a vine boring bug go after my cantaloupe and cucumber vines. Got a couple pumkin vines as well. Other than that, my garden did decent this year.

 

acephate or bifen. nukes em and safe as well.

 

where do you get that stuff and what is it? I am tired of diazanon !

 

What's eating your pumpkins? I think it's Peter Peter.

 

there it is, I was waiting for ole peter peter

 

Lesco / john deere landscapes. Acephate is the same thing as orthene. Bifen is under several trade names. Just look for it in the label.