My squash bug solution

Mark Baker

Squash bugs are popping up on my Zucchini and Butternut Squash. I read that spraying them with a solution of dish soap in water kills them, but it didn't work for me. I also read that you can use sticky tape to remove the eggs from the underside of leaves, but I couldn't get it to work without tearing a hole in the leaf. My solution is: Step 1. Use a hand held, battery powered vacuum, like the Ryobi P7131 to suck up all of the bugs you can find. It has a crevice tool to get in small spaces between the stems. Dump the bugs in a bucket of soapy water. Step 2: Brush the eggs on the underside of leaves with Tangle-Trap sticky coating, which is meant for coating traps for apple maggot flies. The Tangle-Trap keeps most eggs from hatching, and it traps the bugs from any eggs that do hatch. You have to do this several days in a row, and then keep checking daily to keep them under control, but it works.

kbmbillups1

I make a cup of soapy water with lots of bubbles in an old cup from a convenient store. Then, flick the squash bugs or whatever bug in the soap bubbles. It can't get out and ends up at the bottom of the cup.

Hassena

Great solutions!

We ended up using this. We grow seed crops and the bean beetles were destroying our money crop. I couldn't have it. It's made from soil bacteria.

https://www.amazon.com/BONIDE-PRODUCTS-250-Ready-Captain/dp/B001VJ4FYQ/ref%3Dsr_1_3?gclid=EAIaIQobChMI39L2wqv2-AIVZfLjBx0ffgy_EAAYASAAEgK7dPD_BwE&hvadid=581564206528&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9010292&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=10135518830769572626&hvtargid=kwd-383192750287&hydadcr=22317_9737601&keywords=captain+jacks+dead+bug+brew&qid=1657731626&s=lawn-garden&sr=1-3

I'll try the soapy water and vacuum too.