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What's Killing My Zucchini & Squash???

8/9/2016

10 Comments

 
I have a yearly battle with a specific pest (well more than one but for this post we will chat about my nemesis).  This thing has tortured me since I quit using any form of synthetic pest control about 12 years ago. (back when I became more educated about what I was doing to my food by using Sevin dust and the like).  I’m here to say, there are some days I miss that perfect produce. My neighbor has perfect zucchini in abundance, when I asked him how he gets so much and why my pests don’t plague him (I was waiting for a sage answer that I could really dig my teeth into) he said, I just sprinkle Sevin on the plants…UGGGHHH!

Okay, so what is the pest?  It took me a few years to identify, I thought it was more an environmental problem I was dealing with when one day my Zucchini would be bountifully producing and vigorously growing and then seemingly overnight it would yellow, droop and fall over dead.  Have you ever had that happen? It is quite disheartening because I for one, LOVE my zucchini!  After a few years of this happening (I think I must be slow to catch on) I realized it was not some kind of soil borne problem causing the plants to die but rather, a nasty little creature that liked Zucchini and Yellow squash (as well as all gourd plants, pumpkins and squash) even more than I did.  THE SQUASH VINE BORER.  This is a nasty pest that is the larvae of a flying insect.  Some say that you can get rid of the problem by picking off the flying creature at daylight or dusk, I have never had much luck with this.

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If you actually see this bug on your plants beware, she is probably laying her eggs!  Kill her as soon as you can, I am not lucky enough to ever see her in action, I just get the full on after effects of her ugly little offspring.

Photo Credit Farmers Almanac
​I hate this nasty little creature.  I always find him a bit too late.The tell tale signs are when you look at the base of your zucchini or squash plant and it has a yellow sawdusty kind of look to it.  Those little granules are actually worm castings…eww, not the good kind.  This little worm burrows up inside the base of your plant and hollows it out eating until it is full and very fat.  I have on countless occasions slit the stem of a plant with an exacto knife in an effort to remove said nasty worm and decimate him, sometimes the plants live, sometimes they don’t but it is always a gratifying experience to squish that little bugger.
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See that nasty worm there...he's so gross!
​Photo Credit Farmers Almanac
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This year is no different, I only got to enjoy about 2-3 large Zucchini before the nasty worms invaded, I split the stem and killed them but the plants are still struggling.  I usually just use some succession planting so I already have my new up and coming Zucchini plants growing but it is still a battle.  Many people will tell you to use a "floating row cover" however what you may not know is that this method is pretty effective.  The problem is that you cannot use the floating row cover when your plant is flowering or the bees cannot pollinate your plant, that is a whole 'nother problem!
So what do the eggs look like and where can you find them?  Ideally I should have been in the garden daily checking the undersides of the leaves, this is where you will find colonies of the little worm eggs.  I just rip off the small sections of the leaves where I find the eggs, if you have lots of Squash and Zucchini plants you have A LOT of work on your hands.  The sad part is that the little eggs are kinda pretty and look like little gems on the underside of the leaves, but oh the damage they do!
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So if you see any of these telltale signs and you, like me are an organically minded gardener, better get busy, that Squash Vine Borer is NOT your friend!  

If you have any tried and true methods that have helped you, please do share.  I have not had luck with Diatomaceous earth, crop rotation, or even soap shields but if there is something else out there, please do let me know!
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10 Comments
Robert link
8/9/2016 02:14:38 pm

Hey Dawn,

I am assuming you had not luck with the solutions that the were proposed in the article you marked (sawdust, charcoal and/or planting early).

Reply
incidentalfarmgirl link
8/9/2016 03:40:56 pm

Robert,
I have tried all of that except the charcoal, I may try that next year, its a bit too late this go round. Thanks for reading!

Reply
Candi link
8/9/2016 08:28:10 pm

squash bugs are a nightmare. I fight them every year. I remove the eggs & spray any live bugs with dawn dish soap & water. It kills them. The problem is the ones you don't see and kill will keep laying eggs. It's a constant battle. If I don't go out and spray & remove eggs a couple of times a week the squash bugs will quickly take over the garden. They are a pain.

Reply
incidentalfarmgirl link
8/15/2016 06:57:22 pm

AGREED!!! I read on someone else's post that they use duct tape to remove the eggs, I loved that idea and I think I may try that rather than tearing pieces of the leaves off.

Reply
Alicia Owen
8/17/2016 11:01:22 pm

We've not had issues with these yet, but I will definitely keep a look out for them now! I have put so much work, love, and sweat into my beloved squash patch that I re-started in early July that I would hate for anything else to go wrong!
Currently, it has rained so much here that we're dealing with the flowers not falling off of the pollinated fruits and they're getting yucky and turning our squash babies all yucky. :(

Reply
incidentalfarmgirl link
8/22/2016 05:52:52 am

Alicia,
Just keep your eyes peeled, the best defense of an organic gardener is to do visual inspections at least every other day. These guys are the bain of my gardening existence!!!

Best of luck to you!

Reply
Tiffany link
8/23/2016 02:46:24 pm

I was hit hard be these little suckers this year. I am trying Diatomaceous earth next year for sure!

Reply
incidentalfarmgirl link
8/23/2016 08:56:29 pm

Tiffany, thanks for stopping by and commenting. These little suckers are so bad that they almost make a person want to give up on squash and zucchini but the homemade goodies that come from those veggies make me keep trying. I will say I have not had good luck with Diatomaceous earth but recently someone suggested just using duct tape to remove all the eggs and then spraying the plant with a soap shield weekly, here's to next year!

Reply
charles porcheron
7/23/2017 04:41:46 pm

I bury a pan soil level with a 2-3 inches of water. The bugs run around and fall in and drown. I pick them out for the chickens. I catch hundreds of squash bugs and crickets.

Reply
Pro care link
10/11/2020 07:22:11 am

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    Wife to a wonderful husband, Daughter of the King, Mother of 6 (one with an xtra chromosome), and an incidental farm girl.

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