Thread: Question to all you veggie gardeners....

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What's the best way to prevent squash borers???

We were having such a great zucchini year and all of the sudden the plants quickly started dying off. I cut off one of the leaf stems and found the little buggers eating it away. One plant was too far goneand we had to rip the whole thing out , but we did some serious cutting of the 2nd and sprayed it with bug killer (not my first choice, but we were desparate) and the plant does seem to be making improvements. I know these guys also attack pumpkins and such so any advice would be great!! I would like to try to prevent losing my zucchini's next year.

I ALSO have this problem and the best thing i can tell you is to use a garden netting i cant remember the name off the top of my head but it lets light in water in and when those moths go to lay eggs at the base of the vine they cant enter so the netting is the best bet.

derail! :P Just saying hello to one my favorite people..NADA but Sunflowers growing in the fla heat right now!

hope you are well Sweets!

I have no advice but was just excited to see an Lhallow thread!

Since the insect passes the winter in the ground, squash should not follow squash. Land should be disked in the fall to expose the cocoons and then plowed deeply the following spring. Vines should always be destroyed following harvest to prevent late caterpillars from completing their development.

The only organic insecticide that kills the larvae before they do the damage is BT, short for Bacillus thuringiensis. This product is more commonly sold under the brand names Dipel or MVP. It is a dust that is non-toxic to humans and beneficials but highly effective against caterpillars and hornworms. You can purchase this product through on-line catalogs or locally at many garden centers.

Depending on how far it has traveled within the stem, it is not always easy to locate them. Unfortunately, once the borer does its damage, there is little chance for the plant to survive.

There are a couple of preventive measures you can take in the future. The first is to cover the plants with reemay while they are just seedlings. Reemay is a lightweight, spun-woven fabric that lets in air, water, and sunshine, but keeps out insects and pests. It is commonly sold at garden centers as floating row covers. Just be sure to remove the covering once the plant begins to flower to enable access by bees for pollination.

The second option is to wrap your stem with aluminum foil. Many gardeners do this routinely with much success. I would personally recommend covering the plants when young, and then wrapping the stem once the plant begins blooming.

Hope that helps

BTW: Here is a pic of the pest for those who don't know what they look like:

Thanks for the tips!! I had heard of the reemay a couple of weeks ago and will definately give it a try next year. Aluminum foil is a new one, I did hear a pantyhose wrap would essentially do the same thing, but aluminum foil sounds easier. I did enjoy taking those little worms and feeding them to the fish in the pond. They killed my plant, so I liked watching them die....the fish loved them!

Moonpie and Brandy - i love you girls!! My sunflowers are about as tall as me (6ft.) right now and I'm guessing they will be in bloom in the next couple of weeks.....if the heat and the rain keep up.

Good luck next year ... and my Sunflowers just began to open a few days ago!

Thanks! I can't imagine going a year without zucchini bread from home grown zucchini!!

I asked the very nice lady at this local greenhouse and she said it's all climate. So really it's up to mother nautre. She said netting may work. I love people that grow veggies. Cause I love Veggie Tales and this just makes me happy.

sevindust--lighty powder the vine. avoid getting the powder on the veggies or on the flowers.