Do You Have Any Tips for Getting Rid of Squash Bugs?

Reader Contribution by Harvey Ussery

Do you have any tips for getting rid of squash bugs? 

I never use broad-spectrum insecticides in my garden — even if it means losing a crop — so the squash bug has been my biggest obstacle with squash crops. Its feeding spreads wilt diseases, which can kill the vines overnight; its reproductive prowess is awesome; and it is tough: Even when I was still using “organically approved” insecticides, such as of rotenone, Anasa tristis simply shrugged off my desperate applications. 

Counter strategies that (just barely) worked for me: row covers to get the plants well started before the assault; succession plantings of summer squash (to replace earlier ones that succumbed after fruiting awhile); and growing winter squashes, which are (somewhat) more resistant. What a joy it was to discover a 100 percent organic, 100 percent effective control: Guinea power! 

Unlike chickens, whose nonstop scratching would destroy the planting, guineas decimate the squash bugs only, not the plants. 

Essential in the setup is ElectroNet (electric net fencing) around the planting, to confine the guineas to their work (clipping wings helps as well) and protect against predators. Also inside the net is a mobile shelter, of the sort I use to pasture my chicken flock — a secure place to roost at night, and a retreat from rain or sun. (To read more about how I manage pastured chickens, see Incredible Homestead Chickens.) 

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