In today’s 2 minute garden tip, I share an easy tip that eliminates the dreaded squash bug from your garden! Squash bugs are one of the worst garden pests, and controlling squash bugs is important to have a good zucchini, squash, melon, pumpkin or gourd harvest. This method of squash bug control requires no sprays, no insecticides and no chemicals, and it only takes a few minutes!
Most squash bugs in your garden hatch from eggs laid on the plants themselves. This video will show you how to easily manage the adult population and remove eggs so more squash bugs don’t invade your garden. This takes mere moments to accomplish, and the best part is it’s completely free. You won’t have to buy any insect control products for this technique to work!
If you have any questions about how to control squash bugs in your garden, need help growing a vegetable garden or growing fruit trees, want tips for gardening for beginners, want to know about the things I grow in my garden, are looking for more gardening tips and tricks and “garden hacks” like this, have questions about vegetable gardening and organic gardening in general, or want to share some DIY and “how to” garden tips and gardening hacks of your own, please ask in the Comments below!
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©2 Minute Garden Tips
#gardening #garden #gardeningtips #squash #insectcontrol
48 Comments
If you found this video helpful, please "Like" and share to help increase its reach! Thanks for watching 😊
Got any suggestions on vine borers?
Dawn dish soap kills them as well
The squash bugs have been relatively easy for me to deal with (knocking adults into soapy water and removing eggs—Great idea on the vac!)… but those vine borers have been my gardening nemesis! I get out there with a fly swatter, use dust, try to bury the stems, and inject my poor plants with BT. I also try to plant my more vulnerable varieties at least a month later than the tougher ones like Black Futsu.
I use dawn dish soap + shiracha sauce with water in a sprayer.
would you like to get some nice outdoor lights?
So do you no longer recommend using the BT
I agree with the whole watering the plants to force them to skimper up to higher ground. I use pyrethrin. I only had one squash bug and no eggs.
cover plants until they bloom then they are strong enough to handle the squash bugs. Then toss all the plants as soon as they start to perish
the most unusefull video i ever watched/ this gentleman has a lot of free time to check on every leaf
I just smash thr eggs n bugs whenever i find them. Chrck daily
The squash bugs in my garden never attack my squash plants but they attack my pepper plants. So my pepper plants act as a trap plant for squash bugs. Then I spray them with soapy water. They did in seconds.
I use pesticides until they blossom, then I do what you just did. Have to use BT for those nasty vine borers too
Great tips! So clever & easy to do! Thank you so much for sharing. We have a terrible time with potato beetles, too; I think both of these tips would help us with those pests, too! Thanks again. Many blessings!
I had the same idea last year until I figured out that dr bronners was extremely effective at killing them and for you it’s like getting a shower in the garden. I forget the exact ratio but it’s a couple of tbsp of dr bronners to a gallon of water.
I use the watering method and smash those evil bugs with my fingers! Doesnt bother me a bit!😂
Great tip… Thanks 😊
… why not just squash the squash bug seeds … ?
Thank you
2 types of fertilizer stinks bad. Fish emulsion and dr. Earth's golden bloom. Spray some around plants. Stink hates stink. Helps plants too. Don't track it in the house. Momma spank ya.
Clever. Never thought of using a vacuum.
Hand vac is a great tip.
I spray the area with water to get the adults moving, then hit them with a soapy spray, which kills them.
I wish there was a less labor-intensive way to deal with the eggs. When you have 300 leaves to check, that’s a lot of bending over.
Great minds think the same. I figured out the hand vacuum last year. Works so well on the adults and babies when I missed the eggs.😊
What about spraying with Neem oil, dish soap, and water every week to help? Also, planting nasturtiums and marigolds all around the plants? Hubbard squash are a trap crop as well. None of which is bug proof though.
Squash bugs look like stink bugs.
May I add another tip?
I keep a quart sized spray bottle in my garden, loaded with water and a couple teaspoons of insecticidal soap.
One blast on a squash bug and they die pretty quickly from the smothering action of the soapy water on their breathing spiracles.
Don’t think that burning duct tape such a good idea.
great advice! i like d tape one & burn em squash bugs! …
Good tips except don't ever throw them in the garbage. They will happily hatch there, fly out and attack you and your garden when you open the lid. Burn, squish and drown in soapy water. Make sure there was is no chance for resurrection. I speak from experience!
They actually prefer tomatoes over squash. I had an infestation of hundreds of them last year, lost all of my tomatoes.
This year when the squash and stink bugs come, I have a new plan. I will capture them with a small vacuum, they sell them on amazon. Then I will put them in a water bottle with holes in the side and hang the bottles in the garden. Stink bugs put off various pheromones. One they put off when stressed. I am hoping putting them in bottles will make them release stress hormones. Those hormones tell others to stay away it is dangerous here.🥸🤓
You can spray them with a heavy, heavy, heavy mixture of Ajax lemon soap and water. I mix like 10 tbs or more of soap in a liter of water. This kills about 80% of the bugs you spray. The lemonene in the lemon ajax is a neurotoxin to insects. Be careful to not get much on the plant leaves as it will kill them. Do it in the evening or night to prevent most leaves from dying.
I like cooking the eggs on the leaves with a torch lighter. They pop like popcorn 🤣🤣🤣🤣
I keep scissors with me by all my squash plants and after watering the base I cut the huge in half. So so easy and then I cut the eggs off. It doesn’t seem to harm the plant itself. So quick and easy. I throw the eggs into a bucket of water
Not huge, bugs
Good tips. Thank you for sharing
Dude the timing of this video could not be better as I'm just starting to see squash bugs and was wondering if there were any alternatives to spraying constantly with neem oil (which made them run but didn't seem to really stop them last year). The duct tape vs. the eggs is BRILLIANT and I am so doing that this year!
Great tips!
I just love these 2 min. videos. Great info, especially the hand vac.
I bought that duster machine u suggested…why not use that too…u never show using it..
I hook a couple long extension cords together and drag my shop vac out to the garden. Hearing these things bouncing off the sides of the hose down to their demise is quite satisfying.
Going to buy a handvac asap!
Thanks for sharing!
Long-time organic gardener here & just discovered this channel today. Wow, this guy should have at least a million subscribers‼️Only quick (not 20-30 min), to-the-point action & instructions❗️
Borers were an issue early for me. I have many many toads in my garden so i dont think these guys stand a chance
BT injection brother… works very well.. I used to chase them damn bugs every day until I found this BT injection method.. now imma doctor the mthrfkrs to death .. works on many types of caterpillar type bugs. Inject! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAW7P4U8cz8
oh man, i turn into an inhumane menace when i catch the adults. i will slice them in half on site with my clippers.
what kind of foolishness is this??