Symptoms of overwater and stink bugs

srb · June 4, 2006

I have a very large Husky Red Cherry....that has just suffered from four days in a row of heavy rain (5-6"). It's in a raised bed, but about half the plant has yellowing leaves. It had some before, but mostly old foiliage, and since it didn't look like any pictures on the TAMU website of a fungal disease, I just assumed old leaves. Does that much rain cause more yellow leaves, or have I hit the unfortunate fungi jackpot? There are no spots...no definite wilting signs....just yellow...and then brown after a day or two. I should mention that some plants a few feet away in pots seem fine, and so does the basil in the same raised bed. And do I remove the yellowing leaves? Is this the beginning of the end? I should note that I'm in Zone 9b and it's 90+ degrees today and for all of next week....

And for problem number two...with the rain came hordes of stink bugs. I'm in no way exaggerating. I've killed the few I can catch...but I don't use chemicals that I can't eat right away and prefer to stay organic. What else can I do besides picking them?

Suze · June 4, 2006

Too much water will cause leaves to yellow, you can remove them or not, your choice (I like to remove dying/dead foliage myself).

Stink and leaf footed bugs are difficult to deal with organically. Insecticidal soap will kill the nymphs, but not the adults. Otherwise, you're pretty much limited to picking the adults off and/or knocking them into soapy water.

I grow huge stands of millet in some of my ornamental beds, and they seem to really go for that and leave my tomatoes completely alone.

srb · June 4, 2006

Well, a cup of soapy water it is, then......next year I'm buying my kids a bug vaccum and teaching them to identify stink bugs.....I got revenge on a few this evening. They're a bit slower in the dark....bwahaha.....

Thanks so much. The poor plant looks pretty ragged, but I'd have expected that in a few weeks anyway here in Texas. I'll do the best I can until it poops out.

peppereater · June 5, 2006

I found a couple of stinkbugs last week, and ran for my insecticidal soap. It killed them within a few minutes, and they were adults. Are some species harder to kill than others?
I would think Neem would kill them, too, and I believe you can apply it up to the day of harvest...I'd have to check the label, though, to be sure about that.

June 4, 2006	#1
srb Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2006 Location: Zone 9 Posts: 3	Symptoms of overwater and stink bugs I have a very large Husky Red Cherry....that has just suffered from four days in a row of heavy rain (5-6"). It's in a raised bed, but about half the plant has yellowing leaves. It had some before, but mostly old foiliage, and since it didn't look like any pictures on the TAMU website of a fungal disease, I just assumed old leaves. Does that much rain cause more yellow leaves, or have I hit the unfortunate fungi jackpot? There are no spots...no definite wilting signs....just yellow...and then brown after a day or two. I should mention that some plants a few feet away in pots seem fine, and so does the basil in the same raised bed. And do I remove the yellowing leaves? Is this the beginning of the end? I should note that I'm in Zone 9b and it's 90+ degrees today and for all of next week.... And for problem number two...with the rain came hordes of stink bugs. I'm in no way exaggerating. I've killed the few I can catch...but I don't use chemicals that I can't eat right away and prefer to stay organic. What else can I do besides picking them?

June 5, 2006	#4
peppereater Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Oklahoma Posts: 99	I found a couple of stinkbugs last week, and ran for my insecticidal soap. It killed them within a few minutes, and they were adults. Are some species harder to kill than others? I would think Neem would kill them, too, and I believe you can apply it up to the day of harvest...I'd have to check the label, though, to be sure about that. __________________ Dave

June 4, 2006	#2
Suze Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Texas Posts: 3,027	Too much water will cause leaves to yellow, you can remove them or not, your choice (I like to remove dying/dead foliage myself). Stink and leaf footed bugs are difficult to deal with organically. Insecticidal soap will kill the nymphs, but not the adults. Otherwise, you're pretty much limited to picking the adults off and/or knocking them into soapy water. I grow huge stands of millet in some of my ornamental beds, and they seem to really go for that and leave my tomatoes completely alone.