Looks like a bad year for stink bugs.

[b54red]

I have been seeing increasing numbers of stink bugs of all kinds for about a month now. I decided not to wait any longer because they were starting to sting my tomatoes and bell peppers. I used the spray that worked so well last year to rid myself of these horrible little creatures and I am hoping it will work as well this season.

I mix between a cup and a cup and a half of food grade DE in a gallon jug filled 2/3 full with water. I then shake it vigorously for a few minutes or until my arms get tired. I then pour it through a very fine stainless steal strainer into my backpack sprayer. I then add a very heavy dose of Permethrin along with 4 tablespoons of Dawn dishwashing liquid. I then fill to the 2 gallon or slightly more mark on my sprayer and shake it a bit. I then spray all my plants with this mix along with the mulch underneath making sure to get the bottoms of the leaves. I did this about 5 days ago and haven't seen a single stink bug since.

Last year I had to use this mix twice over the entire season to keep the stinkbugs, leaf footed bugs, whiteflies and aphids under control. I'm afraid I may have to use it more often this year since the influx of stinkbugs came much sooner and in much greater numbers this year. When I was picking a few bell peppers last week every one I picked had at least 4 small stinkbugs on them so I knew I had to act before they got larger and really did some damage. I also was finding them all over my tomatoes.

This mix is very deadly because it keeps on working due to the fine layer of DE that gets on everything. Until it gets washed off by a heavy rain it is very effective at taking out the juveniles of all the insects both good and bad. I waited longer than I should because I like to wait til my beneficial insects have moved on which they did about two weeks ago when the temps hit over 100 for a couple of days. I don't know where they go but it must just be too hot in the garden for them to thrive even though there seemed to be plenty of food for them. My garden was wrapped up in ladybugs from March thru May but I haven't seen a one since the end of May so with the stinkbug invasion I thought it was time to bring out the big guns and see if I could get them under control before they damaged too much of my fruit. I hope it works as well as last year or hopefully even better.

Bill

[Cole_Robbie]

Thanks for the recipe. I have them every year. The best I can do is trellis and prune well. The higher-up tomatoes don't get bitten, but any sprawling vines in grass get eaten to the point of being non-marketable.

They ate up the first Maglia Rosa I picked. It's a bush of a plant, and it's hard to see the bug activity through the dense foliage.

[Starlight]

Thanks for the recipe Bill. I'll keep it in mind for later in the season if I need it. So far I been lucky only saw one and some new kind of wasp that has come around took care of it.

Have no idea what this new wasp is. It's body is orange with black rings and deep black wings. It been catching mainly bigger prey like the pest that sort of looks like a grasshopper but not. It finds it's prey, kills it then comes around my work area and digs holes in the ground and then buries the kill, covers it completely up and flies off looking for more. I don't know if it saving this for food for later or if it is disposing the pests for me.

Did you grow cukes, squash or eggplant this year? I started real later, just a few weeks ago some cukes and think that is the reason I don't have the stink bugs this year. They only seem to me to come around when those crops are growing.

[Tracydr]

I bought Surround to try this year. Most of mine were ruined by stink bugs last year.
So far,not seeing many,just a few on the asparagus. But,I don't have many fruits yet so time will tell. I'll start spraying the surround as I start getting more fruits.
I also planted sunflowers and amaranth as trap crops,although the asparagus seems to be the best trap so far.

[Tracydr]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

Thanks for the recipe. I have them every year. The best I can do is trellis and prune well. The higher-up tomatoes don't get bitten, but any sprawling vines in grass get eaten to the point of being non-marketable.

They ate up the first Maglia Rosa I picked. It's a bush of a plant, and it's hard to see the bug activity through the dense foliage.

Interesting-the green stink bugs and leaf footed bugs that I get seem to go for the top of the plant first.
I do have a ton of dragon flies which seem to eat anything. Recently,my gunieas and Peacoks discovered the garden and they seem to be doing a good job hunting bugs,especially horn worms and grasshoppers.

[BigVanVader]

I have had them bad as well. I have been using straight Dawn soap spray. It kills them in seconds. I water the squash with the hose and all the bugs come to the tops and I blast em. I spray neem as well but tbh I have no idea if it helps as I still have plenty of bugs eating my stuff.

[Cole_Robbie]

I must have the invisible kind. I have not seen any stink bugs...just the damage they leave.

[b54red]

Originally Posted by BigVanVader

I have had them bad as well. I have been using straight Dawn soap spray. It kills them in seconds. I water the squash with the hose and all the bugs come to the tops and I blast em. I spray neem as well but tbh I have no idea if it helps as I still have plenty of bugs eating my stuff.

I tried the Dawn for a while but they kept coming back in ever greater numbers until I used the mix I mentioned above. I also found that the repeated use of Dawn strong enough to kill stinkbugs had a negative impact on my foliage health. Now I don't need to use it very often unless we get a lot of hard rains washing the DE residue off.

Bill

[b54red]

Originally Posted by Cole_Robbie

I must have the invisible kind. I have not seen any stink bugs...just the damage they leave.

Usually if you see a few then you have a big problem and if you see a lot then you better act quick or they will ruin your tomatoes and peppers. It is amazing how well hidden they are most of the time.

Bill

[b54red]

We have had several hard showers and most of the DE has been washed off my tomatoes and peppers. I only used the mix on the very lowest parts of my plants but now I am seeing a lot of spider mites hitting higher up and now with the DE gone the stink bugs are back on my bell peppers and leaving those nasty spots. I guess I'll have to try again but afternoon showers are the rule right now and so I won't get the long term benefit that spraying later in the dryer months give me. If it doesn't rain today I will apply it again late this afternoon. The stinkbugs haven't come back in large numbers yet but the spider mites are really messing up some of my plants.

Bill

[Starlight]

Pass some rain up this way Bill. I have had less than an inch in the past two months. Hear the thunder, maybe get a little breeze and then zip, nada, nothing. It moves on to somebody else.

I'm surprised you are getting the spider mites. I thought they didn't care for moisture?

[b54red]

Originally Posted by Starlight

Pass some rain up this way Bill. I have had less than an inch in the past two months. Hear the thunder, maybe get a little breeze and then zip, nada, nothing. It moves on to somebody else.

I'm surprised you are getting the spider mites. I thought they didn't care for moisture?

The rains we have been getting are very hard and last only a few minutes or less so we don't get much benefit but it is hard enough to wash off the sprays. I had to water yesterday because most of the showers we have had ended up being no more than 2/10ths of an inch but to hear them you would have thought we got at least half an inch or more.

We have had a lot of very very hot days so far this year and the spider mites have attacked much earlier than usual especially since the plants are so healthy. Or rather were. I got out and sprayed 5 gallons of my mix this morning early and at daylight it was nearly 80 so I think we may have another very hot day. This past June has been one of the hottest that we have had in my 40 years of gardening. We need some good heavy rains that last all day to break the heat cycle for a spell.

Bill

[MrSalvage]

Originally Posted by b54red

I have been seeing increasing numbers of stink bugs of all kinds for about a month now. I decided not to wait any longer because they were starting to sting my tomatoes and bell peppers. I used the spray that worked so well last year to rid myself of these horrible little creatures and I am hoping it will work as well this season.

I mix between a cup and a cup and a half of food grade DE in a gallon jug filled 2/3 full with water. I then shake it vigorously for a few minutes or until my arms get tired. I then pour it through a very fine stainless steal strainer into my backpack sprayer. I then add a very heavy dose of Permethrin along with 4 tablespoons of Dawn dishwashing liquid. I then fill to the 2 gallon or slightly more mark on my sprayer and shake it a bit. I then spray all my plants with this mix along with the mulch underneath making sure to get the bottoms of the leaves. I did this about 5 days ago and haven't seen a single stink bug since.

Last year I had to use this mix twice over the entire season to keep the stinkbugs, leaf footed bugs, whiteflies and aphids under control. I'm afraid I may have to use it more often this year since the influx of stinkbugs came much sooner and in much greater numbers this year. When I was picking a few bell peppers last week every one I picked had at least 4 small stinkbugs on them so I knew I had to act before they got larger and really did some damage. I also was finding them all over my tomatoes.

This mix is very deadly because it keeps on working due to the fine layer of DE that gets on everything. Until it gets washed off by a heavy rain it is very effective at taking out the juveniles of all the insects both good and bad. I waited longer than I should because I like to wait til my beneficial insects have moved on which they did about two weeks ago when the temps hit over 100 for a couple of days. I don't know where they go but it must just be too hot in the garden for them to thrive even though there seemed to be plenty of food for them. My garden was wrapped up in ladybugs from March thru May but I haven't seen a one since the end of May so with the stinkbug invasion I thought it was time to bring out the big guns and see if I could get them under control before they damaged too much of my fruit. I hope it works as well as last year or hopefully even better.

Bill

Bill do you spray the tomato's, blossoms and the trusses? Also when spraying other plants like squash and peppers are you spraying the blossoms as well?

I am asking this question for this nuclear option above.

Plus I would like to know about the bleach spray as well as daconil and copper. I don't think you have covered the actually spray process till today. In which your not doing the tops of the tomato plant it's self.

Can't you clarify just a bit?

Thanks
Bill

[b54red]

I definitely don't spray the squash blossoms since bees love them. When spraying tomatoes and peppers for stinkbugs, spider mites, leaf footed bugs, aphids or whiteflies I pretty much try to get full coverage with the spray. I try to spray in the evening or if it is too hot very early right at sunrise before the bees start making an appearance in the garden. I have been using this spray or a variation of it for a few years and my bee population has actually gotten much larger the last few years but I do take great care not to spray when they are active. I don't concentrate my spray on blooms but I'm sure I hit plenty of them when trying to get good coverage on both sides of the leaves.

Bill

[MrSalvage]

Thank you for your time as always.
Bill