Reply #7: We love our Mother ! (Mother Earth News).

[bvar22]

One of our Bibles.
Mother published some of my photos last year.
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=280&topic_id=43395

Countryside & Small Stock Journal is another.
http://www.countrysidemag.com/

But, MAN, some of the LTTEs are from really strange folks....so far out on the Libertarian Right they are scary. We don't consider ourselves "Survivalists", and don't pray for a Big Crunch so we can shoot hungry people. We have met some of those who have moved into these hills fantasizing about the Big Crunch while they fondle their guns....They scare us, and we keep away from them.

Squash Bugs...Hate them.
Zucchini will be green and beautiful on one day...and the next, it is laying on the ground.

Hand picking is still one of the few ways to deal with them, though we don't squish them.
We keep a small jar 1/2 filled with water, and just drop them in. They can't swim.


There is also this:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=246&topic_id=8830
This works very well, especially if eggs have hatched and there are a hundred little gray Squash Bugs running around.


Squash Bugs live and survive over the Winter in the sod, debris layer, and mulch at ground level.
One way to deal with them is to remove all the plant debris and mulch in the Fall where you have had an infestation. In the Fall, we let our chickens work over areas where we have Squash Bugs. They are pretty thorough.

We avoid planting Squash in the same place as last year.
This year, we isolated the Squash so that it is easier to monitor for bugs.
Since Squash Bugs don't fly, we used some ground barriers this year.

Over on the far right under the tripods is where we planted the Squash this year, Zucchini in front, Butternut in the rear. We laid Landscaping Cloth all around the tripods, and then covered with a very clean Hardwood Mulch (White Oak we got from a Pallet Mill). There is very little raw earth, sod, or decomposing organic matter for the Squash Bugs to hide in around the Squash.

The hexagonal raised beds are made from landscaping logs. They are easy to work around, and provide easy access when looking for Squash Bugs. They also hold water like little swimming pools.
We'll put the garden hose on one side, flood the bed, and watch for Squash Bugs running out the other side. They can't swim and will run from flooding water making it easier to spot them.

In general, since Squash Bugs survive over the Winter, we feel that if we can reduce their population this season, we will have less of a problem next year....and this seems to be working.
We had a terrible infestation our first year. Last year was better, but we still lost our Squash.
This year, we had a few Squash Bugs, but managed to get a decent crop.


Of Course, we may just have been lucky this year.
We had a very dry Spring (No Rain at all), so maybe THAT is what kept the Squash Bugs down this year.
We don't know for sure, but next year should tell us something.

One of our friends at the Farmers Market who we KNOW doesn't use pesticides (he keeps bees) recommends planting Squash LATE, like in June/July. He says that it will miss the Spring infestation and still have time to produce good Squash. We haven't tried this, but sounds like it may work.

Good Luck with your Fall garden.