Here is an additional stink bug photo, which really is a good representation that helps identify young.
Posted on 05/22/2011 3:10:09 PM PDT by Clintonfatigued
An insect with a voracious appetite, no domestic natural predators and a taste for everything from apples to lima beans has caused millions of dollars in crop damage and may just be getting started.
The brown marmorated stink bug, a three-quarter-inch invader native to Asia, is believed to have been brought first to the Allentown, Pa., area in 1998. The bug began appearing in mid-Atlantic orchards in 2003-04 and exploded in number last year.
This spring, stink bugs have been seen in 33 states, including every one east of the Mississippi River and as far west as California, Oregon and Washington.
"All that we do know for certain is that a tremendously large population went into overwintering in fall 2010. So, if they survived, there could be a very large population emerging in the spring," said Tracy Leskey, a research entomologist at the U.S. Agriculture Department's Appalachian Fruit Research Station in Kearneysville W.Va.
Growers in the mid-Atlantic region have reported the worst problems, and the apple industry appears hit hardest, with $37 million in damage to growers in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia, according to the U.S. Apple Association. That's about 18 percent of the Mid-Atlantic crop.
Mark Seetin, the association's director of regulatory and industry affairs, called it the worst threat to farmers he's see in his 40 years in agriculture.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
These appear very much like what I’ve had to fight for decades in my garden. I wonder if this one and the sane or some new type of breed. We called them stink bugs or squash bugs because they will lay their eggs on the squash leaves and if left to hatch out and mature, they will end up killing the squash. I fight them until July or so and then they seem to overwhelm the squash and kill it all. By that time I’ve gotten all the squash wanted and I guess my will to fight the buggers starts weakening. If anyone knows whether these are a new type or what is an effective pesticide to use against them without totally contaminating the vegetables for our own purposes, I would appreciate any info. - OB1
These appear very much like what I’ve had to fight for decades in my garden. I wonder if this one and the sane or some new type of breed. We called them stink bugs or squash bugs because they will lay their eggs on the squash leaves and if left to hatch out and mature, they will end up killing the squash. I fight them until July or so and then they seem to overwhelm the squash and kill it all. By that time I’ve gotten all the squash wanted and I guess my will to fight the buggers starts weakening. If anyone knows whether these are a new type or what is an effective pesticide to use against them without totally contaminating the vegetables for our own purposes, I would appreciate any info. - OB1
Depending on where you live, you might be pleased find that there is some liberality in zoning laws regarding chickens. As a matter of fact, some localities have no restrictions at all.
The only stink bug I’m familiar with is black, crawls on the ground and when picked on, sticks its butt in the air and releases a smell. I’m not kidding. /sarc is off
Bifenthrin. Went back through the areas where I had found clusters about an hour after spraying and couldn't find a single one.
Thanx.
I did a search and wonder if this class of pesticides can be found at retail stores? All I found was a couple of online sites, Amazon and eBay.
If it is easily found at retail stores, I will not prepare unless I find an infestation. However, if not, I would lay in a supply beforehand, just in case.
We have a crop consultant/entomologist, and he has consistently told me to use malathion in the garden, as that is about the 'safest' insecticide in that the human body does not metabolize it. Bifenthrin is labeled for just about every kind of vegetable, but you have to be more careful and not use it more than twice during a growing season, and not anytime close to harvest.
My favorite insecticide is Fertilome's Triple Action Plus, which is neem oil, and approved for organic gardening. It is an insecticide/miticide/fungicide. It is wonderful to use on tomatoes and peppers and I highly recommend it.
Good luck with your garden!
I would feel way better about the Fertilome product.
Since you are obviously a professional, would it work if we were to have stink bugs?
I am so appreciative of you sharing your expertise.
Here is an additional stink bug photo, which really is a good representation that helps identify young.
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