Where’s the best places to look for the eggs and immature insects?
I don’t know that we’ve had any problem with stink bugs around here yet (Central NY) but do want to keep my eyes open for them and see what I can do for treating them.
I will be stocking up on DE in any event.
Diatomaceous Earth seems to be about the only thing that will kill boxelder bugs, too. I was up to my arse in those earlier this year. They kept getting “lost” and invading the house by the dozens! I did some sealing up of my exterior and put DE around outside in my stony borders. It took a week to have the desired effect, but I really think it has helped. I almost never see them inside now, and the masses outside have been decimated. Good stuff.
Just be sure you use the “food grade” stuff or some that is labeled for garden use, and not the DE that is used in pool filter media. The pool filter variety of DE is heat-treated, causing it to lose its efficacy (its microscopic sharp edges which cut the bugs and cause them to dehydrate and die).
I said all I know about dealing with jap beetles, but will be on the lookout for stink bugs, don't know if DE will work on them or not, worth a try. Ususally a multi-pronged attack (minus the traps which are not good for me) is the most effective. Last year the beetles were evident well into September. That's what will make the stink bugs harder to fight.
With the beetles, if I dig and find the light-colored, fat grubs, I throw them in the street or squash them, but that won't make much of a dent overall for sure.
Last year and the year before they showed up as small clusters of brownish orange-ish eggs on the tops of my zucchini and my bird house goard leaves. I tore that section of leaf off and threw it in the trash.
I turned my garden twice this winter to expose as many wintering pests/larva as possible. I have not seen the little varmits yet this year but I look for them daily.