Squash bugs can be a huge pest in the vegetable garden, and they can wreak havoc on our squash crops! But don’t worry, squash bugs are easy to kill using organic pest control methods. In this post, I will show you exactly how to control squash bugs without using nasty chemical pesticides.
Squash is one of the highest maintenance vegetables that I grow in my garden. I love squash, so I always fight the good fight against any bad bugs that try to steal my yummy harvests (don’t mess with me bugs!).
Squash bugs are a very common pest that love to feed on squash plants. They are sneaky, and can be difficult to control… but they are easy to kill using natural pest control methods.
What Are Squash Bugs?
Not to be confused with the squash borer bug, the squash bug (also known as the horned squash bug) is a common pest that can plague all types of squash and pumpkin plants.
Squash bugs, both adults and nymphs, will feed on squash leaves, the vines, and even the squash itself. They multiply quickly, and a large infestation of squash bugs can cause major damage to squash plants if left untreated.
Plus squash bugs are gross, and who wants to see hundreds of them crawling all over their squash?
Squash Bugs On Squash Leaf
Signs Of A Squash Bug Infestation
Squash bugs start to appear in mid to late summer. Keep an eye out for yellow and brown leaves that are curling up.
If you find a yellow or brown leaf on your squash plant, look closely at the leaf, both top and bottom, and see if you can find any squash bugs crawling around.
Squash Bug Damage On Squash Leaf
How to Control Squash Bugs Organically
The key to squash bug control is persistence. If you stay on top of the problem, then squash bugs won’t cause much damage in your garden (trust me, it sounds harder than it is).
Once you find squash bugs in your garden, immediately arm yourself with two things:
- A bucket of soapy water. (I use Dr. Bronner’s Baby Mild organic liquid soap in my bucket)
- A spray bottle filled with soapy water. In the spray bottle, I mix about one teaspoon of Dr. Bronner’s Baby Mild organic liquid soap with one liter of water. It quickly kills squash bugs and nymphs on contact. If you don’t want to mix your own, you can buy an organic insecticidal soap spray instead.
Squash Bug Crawling On Squash Plant
Be warned: Squash bugs move fast, like really fast! And they are elusive little buggers. You have to be quick with the spray bottle and bucket.
I find that it’s easiest to spray the squash bugs with the soapy water first, and that will slow them down (if it doesn’t kill them right away).
Then I pick them off and drop them into my bucket of soapy water (yes, I wear gardening gloves for this disgusting task).
Sounds hard, but it’s actually pretty easy once you get the hang of it.
Once I’m satisfied that I have more squash bugs in my bucket than the ones left in the garden, I take a little time to hunt for eggs.
Squash bug eggs are pretty easy to spot, you just have to look under the leaves. As I find squash bug egg clusters on my squash plants, I carefully scrape them off and drop those into my bucket of soapy water too.
Squash Bug Eggs On Squash Plant
More Tips For Controlling Squash Bugs
- Use organic neem oil or an organic horticultural oil to help repel squash bugs, and keep them from laying their eggs on your squash plants.
- Start looking for squash bug eggs early in the summer. Destroying the eggs as soon as you find them will help prevent squash bugs from infesting your plants in the first place.
- Diatomaceous earth is a wonderful natural pest control that can also kill squash bugs.
Squash bugs are one of those pests that you have to fight consistently in order to win the battle. Heck, you might even get rid of them completely if your garden is isolated from other gardens where squash is grown.
I haven’t seen squash bugs in my home garden in almost 10 years (knock on wood)! As for the community garden… well that’s a different story. I’ll be battling squash bugs at the community garden as long as I grow squash there – that’s just the nature of community gardening.
More Posts About Organic Pest Control
- How to Get Rid of Squash Borers Organically
- Organic Pest Control Methods for Controlling Japanese Beetles
- Natural Pest Control Remedies For Your Garden
- Controlling Flea Beetles in the Garden
Now it’s your turn. Leave a comment below and tell me how you control squash bugs in your garden.
K. Galloway says
One of the ways ive controlled squash bugs, which was given to me by an organic gardener 30 years ago, was to put flower and cayenne pepper in a shaker annd apply liberally to plants. Works good. Also used pyrethrum but need to spray in evening after bees have gone to bed. Its a natural plant base insecticide.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Wonderful, thanks for the tips!
Astat12 says
How much cayenne to how much water do you use?
Astat12 says
sorry, I meant cayenne to flour
Nan Schut says
Your recipe of Soap, water, and hard work is exactly what I do also in my yearly fight, however, for the eggs I use some masking tape around my hand, sticky side up and “sticky” them off. Works perfect and doesn’t damage leaves.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Great idea, thanks for the tip!
Sharon P. says
I have found that if I water the squash with a hose in the evening, getting them really wet, the squash bugs start crawling to the top of the plant. I pick them off and “squash” them, or drop them in soapy water.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Awesome, thanks for that great tip! I will have to give it a try.
Mike says
We scrape eggs first, all the plants. Last year we lost everything but so far this year, we’re winning. Bottom and top of leaves and even along the stems. After getting all the eggs we can find, I start gently watering. My wife following close behind with a soft tipped pair of BBQ tongs and an small can of soapy water. Seem they will run from hiding to the tops of the leaves when sprayed with plain water. Easy for her to grab and drop in the can. Make two trips with the water and tongs some are slower to climb than others.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Great tips, thanks so much for sharing! I wish you luck in you battle against the squash bugs this year, sounds like you already have the upper hand!
Sue Gilmore says
I so appreciate this blog! Does it matter what kind of soap you use? Will dish soap be safe for your plants and lethal for squash bugs?
Amy Andrychowicz says
Thanks Sue! If you use a mild dish soap, it shouldn’t hurt the plants. You can spot check it on a few leaves first to make sure. I use Dr. Bronner’s Baby Mild liquid soap for all of my organic garden pest control. In a spray bottle, I mix about one teaspoon of the soap with one liter of water.
Jim Ferguson says
I use a totally non-chemical method of controlling squash bugs as well as dozens of other pests.I put my one-gallon shop vac on an extension cord and take it to the garden. I can attack and permanently eliminate hundreds of squash bugs per minute just by vacuuming them away. The same trick works wonders on aphids, potato beetles, and many others. Any pest you see you can eliminate. You can knock out a major pest infestation in a matter of minutes. You can dislodge stubborn strains of pests with a brush attachment. The brush is also kinder to the plants.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Haha, wow!! What a great idea. I’ve done that with whiteflies and soil gnats in my houseplants, but always end up damaging the leaves. I’d need to be very careful out in the garden! Thanks for sharing, I might have to try this with the Japanese beetles this year.
Jim Ferguson says
This technique works exceptionally well on the just-hatched immature bugs. They stay in small groups after they hatch. You can wipe out a hundred bugs in one second with the vac. One of your subscribers also mentioned that the bugs will migrate to the top of the leaves, away from the ground, when you spray the plant with water. I also found this to be the case. I spray the squash plant and the bugs come out to meet their maker.
Squash bug eggs are brown and are the size of the head of a pin. They are laid in groups of 50 to 100 in an area the size of a quarter. Some people recommend you squash them with your fingernail. I recommend you cut that area of the leaf out – it is far easier for the plant to recover from the edges of the cut than it is for the plant to try and fail to recover a square inch of crushed leaf. Do try to avoid damaging the ribs of the leaf. Scrape the eggs off of the ribs or leave them to hatch and be exterminated by your shop vac death ray.
And you are absolutely correct when you say you can damage your plant with a vacuum. I use a brush attachment on the hose end when removing insects from delicate plant structures. The brush attachment I use has 1.5 inch soft bristles which dislodge the insects without letting the delicate leaves get sucked into the hose. Some vacs have a bypass adjustment on the hose that allow you to control the amount of air sucked into the hose end. You might employ that feature if it is available to you.
And yes, I wholeheartedly agree that Japanese beetles are a prime candidate for this technique of pest elimination. You use no chemicals, you harm no beneficials, it costs almost nothing, and you get to be up close and personal with your plants.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Awesome, thanks so much for sharing your tips! I’m totally going to try it this year! I bet my husband would love doing this! 🙂
Dianna says
You are a genius!
Jennifer says
I pulled out my shop vac this summer and have almost eliminated the suckers. I thought I was being original. Hahahaha
Laura says
Thank you for sharing this at Thoughts of Home. We are so glad you are here.
What a great gardening tip.
Amy Andrychowicz says
Thanks for stopping by!
Megan says
Excellent advice for gardeners everywhere! Thank you for sharing at Merry Monday! We are live again tonight, hope you stop by!
Amy Andrychowicz says
Thanks for stopping by! 🙂
Julie Briggs says
Great tips! Thanks for sharing at #HomeMattersParty
Amy Andrychowicz says
You’re welcome, thanks for stopping by!
Marlene Stanley says
Hi Amy, the way I get rid of squash bugs is very early in the morning. The bugs are usually mating, I tear off a square piece of duck tape and tap the bugs with the tape, they can’t elude the tape and I’m fast. Then I just fold the tape into small stinky packages and disguard. The duck tape works wonders on the eggs also because it fits right in the angles perfectly. Just press it into place on top of the eggs and pull up the duck tape, the eggs will come off easily without harming the leaves. I just inspect leaves randomly throughout the summer. No bugs…happy hunting and enjoy your gardens. Oh, I usually use colorful duck tape so if I drop one on the ground I will notice it easily lol
Amy Andrychowicz says
Great tip, thanks for sharing!
dawn l crosley says
try mint
Amy Andrychowicz says
I will keep that in mind, thanks.
Christina Edward says
Dumb question but when these bugs hatch and are young, are they a white colored body? And can the eggs appear to be a red/brown color? My zucchini has recently been invaded by these types and I’m not sure if they are the squash bugs. This is the 1st time in yrs I’m seeing these on my plants. I guess because I live in the country now?
Amy Andrychowicz says
Yes, squash bugs can look white or very light gray when they are babies. The eggs are indeed red/brown (see my photo of squash bug eggs in the post above). I have never had a problem with them at home, but our community garden is infested with them. So, I know what you mean. So annoying! I hope you can get rid of them!
Bea Shoughrow says
This is the best article I have read regarding getting rid of squash bugs! I have tried all of these methods and picking the bugs off and dropping them in a milk carton of soapy water, pulling off the small part of the leaf with the eggs on it and using tape for the baby bugs works great. But, it is amazing how fast that multiply, this is an everyday effort! Thanks everyone for reconfirming my efforts!
Amy Andrychowicz says
Thanks, glad my article helped you! Yes, fighting squash bugs is definitely a daily thing, which can be so frustrating. But, it’s worth the fight for so much yummy squash. 🙂