Oh Horrors!!!! I have been so good about checking for any pests or eggs on all my squash. Never see a thing. Been spraying with Neem but only started a week ago. Did see a SVB moth once so knew I had to look but couldn't find any eggs. And I look for signs of frass, I have seen the pictures. Look really carefully and never saw a thing. I was even out there late last evening before dusk looking.

So what do I see when I look at the squash this morning? One plant completly and totally wilted, another with yellow leaves and fass on many stems of my plants. Don't know how I could have missed the eggs and especially am shocked that all this frass appeared overnight!



So we will soon find out if the inject the stems with Spinosad works as I injected the stems of all the zucchini and squash. The ones that had frass and all the others also.

Oh no, I'm so sorry, and you were so diligent! Darn bugs/critters! I know that is what gardening is about by it can be so frustrating!

Arlene, I am hoping this will work. Can't save the dead plant but I have lots of other plants. Both zucchini and yellow squash both. If this works it might be something you want to do also to save your plants and protect others.

I have read the slash the vine thing and get the borer out but I can't see how without killing the plant. And I had seen the inject with BT, which lots of people say doesn't work. Probably because it kills for such a short period of time. The Spinosad is supposed to be long acting. So get the suckers in there and protect against new ones. I have high hopes that it will work. We will find out.

Oh, and I was thinking. I might have sprayed with the Neem too late and they had already hatched when I started with my spraying. But I never saw any evidence of eggs.

I don't know what the SVB eggs look like, only the squash bug eggs, unless I am misidentifying them, but you're right, BT doesn't last as long so you're smart to use the Spinosad. Slitting the vine and killing the buggars you would think would kill the plant but I actually slit the stem, pulled it apart to find them and then squished them. Now, if there were more higher up in the stem than I slit it will have been for naught. But it has worked for me. Oh, and the dead plants, the borer was still in the stems of the ones I threw out so make sure you kill them or at the least, put in the trash right away.

Good thing you have plenty of plants even though it hurts to even lose one. Keep us posted!

The older plants look bad this morning so I don't know how they will do. One bad part of pots is that I can't burry the damaged stems to make new roots. And any plants that have to leave the garden I will definately bag up for the trash, no composting. But I am taking a wait and see approach. Right now I am really happy that I have replacement plants already growing. Cavilli is starting to produce.

Love Cavilli, what a gorgeous and big plant! Look at the size of those leaves.


First fruit to harvest on Cavilli.

This one is the Tivoli Spagetti Squash. The plant is humungous. And it has barely begun to grow. I can see my idea of compact and the plants idea of compact are two different things!


Oh and here is one of my new 23 inch by 18 deep pots. I know I need bigger pots for next year. Too late for this year!

I really have to pull out and throw away my cauliflower. Ever since I sprayed it with spinosad that one time at least a month ago it has looked like it is near death. If I can get my act together I can plant some bush beans in its spot.

Or, start more cauliflower for a fall crop. Now is the time to plant it! (Well, for me it's time)

And I have cauliflower seed but I am thinking I will do those seeds in the early spring. Bush beans are a safer bet this time of year than anything in the cabbage family. Too many cabbage moths around now in the heat of summer.

Cucumbers setting fruit well. I picked a bunch of Camilla Cukes today and ate one. Very nice tasting and tender.

Cukes look great!

Cauliflower does better in the fall. Maybe try one or two in a few weeks? Just to see the difference.

Well, I do have seed so I will think on it. Haven't even pulled those old ones that are obviously no good yet.

I need to get mine planted. I'm about two weeks behind but I just am so tired of planting! If I don't do it though I'll be sorry around the end of Sept. when I want some nice cauliflower, brussels sprouts and broccoli! Oh, and cabbage!

Those cabbage moth green caterpillers make a mess of everything in the cabbage family come mid summer like this. I don't know if I feel like fighting with them. We will see.

You have to think of market, not just your own family so you really need to be more organized than I am.

I have cabbage stuff planted and plenty of seed for brocoli also but no motivation!

Hi Rita! Hang in there, you are inspiring by being such a trooper. My best solution to SVB is to plant squash varieties that are resisitant to SVB. Crossing my fingers with my squash plants...in years past the Cavilli has withstood SVB long enough to give quite a crop. I've got several more ripening now. And Dutch crookneck winter squash seems to not attract SVB. At least it didn't last year.
New this year is loofah vine, which hopefully will bear fruit before the borers find it.

Thanks Judy. I really never thought I would have to deal with those SVB. Oh well, live and learn.

Cavilli is a beautiful zucchini, I just harvested my first one from Cavilli. And it may be resistant but it still gets the borers. One of my Cavilli plants has frass this morning, yesterday it had none. And I had already injected all my squash, even the ones with no damage. So I will be injecting it again.

My first zucchini from my Cavilli plants. This thing is a monster.



On a down note I am very discouraged this morning. So very discouraged. Will be heading out to inject it and the Elite plant that also has new frass in a few minutes.

Sorry about your SVB problems. i sure hope the injecting works.

I pulled two more buttersticks this morning so even though I slit the stem I must not have gotten all of the.

One of my Gypsy peppers is starting to turn red. Won't be long now!

I am trimming out all the dead foliage from the bottom of the tomatoes. With all the rain and humidity a lot of it is just rotting. What a mess. Can't work on it again until this afternoon because it is so wet. I was pulling more clover out of the flowers and I am soaking wet! It's slow going but I am making progress.

I don't understand how anyone gets any squash or zucchini harvest dealing with this darn Borer. And I don't see any moths or eggs.

But always something with the garden. Here you are dealing with tomato problems.