Renewal

Look who was outside helping me in the garden today.
Cheryl

Such a pretty little Lady, watch out you aphids!!!

LOL hope they all froze to death! Of course then what would she eat? She was a wopper too, about 30 percent bigger than most I see in my yard.
C

I have noticed many LADY BYGS in my garden too.

I saw a Cumcumber Beetle.
Not as good.

I hate those things with a passion. They ate so many things all season long...was hoping the cold got them but I guess not.
C

Those cucumber beetles almost ate every bloom last year before it opened.

How does one get rid of them without killing everything else and poisoning your yard?

Vacuum cleaner!

Really?

I would love to smash one with a Cucumber to throw a bit of irony into its death.

LOL! Have you really used a vaccum Steph?
I have just smushed them between my fingers when I have gloves on. Guess I could do like I do with the milkweed and assassin bugs and thump them into soapy water death bath. But that would be a lot of thumping, they were everywhere last year. I just know I am going to start looking for them earlier this year.
Hey...hopefully this long freeze we had would have some impact on them.

I read somewhere you could make sticky traps for them. I was also thinking I might dust the yard early in spring with DE. I know it will not be good for other insects but if it killed them as they emerged from the ground it would be worth it.
C

Yes, we use an old shop vac for cucumber beetles and leaf footed bugs. Very effective, but you have to be diligent. Mark attaches a piece of pantyhose to the inside of the intake and when finished, crushes them all and then rinses out the piece of pantyhose.

Very good method Stephanie.

I used the stick strips on the base of my trees when they hit hard on my blossoms one year. It only caught good insects. Not one Cucumber beetle.

shop vac it is then
Wonder if the neighbors will think me even more crazy if they spot me vacuming my plants. Come to think of it, that might make it more worth while.
C

I have been wondering whether the noise from the vacuum would scare the bugs before you get to them, but maybe they don't have good hearing?
Josephine.

I don't know, but I know we've had success with the vacuum.

Leaf footed and wheel bugs are usually pretty slow. Still think it is worth a try, wet vac has long hose too.
The insecticide powders etc aren't selective in what they kill either.

Love your way of thinking C :0 LOL

Mine have been thinking me crazy for many years because I use my shop vac for all sorts of things in the yard. Vacuum leaves out of hard to reach areas, then shred them and either compost them or put directly under trees as mulch. Much easier than raking. Vacuum dirt out of hole so we can see what we're doing when digging up sprinkler system leak. Vacuum up china berries from that aggravating tree. Using in reverse to blow dirt and trash off sidewalks. Vacuum water out of stopped up down-spout on rain gutters. (And, yes, using grounded plug and careful about mixing water and electricity.) I could make a commercial for Rigid Shop Vacs. LOL. Been "abusing" the same one for about 10 years and it still works like a charm. I would like to have the new one, though, because the top snaps off to use as a blower.

So now I have a new use for it, killing bugs !! Thanks.

G

I vaccumed up acorns when they were thick one year. We couldn't walk across the yard without fear of slipping. Worked great except took up some of the stones around the pond area.

Guess someone could market one under the "garden vac" name! LOL!

This message was edited Feb 14, 2011 8:17 AM