I watched you pet your squash plants for 20 minutes. Now there’s no doubt that I too will be out in my garden doing this 😂. Thank you for the tip!!! SVB killed nearly all my winter squash so far

@C3Voyage

21 күн бұрын

Great, now go pet your squash too! Best Jaon.

Your plants are always so lush green and beautiful thanks for sharing 👍

@C3Voyage

Ай бұрын

I'd hate to jinx it, but this year has been really good so far. It's early and I expect depressing things as summer comes on.

Easy enough approach! Thanks!😊

@C3Voyage

Ай бұрын

Yeah, hopefully it's effective for me. Thanks for stopping in.

We modify our routine and make a 'best effort' with most things in our lives. I wish you luck with your method and thanks again for sharing a step-by-step lesson. My problem has been tomato hornworm. After years of tracking down 'frass' and playing "Night Patrol" with a high intensity UV flashlight I settled on spraying all of my plants with BT for 3 days in a row and then once weekly after finding the first one of the season. 5-7 minutes a week and I can settle back and enjoy life more. My garden gives me a sense of accomplishment and calm and I don't need it to make more of a JOB of it. Happy Gardening Brent.

@C3Voyage

Ай бұрын

Here's hoping. I've not tried Bt before, but Spinosad works great on tomato worms. Does BT work with the SVB externally? I mean, I know folks inject it in the squash. I'm wondering if it would affect the eggs externally. What's your experience with it? Do you lose plants now?

@petersoos498

Ай бұрын

@@C3Voyage The bacteria in BT is activated by an alkaline digestive tract which caterpillars have. Once they multiply in the stomach of the caterpillar they eventually cause the inner lining to break down and the digestion stops. The infusion of food gives the caterpillar it's rapid growth due to it's high metabolism. It's a munching machine that as you know can decimate plants seemingly over night. The bacteria must be ingested to do its job so spraying it on/over caterpillars/eggs alone won't help. But as soon as they start eating and the smaller they are when they start the better, they just shut down and die. They inject it so any caterpillar that starts to eat the inside of the vine will die in a few hours. The liquid form is the one I use - Thuricide. The powdered form is called Dipel. I live in a desert region and rarely have any rain after May until about August so I don't have to worry about it washing off. Bt doesn't harm other insects such as bees or earthworms and can be added to standing water areas because it effects mosquito larva. Sold as granules called bits for that. I do have Spinosad and just plain Pyrethrums for everything else. Spinosad is a product of fermented bacteria and works well on a variety of insects however it is toxic to bees. I usually use it late evening so it dries overnight and then has a minimal risk with bees since they may contact the dried spray but don't eat the plant and rarely gets to the pollen areas. My biggest pest last year was spidermites. They effected my tomatoes, cucumbers and melon vines. So I keep an eye out for them and hit them early with a rotation of Spinosad and pyrethrums. So...hornworms are no longer a problem for me once I start my routine and I just keep an eye on everything else. My 2 cents.

@petersoos498

Ай бұрын

@@C3Voyage Short version... Bt infects and ruins the digestive tracts of caterpillars as theirs is alkaline in nature. Also effective for fungus gnats and mosquito larva. It must be digested to work. Eggs that hatch and have baby caterpillars starting to munch on/in the plants stop eating shortly after being infected... think stomach flu. Since infecting them early keeps the amount they eat/destroy small loss is minimized. Bt doesn't effect earthworms, bees and other insects. Thuricide is a liquid form of Bt and Dipel is a dusting powder form. Injecting it into the vines would cause the attacking caterpillar to die or stop eating shortly after entering the plant. Spinosad is also bacterial based however it is less selective and can cause harm to pollinators when wet and applied to them. Less so after it dries. That is why if used it is better applied late evening to minimize harm. I used Bt for my caterpillar and leaf miner issues and Spinosad for my spider mite infestation on my tomato, cucumber and melon plants. Some people worry because they see it is a bacteria, bacillus thuringiensis. Acidophillus and other pro-biotics are also bacteria and we even pay to buy those for our digestive health. Also we have an acidic digestive tract and the caterpillars have an alkaline one which is why even when ingested we are't effected by it. Some short version huh..LOL. Hope this helps.

Pantyhose strips work very well for me. I just wrap the stems loosely. I also plant new plants in July. The vine borers are usually gone by then.

@C3Voyage

Ай бұрын

I'm glad that works for you! I bought some self-adhesive bandage wrap for this year for a similar technique, and I did plan to use it, but when I got out there to start, it looked like a nightmare to wrap the stem cause the leaves were too close together. Then, I got to thinkin about whether or not to wrap the leaves some too. I just gave up on the idea. What's so bad about them here is we get to life cycle generations every year. So, the threat is constant starting in May.

@bobwilliams5506

Ай бұрын

@@C3Voyage I'm in mid-MO, so I'm sure it's a little different. Good luck. I appreciate the video. We just have to do whatever we can find that works to get past those destructive little pests.

@C3Voyage

Ай бұрын

@@bobwilliams5506 Yep, I DO NOT like them the most followed by aphids and spider mites.

@bobwilliams5506

Ай бұрын

@@C3Voyage Japanese beetles would be #2 for me.

It takes a dedicated routine to keep on top of those bugs. I have pretty much given up growing any squash except butternut due to the borers. Maybe your 'hands on' technique is the way to go. I would probably wear a tight glove to avoid the burrs. Happy squash!

@C3Voyage

Ай бұрын

Thanks for the input. I thought Honeynut would be immune to the SVB, as a butternut, but they were hit hardest last year. I would not have ever guessed. Maybe it was just one confused moth though--an outlier?? Who knows. It takes me less than an hour a week and if it works, so worth it.

Was the plant smiling when you stopped? :)

@C3Voyage

Ай бұрын

I can't say for sure, but I am getting fruit now! You tell me.

@bobwilliams5506

Ай бұрын

@@C3Voyage I hear if you do it right, the fruit will come.

@C3Voyage

Ай бұрын

@@bobwilliams5506 Wait to you catch the hand-pollination video. It's guaranteed.

@bobwilliams5506

Ай бұрын

@@C3Voyage I hand pollinate also. I always seem to have plants that lack male flowers.