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Bug pests - squash vine borer
Thought this was a neat looking bug... until we found out
After some research and talking to garden and bug enthusiasts, we found out that this little fella (or gal) is a squash vine borer moth. This nasty likes to lay her eggs (about one per day) on the stems of squash like zucchini and pumpkin. The eggs look like small red dot about half the size of the head of a pin. If you don't get rid of them, the eggs will hatch in mid July and your squash will start to wilt. The larva (looks kinda like a cutworm but up to an inch long) tears a hole in the side of the stem and works its way down to the base of the plant. Once there, it prevents water from getting to the rest of the vine and ... well... no zucchini for you.
But how do you deal with it and save your leafbaby?!
Once we figured out what a squash vine borer was we "squashed" the offending moth, and then washed down all the plants she was visiting, paying particular attention to the stems, looking for (and picking off) the little red dots. From what the universities say, there's not much else you can do. Pesticides may help and yellow traps may lower the risk since the adults are attracted to the color yellow, but, safe to say, once they hatch you have a problem.
If the squash vine borer worms get to the main stem (luckily we think we got ahead of them) the main idea is to use a sharp knife and cut a slit in the stem and try to stab the beast. Once ya got it, mound up dirt over the slit and water deeply in the hopes that new roots will form and your leafbaby may be spared.
After that, the best method of control is rotation... Skip a season before you plant any more squash because the lava will overwinter in the soil, hatch in the spring, and then get you next year.
