The year of the pests

Well no garden year is without its problems and this year is no different. I have been so proud of my garden in how well it was doing this year. In the past I haven't seemed to have too many problems with bugs. Last year my ducks were able to take care of the grasshoppers that showed up in droves and I suffered little damage. Normally, diatomaceous earth and neem oil keep my seedlings safe and once the plants mature I have few problems provided they are healthy. This year though the mature plants are falling prey to grasshoppers and a new predator....stink bugs. These aren't your typical stink bug. These are brown marmalated (sp?) stink bugs, a relatively new pest to the United States that is beginning to wreak its havoc from sea to shining sea. Apparently it has had the department of agriculture befuddled as to how to get rid of it. These bugs don't necessarily kill the plant at first, instead they target the fruit of the plant causing it to rot and drop off before maturing. Eventually the plant is affected and dies. This is because they often affect the flowers of the plant also interfering in pollination. Apparently, though many people call these little critters squash bugs because they are very similar to the stink bugs/squash bugs that we have had in the past, this variety has no preference to type of plant. Reports are coming in that they are decimating fruit trees, beans, peas, melons and others right along with squash. I planted 10 squash plants which should be producing enough to feed the whole county. I have lost countless fruit and two whole plants have succumbed to the attack. I can verify that neither neem oil nor diatomaceous earth phase them. I learned yesterday that trapping them helps. So yesterday I destroyed hundreds and hundreds of eggs that had been laid on my plants and set about trying to trap the adults and nymphs. So I will head out to the garden with my flashlight in just a bit to look under the boards that I placed near my squash plants to see if I can kill the little buggers. Each adult female is capable of laying over 50 eggs a day. I am hoping I can save my garden. I have lost my cantaloupe and a couple of squash. One of my cucumber plants is kicking the bucket so I will pull it today. Each year it is something and sometimes it can get downright depressing, but for some strange reason I keep on trying and keep on plugging away. Truly, I must be crazy! Blessings from the farm, Kat