Pest

Squash bugs

Gray-brown bugs that suck sap from squash and pumpkins, leaving speckled, wilting leaves and bronze egg clusters.

What you'll see

• Flat, gray-brown bugs about 5/8 inch (16 mm) long, and pale gray nymphs, clustered under leaves and at the plant base.
• Shiny bronze to brick-red eggs in neat clusters under the leaves.
• Speckled leaves that yellow, wilt and turn black and crisp; small plants can die.

Why it happens

Adults spend the winter under garden debris and move to squash, pumpkins and melons in spring to feed and lay eggs. They suck sap with toxic saliva, and eggs, young and adults overlap all summer.

How to fix it

1. Check leaf undersides every few days and crush egg clusters, or lift them off with tape.
2. Lay boards near the plants and destroy the bugs hiding under them each morning.
3. Spray insecticidal soap or neem oil only on young nymphs, which it can kill, following the label and keeping kids and pets away.

Keep it from coming back

• Remove spent vines and garden debris after harvest, where adults spend the winter.
• Grow vining squash on a trellis, and choose more resistant kinds such as butternut.
• Cover young plants with row cover until they flower.

Sources

• UC IPM: Squash bugs
• University of Maryland Extension: Squash bug on vegetables
• Clemson HGIC: Cucumber, squash, melon and other cucurbit insect pests

General guidance, not a diagnosis. For valuable, edible or outdoor crops, check with a local extension service or plant expert. Use any product exactly as its label says, and keep children and pets away while it dries.