Nothing says summertime like a large harvest of homegrown zucchini .
And as much asyouenjoy the saucily - plucked yield , there are several garden pest who feel the same way about nibble on your zucchini plants .
From the bantam aphid to the colourful cucumber beetle , there are a quite a little of creepy crawlies around that ca n’t wait to get their tooth into your veggies .
Striped cucumber beetle,Acalymma vittatum.
frightened ? Do n’t be . While the list of plague that can attack zucchini may seem long , with some quick action at law , most of them are well dealt with .
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Striped cucumber beetle,Acalymma vittatum.
The Top 9 Zucchini Pests
If your zucchini plants are tolerate from pest scathe , it ’s probable to be stimulate by one ( or more ! ) of the following :
1. Aphids
aphid are one of the most common garden pests out there , and zucchini plant are n’t resistant to these sap - sucking pests .
These lilliputian 1/8 - column inch long bug may be blackened , reddened , immature , yellow , brownish , or pink , calculate on the eccentric .
They have Pyrus communis - shaped eubstance with long antennae , and are ordinarily wingless . A unmarried aphid is no bighearted slew , but in radical , they can stunt or damage plants .
These microbe breed profusely , the eggs winter and brood in the outflow . During the summertime month , females can produce up to 12 live offspring a day .
Zucchini plants impacted by aphids may be stunted or have curling , yellowing , mottled , or ironic leaf . The honeydew left behind by aphids canlead to sooty mould , and can also attract ant .
Because they ’re so small , you may not observe them until you have a large plague , or you see sign of damage on your plants .
They do n’t always cause much damage , but while you might be tempted to leave them , keep in brain that they may circulate disease .
How to Manage Aphids
The earlier you deal with the job , the better the prospect that your plant will escape relatively whole .
The first step is to spray plant with a gust ofwater from the hoseto pick apart the pests unaffixed . Sometimes , they will go forth the plant for a dissimilar one .
You should also keep your garden free from skunk , so they do n’t have a billet to hide .
good insectssuch as ladybugs , syrphid fly , lacewing , and parasitic wasps are all natural enemies of aphids , so promote them to take up residence in your garden .
you may do this by implant nectar - copious flowers , such asanise hyssop , disastrous - eyed Susans , orbee balm , and herb likefennel , Queen Anne ’s lace , caraway , mallow , andcilantro .
If that fails , you could try neem crude or insecticidal soap . Be certain to spray the top and bottom of the leave and reiterate the covering every few days for two calendar week .
Also , define fertiliser utilisation because according to experts at theUniversity of California ’s Integrated Pest Management Program , too much atomic number 7 can favor aphid reproductive memory .
go for a meditative mulch around the plant can help to revolt aphid .
There are chemical substance ascendence available , but it is n’t potential that an aphid population will kill your plant life altogether .
As noted byhorticulturalists at the University of California , pesticide may drink down off the pollinators and beneficial insects that your garden needs to thrive , so I recommend avoiding these methods .
hear more about oversee aphid in your garden .
2. Cucumber Beetles
There are two types of cuke beetles : blob , Diabrotica undecimpunctata howardi(also known as the southerly corn rootworm ) , and disrobe , Acalymma vittatum .
Both are similar in show and the type of damage they can do , and you should deal with them both the same way .
As Ric Bessin , telephone extension medical specialist at theUniversity of Kentucky College of Agriculturereports , cucumber beetles are a major plague for zucchini crops , not only because of the damage they make , but because they spread out the deadly bacterial wilt disease .
These pests run on leaf and stem , and a large plague can defoliate plants .
They overwinter in protected areas . The larvae set out feeding underground , and then come forth in the late bound or summertime to find a plant to nybble on .
How to Manage Cucumber Beetles
Keep weeds away from your garden because they can behave as hosts for these worm . To discourage adults from position egg , lay down dark landscaping material around plant .
If you have the room , plant ‘ Blue Hubbard ’ squash as a trap crop . Cucumber beetle , squash bugs , and squash vine borers prefer this plant to zucchini , so plant some next to your courgette plant , or at the end of a dustup of courgette .
The industrial plant should be spaced between 3 and 8 feet apart when fledged , so that they have enough distance to draw in the bugs without being so close that the pests can hop back and forth .
Your ‘ Blue Hubbard ’ plants need to be two weeks older than your courgette plant for this gob method acting to be the most efficacious , so plant the winter squash plants two weeks earlier than your zukes .
you’re able to also usefloating rowing coversin late May to early June , but be sure to remove them for an time of day a day once plants start to peak , so the flowers can be pollinated .
3. Cutworms
Cutworms are the larvae of a mixed bag of dissimilar species of miller moths and they are fighting at night .
While the presence of the adults in your garden is no openhanded deal , the cutworm larva can jaw through the stem of plants and kill them . One day your plant will be acquire happily , the next it will be lying in a heap on the ground .
Cutworms are plump caterpillar that may be black , brown , gray , tan , or dark sensationalistic .
Some have stripes , back breaker , or sprint along their organic structure . Most are about two inches long when fully grown . All of them have legato hide that looks almost wet or greasy .
While they look alike to some other types of worms you ’ll discover in the garden that may not be damaging to your plants , you could be reasonably sure you ’re dealing with cutworm if they wave up into a C - shape when you stir up them .
How to Manage Cutworms
It helps to have four fundament or so of bare soil marked as a perimeter around your plants . This monish the worms from essay to enter your garden to find a snack .
you’re able to alsoplant sunflowersaround the circumference of the garden as a sand trap crop , because cutworms love these plant .
Be mindful , however , that because you ’re providing solid food for the pests , you ’ll need to go outside every single Clarence Shepard Day Jr. to find and kill them . Otherwise , you ’ll just finish up with a fly high population of cutworms on your hands .
you could also make a DIY choker to protect the home of transplanted seedling . Cut a can paper roll lengthwise and dig down an inch around your plants . Place the potty paper roll around the base of the plant and inside the depression . Replace the soil .
The goal is to make a barrier that the worms ca n’t squeeze under or wobble over . will this in place until it disintegrate .
Gretchen Voyle from theMichigan State University Extensionrecommends avoiding pesticides , since they are n’t always in effect .
For more entropy , read our complete scout to cutworm mastery .
4. Leafminers
There are many leafminer species out there , but the one that most frequently do damage to zucchini plants is commonly known as the vegetable or melon leafminer , Liriomyza sativae .
You may also seeL. trifoliiandL. huidobrensisattacking crops .
Regardless of the character , adult leafminer tent-fly rest eggs inside leave of absence and when the larvae emerge , they chew their way through the foliage of plants .
They leave behind a telltale track of tunnels that looks a bit like a snarl . The width of the tunnel increases as the larvae mature .
How to Manage Leafminers
leechlike wasp are an crucial enemy of the leafminer . flora dill , Queen Anne ’s lacing , cilantro , andfennelnearby to promote them to come to your garden .
If an plague is n’t bad , you may simply purloin along the tunnels to squash the larvae inside .
you could try reflective mulch , though reputation of its effectiveness vary . Don’tover - fertilize flora – nitrogen can boost leafminers by help plants to grow abundant leaves , creating a reliable source of victuals .
You should also keep weeds out of your garden because they act as host .
Finally , you may use row covers during April and former May . deplume the covers off as plants lead off to blossom forth , which usually happen after the put season for leafminers has occur .
Find more tips on combating leafminers here .
5. Spider Mites
The two - spotted spider speck , Tetranychus urticae , loves to nosh on vegetable crops , though you may find other types of spider mites on your courgette as well .
wanderer mites can produce up to 20 generations in a single yr , and they choose hot , dry atmospheric condition . They look like teeny - tiny spiders .
As these pests suck on plants , leaves may take on a mottled appearance , or they may look ho-hum or wilt .
They may have cherry or dark-brown muscae volitantes . If you have a serious plague , you ’ll know it because you ’ll see ok web all over your zucchini plants .
How to Manage Spider Mites
The first stair to manage wanderer mites is to check your plants often for the diminutive arachnids , or preindication that they ’re around . You should also keep weeds away to avoid providing them with an inviting shoes to hide and multiply .
Again , do n’t over - fertilize . You should also go outside and spray down your plants with piddle every daylight for two weeks if you see them , to knock them free and create an environment that they do n’t care .
clip forth badly infested sections and dispose of them – do n’t put them in the compost pile .
you may also use an insecticidal easy lay or neem oil colour . Spray in the other aurora , and deflect using on plants that are gravely damage .
Read more about combating wanderer mite infestations here .
6. Squash Bugs
Squash bugs , Anasa tristis , are oftenconfused with mephitis bugs , but they ’re a unlike pest .
Squash bugs are flat , dark-skinned Gy or browned , and about 5/8 of an in long . They winter in shelter places , egress in the spring to mate , and lay orchis in other June .
adult repose atomic number 29 - colored ellipse eggs on the undersides of leaves and there is unremarkably just one generation of these dirt ball per twelvemonth .
The bugs draw the sap out of plant , which can make leaves turn scandalmongering and brown . This also makes it more difficult for nutrients to move throughout the plant , causing wilting .
How to Manage Squash Bugs
This blighter is hard to check with pesticides and they can scramble away quickly when you ’re trying to spray them .
On top of that , it ’s important to take note that youmay not require to use chemicals on a vegetable you contrive to deplete .
While it takes a lot of work , the most effective glide path is to head outside and examine your works every day .
If you see orchis clustering , usually place where the veins of your zuke leave of absence form a “ V , ” wipe them forth with gloves coated in crude oil jelly . you may also crush the eggs .
Pick off and kill any adults you see , as well . you may trap them by placing a opus of cardboard under your plants . permit it sit overnight , and fare out in the morning to collect and toss off any you find underneath .
If you do settle to take the pesticide route , habituate a permethrin insect powder and apply it ahead of time in the time of year , during the nymph leg . Also , be sure to spray the bottom of folio and the ground around the plant for two foot in all directions .
grownup can winter in the soil and in flora dust , so pick up your garden after the planting season is over . You should also be certain to turn out your craw from class to yr .
As we mentioned with some of the other bugs on this listing , you may also plant ‘ Blue Hubbard ’ squash as a ambush craw .
Finally , use float quarrel covers start up in other June through midsummer in most area .
You ’ll need to take out the cover for an hour or so a mean solar day when plants are bloom , to ensure pollenation . you may also manually pollinate your plants if desired .
Learn more about squash bug identification and control here .
7. Squash Vine Borers
full-grown squash racquets vine borers , Melittia cucurbitae , await a bit like Orange River and black white Anglo-Saxon Protestant with metallic green wings , though they ’re actually sesiid moths , be intimate for mimickingHymenopteraspecies .
The grownup issue in late spring to lay egg at the base of plants . About seven Day after , larvae emerge and provender by boring into the radical of plants .
They fee for a few weeks and then burrow into the filth to pupate . They stay there until the next bound to start the cycle over again .
If you have an infestation , you ’ll first remark your plant starting to droop in the estrus of the solar day , though normally only sections of the works will wilt , rather than the whole thing . finally , the intact plant may collapse and die .
How to Manage Squash Vine Borers
If you see ( or learn ) squash vine borer buzzing about , put floating row covers on your plants for two calendar week . This period usually coincides with the time when vines start to run on courgette plants .
Also , be sure to rotate crops each twelvemonth , since this pest overwinters in the soil . And as mentioned above , you may also plant ‘ Blue Hubbard ’ squashas a yap crop .
If you choose to apply pesticide , do it when vines begin to run and use a product containing carbaryl , permethrin , bifenthrin , or esfenvalerate .
Spray pesticide at the root word of plant life . Repeat every 7 - 10 days if the infestation continues .
8. Thrips
Thrips are tiny pests that pierce and take up the juice out of plants . They leave behind speckled brown or bleached damaged areas , and spread disease .
Western bloom thrips , Frankliniella occidentalis , are the most coarse type , but there are other species that attack zukes as well .
thrip also round spider mites , so they are n’t all spoiled . Consider this when resolve whether or not to eliminate them from your garden .
How to Manage Thrips
you may place yellowed steamy traps , available from Arbico Organics , in the garden to settle if you have these bugs .
If so , spray plants daily with a strong blast of the hose for a workweek to storm thrips off your crops , and check that to keep your garden weed - free .
you’re able to also utilize insecticidal soap or neem oil if you have a large plague .
Find more tip on control thrips here .
9. Whiteflies
Yet another tiny muggins - sucking insect , this one reproduces apace , and can cause plant to turn sensationalistic and die .
Whiteflies also leave behind honeydew , as aphids do , which can attract pismire and induce mold to modernise .
There are many dissimilar species that can attack zucchini plants . The silverleaf whitefly , Bemisia tabaci , is most notable as it spreads viruses and can cause a physiological problem called silverleaf upset in squash .
How to Manage Whiteflies
Spray down plant with a strong gust of weewee to knock the bugs lax , and trim away any heavily infested areas of the plant .
You should also use beneficial practices like appropriate lachrymation , weeding , and fecundate to keep works healthy enough to withstand an plague . advance good insects to cling out in your garden , and they can help oneself to keep pest populations down . Lacewings and ladybugs screw to nosh on whitefly .
Reflective mulches are effective at deterring whitefly and yellow embarrassing traps can help reduce the number of bug in your garden .
A sprayer of neem oil put on every few days for a few weeks can help reduce the figure of whiteflies on a industrial plant , but it wo n’t get rid of them . Keep in mind that neem fossil oil can also harm beneficial insects .
Read more about controlling whitefly here .
Don’t Let Pests Bug Your Zucchini Plants
You may have comment a theme that ’s common to all of these various pesterer . For the most part , it help oneself to rotate your crops , keep your garden well weed , and strip up good in the downfall .
Keeping plant healthy with appropriate watering and feeding practice session , andplanting worthy companionslike cilantro , dill weed , and finocchio , can help to encourage the good type of bugs to number advert around your garden .
Put these practices in piazza , and you ’ll go a foresighted way towards preserve pest away and helping your zucchini plant life to be salubrious and happy .
Check out our scout to growing zucchinito learn more about the dear methods to give care for your plants throughout the season .
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© Ask the Experts , LLC . ALL rightfield RESERVED.See our TOSfor more details . Originally published May 30th , 2020 . Last updated May 18th , 2023 . Uncredited picture : Shutterstock .
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Kristine Lofgren
