is it that time already?

A. I can't believe it's already June!
B. I can't believe we already have cucumber beetles! (again.)

It seems early to be dealing with these guys, but it turns out they are right on time and we were the ones who were late last year. The good news is that our plants are pretty well established & we already have some cucumbers, so that helps get us a small step ahead of the beetle.

Last year the beetles and the squash bugs completely demolished all of our squash and cucumbers. Seriously, we got one cucumber. And not a single zucchini! I blame myself for not identifying them sooner, but hey - live and learn...

Speaking of identifying, here's what they look like:

photo from Illinois Fruit and Vegetable News

They're problematic not only because they chew on the leaves & fruit, but also, because they spread squash mosaic virus and transmit a bacteria that causes bacterial wilt in plants like cantaloupe, cucumbers, pumpkins, and butternut squash.

So, what do you do if you see these guys all over your plants? First, act fast! Last year, the bacterial wilt spread so quickly that we lost our cucumber plants in about 2 days. Once the plant is infected, there's no turning back the disease.

Here's what we've been doing to try to keep damage to a minimum:

• Our first line of defense is companion planting. We surrounded the squash plants with borage and marigolds. The cukes are flanked with radishes, which may be the only reason we don't have even more beetles. This requires some planning ahead of time, but was high on our list of improvements this year.
• We also moved all the cucurbits into cedar raised beds. We knew we had to move them to another locale in the yard either way because last year's infestation in the row garden was so bad, they were sure to spring up in the same spot this year looking for more. Hopefully the cedar will help deter the insects as well. 
• Plant extras. If all of our squash & cucumber plants make it, we're going to have more than we know what to do with! We expect to lose some, but we're also expecting to make some pickles.
• Beneficial bugs. Unfortunately, we didn't plan ahead enough for this one, but beneficial nematodes are recommended to help control the cucumber beetle and many other insects.
• RELEASE THE CHICKENS! As soon as we noticed these little buggers, we grabbed our juvenile hens and dropped them in the garden bed. I tried to encourage them to eat the beetles instead of the cukes, but they're young and they distract easily, and ok... not really easy to train.
• Remove & squish. This method is simple - if I see 'em, I squish 'em. But it's time consuming and not likely that I'll catch them all.
• Neem oil. When we realized there were enough to warrant concern, we decided to break out the neem - mostly because it's what we have on hand & it's a good organic solution that doesn't harm beneficial insects. In our experience, neem works best as a control method rather than an eradication method. It's generally considered one of the safest organic pest solutions, but I checked with a local hatchery just to be sure it was ok to use around the chickens (especially since I just taught them it's ok to climb around and forage in there). They assured us that it is safe & non-toxic for the girls. Another treatment they suggested was food grade diatomaceous earth, which I've read is often used with chickens to prevent/treat mites & lice, and would certainly take care of the cucumber beetles. Should we need to go the eradication route, it's an option, but for now we seem to be staying ahead of them & will hopefully have a pickling party with our own cukes in a couple months. 

praying for a mantis.

Look who I found hanging out on the hummingbird feeder! The elusive praying mantis. Some say they are a gardener's dream for managing other plant pests. Plus, I'm one of those weirdos who think they are super cute with their little alien eyes and rotating heads. Apparently, the hummingbird feeder was leaking and the sugar water was attracting every ant for miles... enter the praying mantis for the all-you-can-eat ant buffet! :)

I brought him out to the garden with me and he climbed off the feeder somewhere around the mint and cucumbers. Though he'll have to work a tiny bit harder for his meals, I'm pretty sure he'll have enough food over there. Hopefully he will stay and help out with the remaining cucumber beetles and assassin bugs. Maybe "he" is even a "she" and more little mantises will start popping up.

Beneficial or harmful for the garden? It's true that the praying mantis does not discriminate. He'll eat a cucumber beetle or a beneficial lacewing, both are quite tasty for him. However, with a severe lack of beneficial bugs in the garden and an overgrowth of destructive ones, I'm happy to take my chances. Welcome home, Mr. (or Ms.) Mantis.

cute things keep eating our food

Ok, not-so-cute things too.

But, let's start with the bunnies. They're not so much of an issue now that we have a secure fence, but before we got that together, they had a daily feast. Bunnies have munched our kale, lettuce, blueberries, grapes, raspberries, and blackberries. Don't get me wrong, I love the bunnies. I even have a holland lop bunny named Alonso residing in my home... and he eats a lot of organic produce too, come to think of it. Thankfully, the fencing has eliminated any sort of internal struggle I might have in the battle of bunny vs. sustenance. Hopefully, we can now have some of those 'spring greens' in fall.

this one was so cute, i actually *tried* to feed him.

The terror of the garden now is the cucumber beetle & his friend, the squash bug. Their first victim was the lone cucumber plant. We'd just harvested our first cucumber, and several more were in progress, when I started noticing wilted leaves. After some research, I identified the "yellow ladybug" and tried to save the plant, but to no avail. I'm still not sure exactly what happened, but it looked like bacterial wilt.

we have the striped & the spotted ones. we're lucky that way.

The squash bugs showed up shortly after. I noticed an insect laying eggs on the squash and watched in awe. Mistakenly thinking this could be a beneficial bug, I let them flourish and take over the garden. I thought they might take out the cucumber beetles. I'm a n00b, I know. Since correctly identifying them as the destroyer of squash (where's Gil Grissom when you need him???), I've started regularly dousing them with an organic garlic spray concoction. They don't like it, but it hasn't quite gotten rid of them either. The fate of the squash is yet to be determined.

squash bug laying eggs on our summer squash plant.

With organic gardening, there are some sprays & repellants that can be used, most of which you can make yourself - essential oil sprays like garlic, peppermint, etc., soap-based sprays, baking soda, and several others. However, as with most things in life, it seems the best way to control pests like beetles is to prevent them. (Now we know what to do next year. :) While we have used some essential oil sprays and soap sprays, we'd ideally like to support a symbiotic ecosystem in the garden with beneficial bugs eating destructive bugs, and not rely on sprays at all.

We hoped to have some praying mantids in the garden, but we were late to the beneficial bug party this year, so it's at the top of the list for next spring. We did, however, order some ladybugs from amazon.com (further proof you can get anything at amazon.com). They arrived in great shape and with clear instructions on how to release them. Having no experience with keeping bugs instead of getting rid of them, I was surprised to find that you should store them in the refrigerator until release. Though I was concerned they'd die in there next to the soy milk, it actually helped to make them less alert and slow-moving for release. Once you take them out of the fridge, it takes a few minutes for them to become active again, so it's a good time to open the lid and put them in the garden without having them all rush the top at once.

The ladybugs stayed around for a few days, but within a week they'd all left. We did multiple releases over the course of a couple of weeks, but I'm guessing there just wasn't enough of the food they prefer to stick around. Still, a small investment to at least give it a try.

The most recent visitor to wreak havoc was actually enjoyable to watch, which is always a plus. These are black swallowtail caterpillars and grow up to be very beautiful butterflies.

fat swallowtail caterpillars in the parsley

what the caterpillars become

Granted, they devoured every last bit of the parsley in the span of a day, but they were so stunning to watch, I must admit that I really didn't mind. Maybe in their next life they'll return the favor by coming back to pollinate.