Squash Bug's Worst Nightmare: A Hand Vaccuum

Our squash plants have long been plagued by squash bugs which pretty much spell death (at some point) for a squash plant.  I've noticed that while a squash plant can survive for a while, the infestation makes it hard for it to produce fruit.

Rightly so though, the damage can get pretty intense:

We usually get squash bugs late in the season after the squash has had plenty of time to produce lots of fruit.  This year we got them pretty much right after we planted the squash.  Seeing these pests pretty much right after we planted is quite disheartening since it means we just planted the squash for the bugs to eat.  Thus, no squash for us... [insert sad face]

So... what do you do about squash bugs?  The prevailing consensus from the hobbyist gardeners I know is pretty much: "not much you can do, they're impossible to kill".  That is, if you want to eat your squash, and not spray pesticides all over it and wait 2 months until you can actually pick and eat the squash.

One solution I had heard from a co-worker was that his retired father has time to just pick the squash bugs off by hand... this obviously would not work for us, being time starved parents.  However, this sort of mechanical solution seems like something the squash bugs really can't fend off.  There's not much they can do if they're physically removed from the plant.

Hence... the vacuum.  Using a vacuum is possibly the best way to control squash bugs on a small scale.

I had initially tried a shop vacuum, like this one:

For obvious reasons this didn't work, it is way too powerful and ended up damaging the plant by inhaling the leaves.  The next step was to find something that would removed the bugs but not harm the plant.

A low power hand vacuum does the job well. Such as one of these:

The cheaper the better because it's going to break (any brand I have had breaks within a year or then develops a one minute battery life) and you want it to be low power (low voltage rating) so it removes the bug but is harmless to the plant.  Also, the smaller the better, a smaller vacuum will be more mobile when attempting to remove the bugs from the underside of the leaves.

It's key to stay on top of the squash bugs to enable the plant to recover from the damage.  The squash bugs should eventually die out provided you can remove enough generations early enough to prevent them from breeding and laying eggs.

Be sure to also remove the squash bug eggs with a butter knife, this will shorten the number of iterations you have to go through before the squash bugs stop coming back.

If the squash bugs aren't diligently removed, the plant may survice but it probably will not fruit.  A plant that is constantly focused on rebuilding itself from parasite damage isn't going to spend any time producing fruit.

Happy vacuuming!

Albuquerque 311 Success Story, Water Wise

Occasionally I play Frisbee with coworkers at Sunset Canyon Park. Last week the sprinklers were on in the middle of the day. Which caused some confusion given that Albuquerque is supposed to be a water wise city. However, what is one lowly citizen supposed to do to protect our water resources?

The source of confusion comes from the knowledge that Albuquerque is supposedly doing great on it's water conservation program— if so, why would a city park be watering in the middle of the day?

The Albuquerque Water Utility Authority offers rebates for attending water smart classes. These classes are informative, they discuss how Albuquerque was once thought to be a City atop Lake Superior. Now, the city is being more conservative, considering new information from advances in technology that say all that water isn't easily accessible or usable.

Hence, the issue of a watering system gone awry. As it turns out, 311 is a great way to report these issues. I called 311 as soon as we saw the problem and it was reported easily within minutes. The 311 personnel I spoke with was both helpful and courteous.

She stated that sometimes watering systems are on if there's an extra need for it; if the grass or plants in the area need extra water. However, this wasn't the case at Sunset Canyon.

Several days went by and I didn't think anything of it. I reported it, I did my part. I assumed the report would go in the vast abyss of government bureaucracy and paralysis— but maybe it would get fixed.

To my surprise, less than a week later, I received a call from someone at the parks and recreation department:

Hi we received your report via 311, thank you for reporting it, we have a sprinkler control system that's on the fritz, I have someone looking at it.

Awesome! Good job Albuquerque. I never expected to actually hear back from someone on an issue like this. It made my citizen "call to action" feel like I actually made a difference in the community. All via Albuquerque's 311 system.