Quote:
Originally Posted by b54red
Barb it might do you some good next year if you would try to eliminate as many of the leaf footed bugs as you can here at the end of your season. If you go out into the garden late in the evening after the sun is down you can usually find leaf footed bugs sitting near the tops of tomatoes and other plants. They are fairly easy to spot against the evening sky if you look closely. Late in my season I go out armed with a small spray bottle with some Dawn, Permethrin and water and zap them. This way I don't have to spray everything to get them. I also go out very early around sunrise all season and look for the herds of juvenile leaf footed bugs, stink bugs and squash bugs and using the same spray hit them with a burst. They tend to stick together for a few days before spreading out and really making a mess of things so it is the ideal time to get them all bunched up.
Bill
|
Tonight just before the sun went down but still light out, I went out and shook the cage of the Esterina plant, and about 6-8 of them flew out. I waited a little and did the permethrin and dawn and visited the plants I've seen them on and a few more. I saw some fly away even with spraying them. If I see them tomorrow, I will do the same with a hose end sprayer.
I usually don't have this fruit set this late but restarted a bunch of plants via clones after hail in late March. It is certainly much buggier now than prior years.