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Aurora, IL

I have never planted pumpkin seeds but decided to this year. They sit alone. After cutting off a dead leaf I noticed a whitish, clear-like bug/worm inside the stem. Is it too late to treat the patch? What next? Advice please. I never imagined a Big Pumpkins.com! Thanks.

7/28/2001 8:33:25 PM

Long Island,New York

Elisa...you have what is known as squash vine borers.There's a little red and black moth that flies during the day and looks like a wasp that lays eggs on the vines,stems, and leaves of all squash-like plants.(tiny reddish brown disk-like eggs laid one by itself about the size of a pinhead) These eggs hatch to grub-like beasties that eat out the flesh of the plant. If you have one....you have more. Look for small brown spots with brown sawdust-like goopy stuff coming out...there is a borer in there somewhere near the goop. Now what? Well,if you find them you can slit the vine with a razor blade(along the stem or vine NOT ACROSS it),find the little vile creature and kill it. You can also: use a systemic insecticide to kill them. Use a contact insecticide to chase new ones awat and kill them. Use nematodes to eat them. Inject insecticide into the vines to kill them.Give up and plant tomatoes.Burry your vines after inspection for eggs to prevent access by them,wrap your vines with remay or old nylons to prevent access,cover your whole patch with mosquito netting and hope no pupae are in the ground already,or turn the other way and hope they arent in really bad areas.
I'll leave the good news on effective pesticides to someone else here on big pumpkins...I've given you enough bad news......G

7/28/2001 8:54:12 PM

Aurora, IL

G...systemic insecticide, contact insecticide, inject insecticide??????? Should I give up and burn the small plot? Let's put it this way, I'm no Martha Stewart. Is there one product I can buy or do I but three products to treat? Jaust a bit confused and discouraged...

7/28/2001 9:16:33 PM

GULFPORT,MISSISSIPPI

elisa, i'm new at this like you, sothis is is gonna be like the blind leading the blind. the other members told me that a product that i got from lowe's(bayer advanced garden tree and shrub insect insecticide)is a good systemic to use. they also recommend spraying with a residual/contact spray( scimitar cs is supposed to work really well). don't be discouraged. the vine borer problem has gotten me for the past four years but not this time. i've got the facts and info to defeat them from this website! go find your yellow infected leaves and either remove them if too far gone or slit them length-wise near their entry hole and remove them. these people on this site a very helpful. just read all you can and ask questions. they're happy to help. don't let the vine borers break you down! good luck!

7/28/2001 9:33:26 PM

Wantagh, NY

Hey, hang in there! I'm also new at this, got lots of good info from people on this site in the string titled "Help, first time..."

The borers are incredibly persistant!

7/30/2001 9:27:12 AM