Beetlejuice!
Cucumber beetles are out! The beetles that are emerging now had overwintered and are out to mate. In about a week, females will lay eggs in the soil and once hatched, the larvae will nibble on corn roots before developing into cucumber beetles. Adult cucumber beetles eat leaves and stems of cucumbers, melons and sometimes squash, in addition to spreading some cucumber plant diseases.
What can you do? The simplest, most effective approach is to examine your plants for adult beetles and squish them into beetle juice. Feel free to squish any you may see on a neighbor’s plot as well… the beetles will move around the garden so everyone has to be vigilant.
Feeling a little squeamish or aren’t sure how to locate them? Check out the image below for reference.
There are so many of them – is there anything else to do beside squishing them? What do the adults look like?
I pulled out my cucumber plants. They were everywhere. I had kirby cucumber and it seems like they are favored by the pests. I would like some suggestions for other small cucumber varieties that are resistant to the bugs.