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East Central Ohio

Hi all, starting to get things in order for the 2012 growing season and have a couple questions on things I learned last season. First, I got nailed by the SVB last season and lost one of my two plants I had. I was able to somewhat save the second plant by removing the SVB's but really did not get any more growth. I ended up with a 242 lb AG off of this plant, which I was happy with considering it was my only second year trying and with all the problems. What do I need to look for in insecticides that will prevent SVB's.

Also, will it hurt the growth if I was to shade the whole plant or should I just shade where I am pollinating? Thanks for any suggestions or advice. GOOD LUCK TO ALL THIS SEASON.

2/22/2012 12:00:38 AM

Nottingham, UK

I don't know much about SVB as its not a problem we have in the UK.

Its only my second year but I would guess that where you are pollinating should certainly be shaded. We had a cool to average summer last year so there was no need to consider shading. I did however shade my plant up until it was about 6 foot long. I did this as the yound leaves were getting burnt on the edges by the sun. I used some scaffold netting which solved the problem without filtering out too much of the much needed sunlight.

Good luck to you too!

2/22/2012 5:41:26 AM

Jefferson Ohio

Bullock...you will need to find merit...active ingredient imidacloprid..it is systemic..either in granular form or liquid. i use wp75 1/10 tsp to a gal folier once a wk ..anything bites that plant its dead!..good luck..

2/22/2012 8:43:44 PM

Menomonie, WI (mail@gr8pumpkin.net)

merit only needs to be applied every 60 days...At Planting and again in Mid June..then back it up with a good contact

2/22/2012 10:00:59 PM

Eastern Pennsylvania

To add to what Shannon said, a good contact insecticide would be bifen IT. It is a cheap generic of tal star. I have not had a single svb in 4 years of using the merit bifen combo.

2/23/2012 2:10:34 PM