![]() Leaf-footed Bugs (L-fBs) and Squash bugs are in the bug family Coreidae. I invite you to share successes in your garden by browsing online to my Facebook webpage: This entry was posted in In the Garden Blog and tagged Leaf-foot bug, Stinkbug, Tomato culture. Don’t let a stinky situation get you down you will still have plenty of vegetables to harvest for your dinner table. I know you have read this next statement from my previous articles: always follow pesticide label application information to the letter, observe the “days-to-harvest” period indicated on the insecticide label, and always wash the fruit before eating. Broad-spectrum, pyrethroid-based insecticides such as those containing peremethrin can be effective for these insects these products, however are toxic to bees and beneficial insects and should be used sparingly. Insecticides should only be your last line of defense, and are most effective against small nymphs. Wear gloves when handling these insects because they will emit an unpleasant odor when crushed or provoked. Physical removal is also an option especially when the populations are just starting to build. You may also use row covers to keep the critter from accessing the vegetables. Pre-emptive control can be obtained by removing overwintering sites such as weedy areas. Leaf-footed bug populations can fluctuate from year to year due to natural factors such as hard winter freeze that disrupt overwintering, predation of eggs or adults from parasitic wasps, and predation from birds, spiders and assassin bugs. While damage can be a serious issue for commercial fresh market and processing businesses regarding visual appeal and marketability, home gardeners may be able to tolerate minor damage. Small fruit may abort from the action of feeding, a potential problem for cherry tomatoes such as Sun Gold or Sweet Million. The action of puncturing the fruit also allows secondary pathogens access and may be the cause of fruit decline or rotting. As a result of this activity, you may notice the skin of your tomato plants becoming a little “corky” or tough. ![]() Their damage is similar to that produced by stinkbugs: on soft-bodied vegetables like tomatoes, the damage initially appears as discoloration to the surface, depressions or blemishes on the fruit. Adults migrate from weedy and brushy areas into vegetable gardens and landscapes, and often when the fruits of your labor begin to ripen. There are typically two to three generations from the spring through summer. They lay eggs in spring as the weather begins to warm, nymphs emerge after one week and then begin to develop into adults within five to eight weeks. Leaf-footed bugs overwinter as adults in protected areas, such as in woody brush, barns or other buildings. They have been known to feed on stems and tender leaves of some plants. ![]() All stages have piercing-sucking mouth-parts through which they suck plant juices, and feed on a wide variety of developing fruit that includes peaches and tomatoes, as well as seeds such as bean and black-eyed peas. The adult’s hind-legs will have prominent leaf-like bulges, a feature that gives the insect its common name. Leaf-footed bug adults are almost an inch long with a gray to brown colored body and a distinctive white band across the front wings. You will often see them clustered while feeding on your vegetables. The nymph (immature) stages of this insect are soft-bodied with orange to red coloring and what looks like two small black bumps on their backside. Image courtesy Galveston County Master Gardener AssociationĪn insect that we commonly call a stinkbug may actually be identified as a leaf-footed bug.
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