Squash Bugs Resistance SOLUTION

General Discussions
1

I’ve read this old thread on Permies. It was started 9 years ago, the man speaks of his struggle with Squash bugs, how they keep ruining his crops, people reply, say a million things in between… But at page 4 (2 years ago in 2025) he says this:

Thanks Kaarina! Things have really changed since I posted this. I was so frustrated but am no longer. My friends, and family we’re getting bumper crops while I’m struggling to grow literally everything. I now look forward to garden pest because that means my garden friends are not far behind.
Everyone raves about how good my produce is and asks my secrets. I tell them I do very little and no one believes me. :joy:
I only do a couple things that require actual effort. I make enough compost to have seed starting media. I also bought a mower with a grass catcher. Everything gets mulched every time I mow. Mowed grass and leaves is the best thing I’ve ever done for my soil!
I buy nothing and bring in nothing from outside the farm. I feel like what grows here is everything that’s needed.

This is great news! Somebody has overcome squash bugs. The topic is called: ‘‘I thought permaculture insect control had failed me, but land racing saved the day.’’

I am hopeful this could be a boost for people struggling with Squash Bugs and if we play this right for adaptation gardening as a whole. Some ordinary man has through years of struggle obtained the solution to squash bugs. Get those seeds!

https://permies.com/t/120/57948/thought-permaculture-insect-control-failed

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2

He got success by following Joseph’s advice, given early on in the Permies thread. He’d been planting heirlooms and keeping them pure, but once he let things hybridise and replanted seeds from the survivors instead of the commercial seeds, his squash thrived and weren’t affected. It’s a wonderful landracing success story!

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At first it was called something like ‘‘permaculture failed me!!’’ or something. I read it to try to find out what was wrong, only to read that in the end it turned great. But it still had this shitty title. When changed i thought people would be all over him for seeds, but people don’t, seem to love their squash bugs too much.

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I’m on year 3 breeding for squash bug resistance and long storage life, this year hardly anything even sprouted so maybe the squash bugs all died of starvation. Hopefully something grows so i can keep this going.

5

I have my zucchini population that just brushed off squash bugs in my old environment–arid, sandy soil, high temperatures. In this new area (wet, clay soil) the squash bugs were the winner. I’ll keep trying.

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