SQUASH INSECTS. The insect fauna of the squash and the pumpkin are practically identical, and several insects which feed upon these plants also attack melons, cucumbers, etc. (See MELON INSECTS.) The most important in the United States are the squash-bug (A Hasa tristis) and its closely similar relative, the horned squash bug (Anasa armigcra), the squash-vine borer satyriniformis), and the squash lady bird (Epilachna borealis). The squash-bug is a dull grayish brown musky-smelling bug of the family Coreithe, a little over half an inch long, which hibernates in the adult stage. Its large golden brown eggs are laid in the spring upon the foliage. The young bugs, which grow rap idly and molt five times, suck the juices of the plant. Hand-picking the bugs before eggs are laid, kerosene sprayed upon vines started very early to act as decoys, and destruction of the bugs on the vines and fruits after the crop has been gathered, are the only feasible remedies. The squash-vine borer, a clear-winged moth of the family Sesiid:c, has an orange or red and black and bronze abdomen and hairy hind legs, red or orange on the outer surface, and black inside. The young caterpillars hatched from eggs laid on the stems in late spring bore into the stein, which wilts and dies. In midsummer they pu
pate in a tough cocoon beneath the surface of the ground, whence the adult emrges in spring. In the South a second generation appears in August. The best preventive measures consist in late fall harrowing and deep spring plowing. The squash ladybird, belonging to the genus Epilachna, which contains the only plant-feeding species of the family Coceinellidaz (see BIRD), is a black-spotted, yellow, hemispherical species of wide geographical distribution. The adult beetles hibernate and lay their eggs upon the leaves in May or June. The yellow, spiny larvN chew circular holes in the leaves, reach full growth in from two to four weeks, and transform to puptc, attaching themselves by the tip of the body to a leaf or stem. There are two or more generations each year. and the insect is readily controlled by an arsenical spray.
The pickle-worm, melon caterpillar, certain plant-hugs, and flea-beetles (qq.v.) are also troublesome. Consult: Smith. Manual of Eco nomic Entomology (Philadelphia, 1896) tenden, Bulletin 19, Division of Entomology, Department of Agriculture (Washington, 1899).