Stink Bugs Stink

We have beautiful tomato plants that have bloomed and borne fruit and we have eaten a few tomatoes.

But what a struggle with the stink bugs we have had!

Here are a pair preparing to make more of their kind, all of which will want to feed on something in the garden.

They are called stink bugs because they give off a stinky defensive (and offensive) spray.

We have dusted (and dusted) and when this plastic can was empty, I used it to hand-pick stink bugs off the plants.

Their habit is to drop, not fly, when disturbed, so I put the open bottle under them and they drop in and are trapped in the dusty interior. I have several dozen in there now.

We have finally learned that spray-- not dust-- is the treatment for these pests---but in the end, they will have won. We also see them on other plants, but the tomatoes have borne the brunt of their damage. This is so disappointing as the tomatoes are probably the most versatile crop we are growing, as far as recipes go.

This stink bug was playing a little trick on me. It had turned quite rosy on this pink zinnia.

It varied some with the light.

Pretty cool trick.

(Wonder if it stayed pink in the Sevin bottle.)