If you have a vegetable garden this is the month to be on the lookout for pickle worms, tomato horn worms, stink bugs, leaf footed bugs, squash bugs, and bean beetles. Any or all of these insects can cause a lot of damage to the vegetable crop.

If any of these insects are found in the garden, hand picking them is often the best method of control. Picking them off the plant and placing them in a bucket of water with some liquid dish soap will often dispatch them. In the case of the caterpillars, you may be able to feed some birds by placing them out in the open where the birds can easily find them.

Keep in mind that not all insects are bad to have in the garden. Wheel bugs, assassin bugs, lady beetles, lacewings, spiders, and several other insects are actually beneficial. Wheel bugs and assassin bugs feed on a wide variety of insects in the garden including many caterpillars and stink bugs that cause damage to the crops.  Lady beetles and lace wings feed on aphids and other soft bodied insects that suck the juices out of the plant. It’s important not only to know what the adult insect looks like, but also what the immature stage of the insect looks like. The immature stage of these beneficial insects often eats as much if not more of the pests than the adults.