Planting my garden today... what to do about squash bugs ....

[HerbLady]

last year, my pumpkins and squashes were overrun with squash bugs. I picked them off the plants by hand and tried to stay on top of them but I am afraid that this year the same thing will happen again. Can anyone who might be an experienced gardener give me some tips on what I can do to keep them at bay this year? I lost my one and only pumpkin because of those little buggers! (excuse the pun) 

[diala84]

I've never had this problem so I can't say for sure. Often times you can plant some plants that the bugs don't like near the plants they do like and it will deter them. There are also insecticidal sprays that you can make at home or buy at the store. Probably the best thing you can do is search online and see what you find for solutions. 

[plennis]

I don't know if it will work with squash bugs, but I have found spraying diluted dish washing soap on the plants keeps a lot of the different bugs off.                       

[lucky382001]

What I've read is that by placing a board near the plant you can pick up and remove bugs everyday, but I think having a clean garden to start with helps keep down alot of bug populations.