Can we outwit the stinkbugs?

Last fall I wrote a post called Stopping Stinkbugs without Poisons. Since these nasty little pests are predicted to cause more problems this year, I wanted to pass along this great post I saw on Susan Reimer's Garden Variety column.

Susan wondered if there are any type of vegetable plants that are less susceptible to stinkbug problems so she asked Ellen Nibali of the University of Maryland Extension's Home and Garden Information Center what she would recommend.

Here is some of the information from Ellen Nibali, as excerpted from Susan's blog post:

Early crops will probably avoid the wrath of the stink bugs, at least intense damage. Also, very late crops. So, timing is something to experiment with. ... 

we can say for certain that legumes, tomatoes, pepper and sweet corn were heavily infested last year . 

All of which is to say, plant other crops. Try lettuce or eggplant or any of the brassicas--cabbage, Brussel sprouts, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, radish, turnips, etc. Stink bugs have been seen on eggplant, but no injury has been officially reported. 

In the case of tomatoes, we suspected that the thicker-skinned varieties may have been less attractive to the stink bugs. 

Incidentally, blueberries and blackberries were reported to have no injury. Red raspberries, I can say from experience, were hammered. 

To read the full post, visit Susan Reimer's Garden Variety column.

More about the Brown Marmorated Stinkbug can be found on the Invasive Species page from the University of Maryland Extension.