As I may or may not have mentioned a while ago, I got to thinking about that kaolin clay based Surround that some of you spray on some of your veggies for bug protection. And I wondered if kaolin clay painted on squash stems might harden and deter squash vine borers. The theory is that they won't be able to chew through the hardened clay. Oh, for sure the larvae can climb above the hardened area and do their damage but at least if the frass holes are higher on the plant they'd be more visible.
Kaolin mines are everywhere around here and I was able to access some high grade processed kaolin powder that I mixed into a nice soft, very paintable consistency. Last evening I took the kaolin slurry I to the garden and applied it to the stems of the Tahitian melon squash and to the straightneck yellow squash, making sure I got it painted on all the way to the bottom.The zucchini and spaghetti squash stems weren't long enough to really do yet.
By the time I was done for the evening, the slurry had hardened up nicely. There's also some DE dusted around the stems. And in the process of painting the straightneck, I discovered there's the first baby squash on the way.
I got to thinking that maybe I can incorporate some bT dust into the mix. That way if they do try o chew through the kaolin, they'll get a belly full of nasty. We'll see how this all holds up after a rain. Maybe I'll keep painting the stem all the way up as it grows. We'll see.