Bugs on cucumber plant? - Ask Extension
I have been struggling with aphids on my tomato plants for a few weeks, but have mostly gotten rid of them. My cucumber plant has been unaffected and ...
Knowledgebase
Bugs on cucumber plant? #580877
Asked July 17, 2019, 10:19 AM EDT
I have been struggling with aphids on my tomato plants for a few weeks, but have mostly gotten rid of them. My cucumber plant has been unaffected and appears healthy, with many blooms and several cucumbers growing nicely. However, this morning I found black bugs all over the undersides of the leaves and hiding among the flowers. What are these insects and how can I get rid of them?
Suffolk County New York
Expert Response
The image is small and too dark to see much for identification but the shape looks like an aphid or a juvenile of some other bug.
I suggest capturing a few and take closer images with better lighting or take them to your extension office and see if they can ID them and possibly give you some sources for control if needed.
Thanks for the info. I caught one and have attached a picture of it. I put a dime next to help with its size. I don’t know if it helps, but they move very fast.
That second picture is a good one. The insect is the nymph stage of a true bug. As for which one, that is still a bit more difficult to determine. Better lighting would help on the color.
It might be a squash bug, Anasa tristis, which attacks pumpkins, squash, cucumbers and watermellon. If you have any of these other plants, check them out as well.
They do not survive very well on cucumbers, so you may not have a lasting problem. They do pretty well on pumpkins and squash.
They suck the juice out of plants but can also carry a bacteria which causes cucurbit yellow vine disease.
Here are a few links to extension fact sheets on the insect. Check them out to see if what you have matches.
Thanks for the information. Here is one final picture that shows the coloring in better light. It has the shape of the squash bug but the color seems off to me. I can’t seem to find anything online that matches it exactly.
much better image. It is a juvenile bug but not be a squash bug.
It looks like a juvenile brown marmorated stink bug.
If this is the case, it is an invasive species which is a real pest problem on a variety of crops. If you can, take it to the extension office or send them this last image so they can verify this identification and inform the DEC of the location of this pest.
Read the information in the following links and check your plants accordingly.
If you have near by neighbors, you might want to inform them if they have susceptible plants. Your county is already listed as one with this pests.
https://nysipm.cornell.edu/agriculture/vegetables/vegetable-ipm-practices/chapter-27/section-27-6-3/
