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Tip for Texas SQ Footers

Texas gardeners,
If your tomato and other veggies crops are
bothered by stink bugs (leaf-footed stink bugs),
here is a tip that worked for me in my 1996 garden.
Dr. Bart Drees, entomologist at Texas A&M told
me that pecan growers (the nuts can be ruined by
one sting from stink bugs) were using sunflowers as
trap crops in their groves.  Trees are planted in rows
for easy harvesting and care.  So rows of sunflowers
were planted between the tree rows.  Sunflowers are
the preferred food of stink bugs, and they went to them.
Nut damage went down dramatically.

So, in March 1996, I planted a Teddy Bear sunflower
seed between each tomato plant.  Unfortunately, the
variety which is supposed to grow to only about 30 inches
reached five feet in my good soil.  But, the stink bugs flocked
to the sunflowers and left alone the tomatoes.

A great bonus, besides the beautiful flowers, was that in late
spring, lady bugs flocked to the flowers.  I've never seen so
many lady bugs in my garden.  And there wasn't an aphid,
either.  I recommend planting sunflowers as a trap and lure
for beneficials.  Just thought I'd share some experience.
Doreen Howard
Zone 9B
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