Vegetable

All Vegetable Content

Left: Yellow beetle with black spots present on a green leaf. Right: Red beetle with black spots.

Argus Tortoise Beetle: No, It’s Not a Lady Beetle

Every summer, we receive reports of what looks like a large yellow lady beetle, except that they are defoliating certain plants. It isn’t a lady beetle, it’s the Argus tortoise beetle.

Left: Red larvae with black spots and black head on green leaf. Right: Orange beetles with white elytra with many black lines on each side.

Colorado Potato Beetles Causing Defoliation on Potatoes

Last week we received calls about insects feeding on potato plants. The culprit was the Colorado potato beetle, which is a major pest of potatoes.

Four green caterpillars feeding on kale.

Imported Cabbage Worms Are Chewing up My Garden!

One of the worst things to observe in your garden are caterpillars heavily defoliating your plants. But unfortunately, that’s exactly what the imported cabbageworms (cabbage white) caterpillars do.

Sideview of cut zucchini showing a small white caterpillar with a black head.

Squash Vine Borers Strike Again: This Time They’re in the Produce!

The larvae of the squash vine borer can wreak havoc on squash plants by boring into the stems and slowly killing the plants. Unfortunately, they’ll do even more than that. They will also invade the developing produce.

Watch Your Squash! Squash Vine Borer Moths Are Active.

Each year vine crops, including squash, zucchini and pumpkin plants, fall victim to squash vine borer larvae feeding inside their stems.

Small black beetles feeding on a green leaf.

Flea Beetles in the Garden

Flea beetles have been out in full force so far this year. This group of herbivorous beetles can be a pest of many different garden plants, including tomatoes, peppers, beans, squash, lettuce and others.

Numerous grayish-brown bugs gathering on a green stem.

False Chinch Bugs Back Again

False chinch bugs are active yet again in South Dakota. Although they are normally only a nuisance pest, their populations can become magnified during cool, wet springs.

A young native american man handing a customer a canvas bag.

Native American Gardens

Learn more about Native American community garden projects throughout South Dakota and access helpful resources with information on starting up Native American community garden projects.

A pair of hands transplanting a tomato seedling in a black, plastic pot.

Growing Your Own Food

Are you thinking about growing your own fresh vegetables this year, maybe for the first time? In addition to the satisfaction of providing fresh, nutritious and delicious produce for yourself and family or friends, many find working with plants and soil to be a great antidote for the worries and frustrations of the day.

Black beetles with orange or yellow spots feeding on a ripe tomato.

Insects are Invading My Produce!

Ripe fruit that has been injured as well as ground fall fruits often attract undesirable insects into an area.