Insect netting is a lightweight, fine-mesh fabric that can be placed over plants in your vegetable garden to prevent damage from insect pests. Here the netting is used over a squash plant to exclude insects such as cucumber beetles and squash vine borers. The netting should be removed when the plants begin to flower, to allow insects to pollinate the plants. – Presented by Extension Educator Jon Traunfeld

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Hi, I’m Jon Traunfeld with the  University of Maryland Extension,   here with an organic vegetable gardening tip.  Insect netting is becoming more widely available   for gardeners. It’s a way to cover plants  and exclude insect pests. This particular   mesh is covering a squash plant, so we can  exclude cucumber beetles, squash beetles,  

Squash vine borer, and the smaller the mesh  the smaller the insect that we can exclude.   Of course, this is squash so we’ll have to  remove the cover when the plant starts to bloom,   which it looks like it’s doing today. And  then that’ll allow pollinators to get in  

And cross-pollinate the flowers. So insect netting  can be a really good tool for a vegetable garden.

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