Spraying soapy water on the underside of litchi stink bug nymphs can effectively control them: method shared by a National Taiwan University research lab

Text by Lin Pei-chun and Tsai Chia-shan, reporters for News & Market

Ordinary, easily available soapy water can control the litchi stink bug! Right now is exactly the time when litchi stink bugs have just hatched from eggs into nymphs (note), but the litchi harvest season is approaching, so chemical pesticides should not be used, and spraying pesticides in residential areas is also inappropriate. A National Taiwan University master's student proposed "saponin control" in her research, using a soap solution that the public can easily obtain to spray the pests. It is highly safe, and even organic farmers can use it with peace of mind, filling the gap in current control methods.

News mini-glossary: The egg-layingperiod of the litchi stink bug is from February to August, with the densest period from March to April. After the eggs hatch, they become wingless nymphs, and they grow into adults from about mid-May to October. The adults overwinter and lay eggs, and continue to be active in the first half of the following year. Overall, the adult lifespan lasts as long as two to three hundred days.

(Link to "exempt-from-registration plant protection material products" here; any product whose label states "potassium fatty acid salt" can be used)

Note: The litchi stink bug is an insect with incomplete metamorphosis; its juvenile stage is called a "nymph" rather than a larva

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