Do Stink Bugs feed on orchid roots?

[patk]

I summer my orchids outside on my terrace. I also have other flowering plants there and last summer I brought home a hanging tomato plant. Sure enough, over the course of the summer, I spotted Stink Bugs (although I didn't know what they were at the time) on my orchid leaves and they would come out of the bark when I watered. Since I have brought my orchids inside, I have seen several Stink Bugs and have killed them all and flushed them down the toilet. My questions are:
Do Stink Bugs feed on orchid roots as they did on the tomatoes?
I think they lay eggs on plant leaves (I believe I saw some, but I scraped them off), but do they also lay eggs in the bark?
Can I use Triazicide on orchids?
Do I have to repot every orchid with fresh bark?
Thank you for your help.

[camille1585]

Stingbugs don't feed on roots, only the aboveground parts, so what you may have seen on tomato roots was not stinkbugs. Probably what you see crawling out of the orchid medium is not stinkbugs either. They can also be beneficial insects, as they also feed on numerous insect pests, but stinkbug's damage to plants outweighs their usefulness as predators.

As for repotting, since usually orchids don't outgrow their pots very quickly, the main reason for repotting is to change the medium, so in a way you could consider it as changing it everytime.

[Connie Star]

We have a lot of stink bugs that try to get into our house in late fall- I've seen them on the plants but i haven't been worried about them- should I be?

[camille1585]

Stinkbugs come into houses in the fall to hibernate. They're sap sucking insects, so yes, you should be worried about them. However it depends on how many there are.

[patk]

Thank you Camille. They are definitely Stink Bugs as I looked them up on the Internet and they are becoming a big problem for crops on the East coast of the United States. I think they came with the tomato plant (where they desicated some of the tomotoes) and then took shelter in the orchid bark. I just hope they didn't lay eggs in the orchid bark that will hatch in the Spring! As long as I know they won't eat the roots of my orchids, I'll deal with them as I have been, by squishing and flushing them!

[CTB]

Welcome to the Orchid Board. You've come to the right place for answers with over 15,800 members someone can always help. Enjoy! Make lots of posts