Disclaimer
The plants suggested are primarily for the Coastal Plain area of the southern U.S. which loosely includes the area within the latitudes from Tifton, GA in the north (latitude 31.4623° N) to Wildwood, FL in the south (latitude 28.8586°N) . (Add in attached map here). This area also represents the USDA Horticultural Zones 8 and 9, however, many of the listed plant species are applicable to the entire southern region. Please note that we have not limited our inclusions to native plants for both practical (we wanted and needed a broad variety of available plants with the requisite services or use, re: trap crop species) and philosophical reasons (Knox and Mizell -AM. Nurseryman- and Niemela and Matson.1996 BioScience articles). Plants were included or excluded from the website based on several criteria. We tried to avoid plants that had known side effects or were considered invasive. Plants recommended in the general literature for the target area were vetted as closely as possible for any negative qualities before acceptance, and many of the plants were specifically observed and tested over a period of years by the authors for their provision of specific services. The plant species identified, tested and recommended for trap cropping of stink bugs were developed by author Russ Mizell and colleagues (Mizell et al. 2008). They are currently used in many parts of the U.S. because stink bugs are difficult to control naturally (very tolerant of many insecticides), and in organic and other alternative crop production (e.g., home gardeners), there are no other available effective suppression methods. Interestingly, the plant species recommended for use in stink bug trap cropping (buckwheat, sunflower, sorghum, millet, okra, etc.) provide other ecological services such as augmentation of beneficial insects and pollinators. They may also be used in portable containers as trap crops, for monitoring of pests as well as augmentation of ecosystem services.