Tomato caterpillars?
Tomatoes are being grown in raised beds zone 7B. Could someone please tell me what is wrong with my tomatoes & how to get rid of the problem? It appears to be caterpillars, maybe more than 1 kind. I picked all of these yesterday & there is not one that doesn't have an issue. They are beefsteak & german johnson tomatoes. I typically pull them early so the squirrels will not eat them. Thanks in advance.
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It could be fruit worms. Get some Neem Oil.
This looks like damage from a tomato fruit worm, take a look at this link to learn more about them, their ID and control of them:
http://www.tomatodirt.com/tomato-fruitworms.html
Probably a tomato worm also known as a horned worm. They are ugly! You must pull all of them off the plant.
If hornworms, i just pluck off by hand and toss directly into the green waste bin so they don't crawl back.
If it it tomato worms you can find small green balls of poop under the plant. Examine the plant under the leaves and along stems for them. They get HUGE, are mint green and are as big as your finger when full grown. Push them into an empty jar filled with soapy water or step on if you have the stomach for it (I don't). You can also spray the plants with an organic spray, like garlic, 1 crushed clove and hot pepper sauce to a quart of water. Steep the garlic in a cup like you are making tea, cool then add to the water and pepper sauce.
Neem oil has a dual purpose in the vegetable garden as both a pesticide and a fungicide. It works on arthropod pests that often eat your vegetables, including tomato hornworms, corn earworm, aphids and whiteflies. In addition, neem oil also controls common fungi that grow on vegetable plants, including: Mildews.
It is safe to use on both ornamental and edible crops and can be sprayed on herbs and vegetables up to the day of harvest. Applying neem oil to a drought-stressed plant can burn the foliage, so water plants thoroughly before using it.
Just be certain to dilute it per instructions before spraying!
I have an organic garden and I use this for caterpillars. It works great: https://amzn.to/39hfyIV
https://homeguides.sfgate.com/rid-caterpillars-tomato-plants-50520.html I also added some plant food for my tomato and it helped them get stronger.
You can always contact a local nursery or the County AG Extension agency.
Definitely Hornworms, they are so ugly and you must pick them off or Another way to spot them is to spray the plant with soapy water. The soapy water will cause the hornworms to wiggle and convulse around, making it easier to spot them. If hornworms are found immediately remove them from the plant and either drop them in a container of soapy water or smoosh them
Hello. Hello. The caterpillars tend to do most destruction on the plant leaves and you can usually find them on these underside of the leaves that have the chewed activity.
There are numerous reasons for black spots on tomatoes. These links might be helpful.
https://apps.extension.umn.edu/garden/diagnose/plant/vegetable/tomato/fruitspots.html
https://pddc.wisc.edu/2017/02/17/bacterial-spot-tomato/
Here are some helpful tips to get rid of tomato hornworms: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffxWEfMzwzA
I’m having the same problem I bought organic spray at Home Depot that works great it’s Dr something I can’t remember the name but it was a yellow bottle and the only one with doctor on it.
What a shame .. I will for sure follow your post to learn
Spray Bt (beneficial nematodes) now. Next year, plant tomatoes a good distance away. Destroy (burn or solarize in black plastic bags for a week) all dead tomato plant matter every year. Plant perennial rye in this year's tomato bed and let overwinter. Build bird houses near your garden. Tuck some toad houses in the garden as well. Plant dill and other umbelliferae to attract beneficial wasps (small) that predate on caterpillars. GOOD LUCK!