Tomato Hornworms

[n8young]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Tomat ... n_hand.jpg

Anyone else having a bear of a time with these this year????

I am pulling a couple dozen a day off of my 21 plants. Each day I keep finding larger, and larger worms too.....I go out and "comb" the plants almost every day after work, 5:30 PMish.....every day same thing, a few small ones, a bunch of large ones. I don't think they are living long enough to do too much damage to my plants, but jeeeesh, when will they stop???

On the flipside, this is my first year with chickens.....and let's just say that with the increase in horn worms, the amount of chicken feed they have been eating is minimal....I think I probably fed them close to a half pound of hornworms last night.....not bad for six 3 month old chickens.....

Anyway, anyone else having issues with these this year? Does it become less of an issue if I plant my tomatoes next year on the other side of my garden, or does it not maye any difference for these guys?

Thanks all!!!

[imafan26]

I rarely see horn worms, but I plant to attract beneficial insects. I have fennel, dill (in summer), marigolds, sunflowers, lavender and sweet alyssum (nectar), and nasturtiums in the cooler months. I use some fungicides mostly baking soda and sulfur, but I rarely use any pesticides anymore. I am not pest free, but the natural predators take care of most of my problems.

I have bees coming around everyday, and while they are not as numerous as they were a few years ago, they are definitely making a comeback. They are even pollinating plants I prefer they did not like my parthenocarpic cukes and orchids. The fennel is off in a corner, it is loaded with aphids but also ladybug larvae and lady bugs, lacewings, hover flies, braconid wasps, and tachinid flies which like the nectar from the long lasting flower heads.

As much as I dislike them, the birds that eat my seed sometimes eat some insects as well. I have a lot of geckos and while they are particularly fond of earthworms, they will also catch mosquitoes and other worms and caterpillars they find. I have a resident black witch moth in my garage. It refuses to leave, but I rarely even see those caterpillars.

The biggest problem I have are with snails and slugs as I do not have a toad. I do bait for them, but that is an ongoing battle. I catch 5-20 snails and slugs every day.

I have grown tomatoes, eggplant, and peppers year round for years and horn worms love them but I don't remember a time when they were a problem.

https://www.vegedge.umn.edu/vegpest/hornworm.htm

[applestar]

At least your hornworms will eventually become chicken eggs!

Like imafan, I have my feathered and carapaced Garden Patrol to help:

https://helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewto ... 3&#p309733

https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/vi ... hp?t=18204

[dustyrivergardens]

I spray with Spinosad for thrips, tomato horn worms and cabbage looper are my main reason for spraying.

[rainbowgardener]

A common parasite for hornworms is a tiny braconid wasp. I only see a few hornworms and in my garden, I rarely see one without the white pupae on its back that indicate it has already been parasitized and is dying. The adult braconids eat flower nectar and pollen. To attract them, grow flowers that have nectar in lots of little florets like parsley dill etc when allowed to flower,chamomile, buckwheat and others.

[n8young]

I spray with Spinosad for thrips, tomato horn worms and cabbage looper are my main reason for spraying.

Dusty - will Spinosad stop the little bastards(not sure what they are) from eating my kale?

[TZ -OH6]

A couple dozen a day sounds like beet army worms.

[gixxerific]

Only 1 hornworm this year so far. Everybody act like you didn't hear that, I don't want to jinx myself.

Best method for hornworms in my opinion is hand picking. Plain and simple, I like the hunt.

[dustyrivergardens]

I spray with Spinosad for thrips, tomato horn worms and cabbage looper are my main reason for spraying.

Dusty - will Spinosad stop the little !@#$%(not sure what they are) from eating my kale?

haha probably not its probably some type of aphid. but Spinosad stops insects that eat the leaves but not the ones that suck the plant... I know that kinda sucks....

[n8young]

Only 1 hornworm this year so far. Everybody act like you didn't hear that, I don't want to jinx myself.

Best method for hornworms in my opinion is hand picking. Plain and simple, I like the hunt.

As gross as it sounds, I do enjoy the hunt for them myself as well, I am just not enjoying the damage they do as they are getting larger, and are eating far more than when they are just little guys....

[taradal]

I've only seen one hormworm, this year. It was a tiny baby, but had stripped one branch, already. I sprayed with Safer Caterpillar Killer and haven't seen another one, and that was about a month ago. It's relatively benign-doesn't hurt the good bugs. When the caterpillar eats a leaf that is sprayed, it stops eating and starves to death.

[rainbowgardener]

Safer caterpillar killer is Bt, often recommended around here.

[rainbowgardener]

Speaking of beneficial plants and insects, I thought this would be as good a place as any to tack on these observations:

Ironweed is blooming (such a gorgeous color!) and it is covered in honeybees! I didn't realize I still had so many of them around since the Meeting bee hive died. I don't remember seeing ironweed on lists of bee flowers (though I know it is attractive to butterflies), but right now it is one of the things in my garden they are liking best.

Wild grape vine is also blooming and it is swarming with all kinds of flying things - much bigger variety than the ironweed, which mainly only has honeybees. Grapevine has all kinds of different flies, bees, bumblebees, wasps, in a range of sizes from tiny to big. Probably some of those braconids, though none of them hold still long enough to be sure. But it blooms in the kind of little florets they like.

I was picking basil and felt something crawling on me. Looked and it was a medium sized (not baby, not full grown) praying mantis.

Interestingly some years, the grape vine has bunches of Japanese beetles. This year I have looked and looked and not seen a one. I haven't done any thing to get rid of them. But for some reason, my cool wet summer doesn't seem to be good for some of the bad insects (awww....). Last year a lot of my tomatoes were all scarred up with stinkbug marks. This year the tomatoes in the same bed are all coming out perfect. I didn't do anything to get rid of the stinkbugs either. So I seem to have the full compliment of beneficials and no bad guys (gee, if I'd known, I would have tried zucchini again). I'm not (AT ALL!!) complaining, but it is a bit puzzling.

How's this summer been for other people re beneficial and not beneficial insects?

[mattie g]

My tomatoes have gotten away fairly unscathed, rainbow. I did regale everyone a month or so agao with my concerns about curly top virus, but the plants have fought through whatever it was and are putting out tons of tomatoes again. This, despite the fact that new the growth is still a little wonky. I go have some scarring on my San Marzanos, but it looks to be somewhat similar to scarring and green shoulders I've had in previous years.

My peaches were almost completely decimated by stink bugs, and I was concerned they'd move over to my tomatoes, but for now I haven't seen many hanging around since I pulled the last rotten peaches off the tree. I saw a couple a few weeks ago, but that's about it <knock on wood>.

Like you, I saw a praying mantis a couple weeks ago. It was in a bed of beans, and was still a little guy, but it was awesome to see one in my garden!