Bronze Insect Eggs on Tomato

pinksand · Tue Jul 15, 2014 12:40 pm

I was inspecting my tomato plant yesterday and found a cluster of bronze colored eggs on the underside of a leaf. I did a quick search online and the best match I found was for squash vine borer. Should I pick the leaf and squish the eggs? Are there any beneficial insects that lay similar eggs? Everything I found looked like bad news so I'm tempted to try to destroy the eggs before they hatch.

rainbowgardener · Tue Jul 15, 2014 3:01 pm

Being on tomato plant, I'm guessing stinkbug, but could also be squash bug. I don't know of anything beneficial it could be. I'd get rid of them.

applestar · Tue Jul 15, 2014 3:12 pm

Might have been leaf-footed bug eggs?

rainbowgardener · Tue Jul 15, 2014 3:15 pm

You are right, could be. But they aren't ones you want in your garden, either.

pinksand · Tue Jul 15, 2014 6:30 pm

I checked the leaf when I got home from work and it was covered in little red nymphs among the eggs! I picked the leaf, set it on my patio and squished every last one of them! Those nymphs look so much like wheel bug nymphs I don't know how to tell the difference.

applestar · Tue Jul 15, 2014 7:58 pm

Have to say that makes it more likely to be leaf footed bug nymphs, unless you think this wheel bug would be on tomatoes? (Don't know that one)

I posted a photo of a nymph that everybody thought was an assasin bug rather than leaf footed bug: Subject: Is this assassin bug or leaf-footed bug nymph?

pinksand · Tue Jul 15, 2014 11:37 pm

As far as I know, wheel bug is just another name for assasin bug... I think in reference to the wheel like armor on its back. I remember that thread actually! I had trouble seeing the difference then too lol. The assasin eggs look different though in the photos I found online so pretty positive they were leaf footed bugs. Thanks for the help!

applestar · Wed Jul 16, 2014 4:06 am

Did a little dance there on your patio, huh?

You're welcome.