Question about Hornworm -- what to feed them to?

[Avonnow]

Do these eat other things, non veggie - My son was in the hospital for a week and we were gone, when I got home a plant in my front yard look horrible, I thought it was too much rain or lack of. But as I was walking by I saw the biggest Hornworms ever, checks these out. I was afraid to touch them. They totally devoured my plant. I use to in the spring have tomato plants in pots on my driveway, some did get hornworms, but they have been gone since June. Yuck I don't know what to do with them, I can't bring myself to kill them there to big, it is like their looking at me -

[img]https://i218.photobucket.com/albums/cc119/Avonnow/7947ddec1abd34580e8a7f1087ce2bf4.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i218.photobucket.com/albums/cc119/Avonnow/e460dbfc1ed31a12809715e8d31235e2.jpg[/img]

[mhannum]

Creepy...

I wonder if there are any critters that might munch them, thus fixing the problem?

Hornworms are so big that it is amazing they don't all get eaten before maturing... if anything actually eats them, that is.

[Francis Barnswallow]

Not sure if you live on a lake or pond. But I do. And when I find the hornworms I always throw them in the lake. As soon as they hit the water the bass go nuts over them.

[Avonnow]

I live on the Indian River, right across the street is the boat ramp - problem solved - I just can't kill them. Ick! Thanks for idea, they are huge and will make something a good evening meal.

[PunkRotten]

Yup a bass or catfish will gobble this guys up with gusto.

[jal_ut]

You can eat them......... jk

[gixxerific]

Feed them gasoline and a match, sorry Applestar.

This post reminded me of a dream I had last night where I had them all over. I need to go check.

Yes I have weird dreams

[rainbowgardener]

You can eat them......... jk

Maybe SOME people could eat them. I doubt I could bring myself to, even if I were starving. Maybe covered in batter and deep fried crisp... Have you ever done it?

[sciencegal]

You can eat them......... jk

Maybe SOME people could eat them. I doubt I could bring myself to, even if I were starving. Maybe covered in batter and deep fried crisp... Have you ever done it?

I think jk means just kidding.

I've had a plague of woolly bear caterpillars. I mean there are literally thousands of them. They ate all the weeds then headed for the garden. There is also another one that looks like a woolly bear but is more gray colored and move faster, too. I spend an hour or more in the early evening walking around with my trusty Fiskar shears cutting them in half. That seems to be the quickest way to dispatch them. I'm glad they don't regenerate into two. They are finally starting to look for a place to hibernate and have stopped eating so much. I saved most of the garden but some of the leafy plants like chard are history.

[Bobberman]

Go fishing with them. Don't eat them or you will get horney!
They turn into a moth that acts like a humming bird and are nice to look at. feed them tomato branches or bad tomatoes! Put them in a jar with a lid till they hatch . Maybe they are doomed anyway because of a wasp go to them already! Wasp may be coming over their skin!

[Francis Barnswallow]

This post reminded me of a dream I had last night where I had them all over.

I had the same dream awhile back.

[Halfway]

Flip them out in the grass when robins are nearby. Bye bye worms!

[DoubleDogFarm]

My ducks would love them. Ship them to:

Double Dog Farm
.............................. Wait!, scratch that. I don't want no stinkin Hornworms in my garden!

Whoa
Eric

[GardenRN]

Feed them gasoline and a match, sorry Applestar.
:

How do you make a hornworm say woof? Soak em in gasoline and light a match....WOOF!

My chickens love them! Send em here!

[ReptileAddiction]

Go fishing with them. Don't eat them or you will get horney!
They turn into a moth that acts like a humming bird and are nice to look at. feed them tomato branches or bad tomatoes! Put them in a jar with a lid till they hatch . Maybe they are doomed anyway because of a wasp go to them already! Wasp may be coming over their skin!

Except they will go lay more eggs thus making your problem a couple thousand times worse in coming years.

[Bobberman]

I don't like to kill everything. Maybe the moth does someth good in the garden before it lays its or does the worm turn ito the moth! Does anyone have anything good to say about the moth.! They say think green!!!

[applestar]

They turn into a moth that acts like a humming bird and are nice to look at. feed them tomato branches or bad tomatoes! Put them in a jar with a lid till they hatch.

We actually do this every year for science project/spinoff of our butterfly project. But...
Here's an adult moth that emerged from the soil after we raised last month:
[img]https://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll272/applesbucket/e671d0a2d1127c66a84e0fba006c99cb.jpg[/img]
...I don't see the resemblance to hummingbirds...

I [url=https://helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=149799#149799]posted photos of a moth I know of with common name of "hummingbird moth" that LOOKS like a hummingbird[/url], but it's a different species:
[img]https://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll272/applesbucket/Image7512.jpg[/img]

Hmmm... Maybe I should let the adult moth fly....
...ah, here we go: https://www.ext.colostate.edu/pubs/insect/05517.html

[rainbowgardener]

Your neighbors won't like you if they find out you are breeding hornworms for release!

I don't like killing things and try to keep it to a minimum. And I'm very careful about protecting the environment. If I do kill anything, it is usually by hand picking/ hand squashing (things like aphids), which I think is the most environmentally benign way to do it. But if something is really decimating my crop, I will kill some (or quit growing that crop, which seems to be how I deal with the squash vine borers).

[ReptileAddiction]

I try to kill the pests by picking them off and squashing them. I only had to get out one spray this year.