13 replies to this topic

[briarpatch]

We here in Jersey are not famous for a lot of things...except maybe blueberries and tomatoes. I'm not much of a tomato grower myself, but I've a handful of plants. Nothing better than a fresh tomoato and pepper sandwich. Yesterday, I noticed I had an invasion of hornworms. These are some nasty leaf eating machines. Their camouflage is second to none. They mirror the color of the plant almost perfectly. I found out that they're resistant to pesticides...I plucked one off and hit it with ant/roach killer. It lived 6 hours after that. I also found out that they're not too resistant to being cut in half with grass shears.

i do not want to use any pesticides on these plants...my kids (and I) sometimes pluck the tomatores and eat them off the vine. Anyone have any experience with these things?....how do you kill them naturally? Finding them is a bugger.....

[edge]

I have only had a few over the years and I have found that they are no match for the thumb and index finger with very few ft/lbs applied

edge.

[Gimmy]

I have 14 tomato plants and have had a insect free season. But, I have had 60 mph winds that knock them over. A bushy tail, that I can't shoot in a subdivision with houses all around and birds. I finally got rubber snakes to put in each tomato plant and that seems to be doing the job so far. But I have the same problem with my fruit trees. I don't want to spray so I went to my local garden center and they said that the worm is harmless to the fruit and they are butterflies and do I really want to kill butterflies ? Yes darn it, they are eating all my leaves off my trees. These look like bird poop. I sit and pick them off, big or small, and squish them with a brick until there is nothing left.

Briar, there are organic insecticides, but I can't name any for you. Go to your nursery and take the little bugger with you and ask what you can use. Sorry, I'm no help. You might also search organic insecticides for tomato plants. Just a thought. I searched for homemade insecticides for my rose bushes with white mildew and came upon baking soda, dishwashing soap and water mixed in a squirt bottle. AND it worked.

Edited by Gimmy, 16 July 2011 - 09:39 AM.

[briarpatch]

I had these buggers last year...but only a handful of them...I killed 25 of them yesterday...2 more last night...and one this morning....goona try spraying the bushes with salt water...I hear the caterpillars don't like it...I did find a product that contains a bacteria that will kill them but not hurt humans....gonna try salt water first...then will try the dish soap/baking soda mix.....

[edge]

http://www.planetnat...rm-control.html

[briarpatch]

edge, on 13 July 2011 - 01:29 PM, said:

http://www.planetnat...rm-control.html

that's the one I found...thanks

[Buck Buster]

I can ask for you. Where i live there are many growers. they produce thousands of tons of tomatoes

[mechmark]

try a solution of water and dishwashing soap with some iodized salt mixed in for good measure i had some a few years ago and a local produce grower turned me own to this

my problem is its so darned hot here the blooms just keep falling off,,, but my bushes look great marigold plants help ward off some pesky critters too!!!!!!

[briarpatch]

The good news is...looks like I finally got all of them. Funny...they only attacked my cherry tomato plants...not the beefsteak tomoatoes. After three days...final count...31 hornworm caterpillars are now feeding thousands of ants...and several wasps.

[Gimmy]

I found out yesterday that the rubber snake don't really work keeping birds off the tomato plants. I found bird poop ON the snake. The only thing they scare is ME, EVERYTIME.

Edited by Gimmy, 16 July 2011 - 03:45 PM.

[gendoc]

my mom used to throw garlic cloves on the ground to rid horn worms on her mater plants
but that was 50 years ago... they mite be educated by now !!!

Edited by gendoc, 16 July 2011 - 03:10 PM.

[briarpatch]

gendoc, on 16 July 2011 - 03:09 PM, said:

my mom used to throw garlic cloves on the ground to rid horn worms on her mater plants
but that was 50 years ago... they mite be educated by now !!!

those 'old remedies' are sometimes the best....seemed like these things just kept comin'....each time I thought I had them all...more would show up....nasty little buggers

[Gimmy]

briarpatch, on 16 July 2011 - 08:20 PM, said:

those 'old remedies' are sometimes the best....seemed like these things just kept comin'....each time I thought I had them all...more would show up....nasty little buggers

When you find "the cure", let me know.

[Buck Buster]

Here are some plants that should repel horn worms. So no chemicals, so they told me.

Dill: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dill
Bernagie: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Borage
Calendula: http://en.wikipedia....ula_officinalis
Petunia
Basilicum Opal: http://www.herbcentr...-dark-opal.html