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Garden Gate:  Attack of killer tomato worms  |
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sleepless reader
True Blue Farmgirl
1022 Posts
CA
USA
1022 Posts |
 Posted - Jul 16 2006 : 9:15:41 PM
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We have tomato worms attacking our plants. I'm hand picking them off and squishing their little green guts out (sorry, but they are going to town on the tomatoes)!I pulled over a dozen tonight and almost that many yesterday. I went online and read suggestions of dusting plants with powdered red pepper, diatamacious earth (sp?) and planting borage, marigolds or sweet basil with the tomatoes. Have any of you found the "true answer" to tomato worms???
Thanks!
Sharon the wormanator
Life is messy. Wear your apron! |
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Aunt Jenny
True Blue Farmgirl
11381 Posts
Jenny
middle of
Utah
USA
11381 Posts |
Posted - Jul 16 2006 : 10:46:05 PM
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I have mostly done the "hand pick and squish method myself". I have tried Diatamacious earth without much success. Havn't had them since we moved here..they are sure scary looking. My boys always loved to catch them for me..yuck!! Ihope someone has an answer for you..I always plant basil and garlic and marigold around my tomatoes..it didn't work when I lived in Calif..but it either works here or I have just been lucky enough to have none "happen by".
Good luck!!
Jenny in Utah
Inside me there is a skinny woman crying to get out...but I can usually shut her up with cookies
http://www.auntjennysworld.blogspot.com/ visit my little online shop at www.auntjenny.etsy.com |
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julia hayes
True Blue Farmgirl
1132 Posts
julia
medical lake
wa
USA
1132 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2006 : 09:04:05 AM
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UGH!! I absolutely loathe tomato horn-worms. They are the most disgusting things! Just thinking about them gives me the heebie-geebies!!! Ever since I started planting marigolds all around my plants I haven't had any issues with them. I plant my tomato plants in rows and in between each plant I plant 2 or 3 marigold plants. I don't know if its dumb luck but for the 3 years I've been doing this I haven't seen one!..so sorry you are having to deal with them..yucky yucky yuck!! good luck to you,
Julia Hayes
being simple to simply be |
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sleepless reader
True Blue Farmgirl
1022 Posts
CA
USA
1022 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2006 : 1:58:35 PM
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They are the stuff nightmares are made of! My lod chickens were even afraid of them :(
We may have to try marigolds next year...
Sharon
Life is messy. Wear your apron! |
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Garden_artist
True Blue Farmgirl
182 Posts
Tammy
Southern Coast Oregon
182 Posts |
Posted - Jul 17 2006 : 5:04:05 PM
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I hand pick mine (with gloves on AAAHHH), and toss them to the chickens. I also plant marigolds and I spray with neem. Good luck I really hated them last year, but haven't had any yet this year.
When I feel spring coming I have to plant or I’ll go crazy! |
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Horseyrider
True Blue Farmgirl
1045 Posts
Mary Ann
Illinois
1045 Posts |
Posted - Jul 19 2006 : 7:29:03 PM
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So far I haven't had any this year, but I've had them even in years when they're surrounded in marigolds. The best control I've found is frequent inspection, and keeping a jar with a couple inches of kerosene out in the garden to drop these into.
Oh, and don't try to step on them, especially in flip flops. Don't ask me how I know. |
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Audrey D Abbott
Farmgirl in Training
34 Posts
Audrey
Williamsport
IN
USA
34 Posts |
Posted - Jul 20 2006 : 03:55:23 AM
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| They really seem to be arriving in large numbers this year. I've always been told not to kill the ones that have what appears to be little grains of rice all over them. These are the eggs of a natural predator of tomato horn worms. Right now, I'm just "pickin & squashin"! |
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brightmeadow
True Blue Farmgirl
2045 Posts
Brenda
Lucas
Ohio
USA
2045 Posts |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Aug 01 2007 : 7:54:03 PM
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Oh Gross! I haven't ever seen those before! I hope they stay away from my house! I want to keep all my tomatos!
Good luck with being a worminator!
Alee
The amazing one handed typist! One hand for typing, one hand to hold Nora! |
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mikesgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
3659 Posts
Sherri
Elma
WA
USA
3659 Posts |
Posted - Aug 01 2007 : 8:12:19 PM
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| Keep them away from your dogs!LOL |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Aug 01 2007 : 8:59:12 PM
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Why? What will they do to your dogs?!
Alee
The amazing one handed typist! One hand for typing, one hand to hold Nora! |
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mikesgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
3659 Posts
Sherri
Elma
WA
USA
3659 Posts |
Posted - Aug 01 2007 : 10:31:54 PM
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| I was being funny - haha Alee - worms, larvae, dogs - after my experience with the maggot in my dog. |
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Annab
True Blue Farmgirl
2900 Posts
Anna
Seagrove
NC
USA
2900 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2007 : 09:15:38 AM
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We get these too. And I used to feed them to the chickens until I found out the adult form is the Sphynx moth-or hawk month. These moths get to be big enough you can see red eye shine is the right light. Saw one hovering outside our kitchen window one evening and the little red eye gave me a temporary start!
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Annab
True Blue Farmgirl
2900 Posts
Anna
Seagrove
NC
USA
2900 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2007 : 09:17:16 AM
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and if you really want gross look up Hickory Horn Devil caterpillar
now THAT"s scary! |
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2007 : 09:31:53 AM
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What happened to nice caterpillars that produce nice things like monarchs and such? lol
Alee
The amazing one handed typist! One hand for typing, one hand to hold Nora! |
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FarmGirl~K
True Blue Farmgirl
512 Posts
Kelly
TX
USA
512 Posts |
Posted - Aug 02 2007 : 10:27:38 AM
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Here is a link to the caterpillar Anna was speaking of. Scary!! There are quite a few photos & these people actaully liked it. It is huge by the way!
http://hilarynelson.com/Hobbies/Bugs/HickoryHornedDevilCaterpillar
"Work as if you were to live a hundred years, pray as if you were to die tomorrow." ~Benjamin Franklin~
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brightmeadow
True Blue Farmgirl
2045 Posts
Brenda
Lucas
Ohio
USA
2045 Posts |
Posted - Aug 04 2007 : 05:38:52 AM
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oh, gross! If I found one of those in my garden I'd go get a shotgun! (LOL- I'm usually a very gentle person.)
Actually I was thinking of making a sweater pattern with the hornworm's body marking as a design. It's actually kind of neat. (If you don't think about it eating your tomatoes)
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands - You shall be happy and it shall be well with you. -Psalm 128.2
Visit my blog at http://brightmeadowfarms.blogspot.com ,web site store at http://www.watkinsonline.com/fish or my homepage at http://home.earthlink.net/~brightmeadow |
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Cheryl
True Blue Farmgirl
919 Posts
Cheryl
Magalia
CA
USA
919 Posts |
Posted - Aug 04 2007 : 7:14:58 PM
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You guys are too funny, my eyes are watering. I have always wondered if you touch the red horn on them do you get stung? I was never brave enough to touch it.
Cheryl :) |
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Garden Gate: Attack of killer tomato worms |
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Attack of killer tomato worms
