SOS ASAP New Bug

[carolyn137]

Freda is here this AM to plant the tomato plants that Craig bought here to me from NC and they arrived a week ago last Thursday and were in fine shape and have been until Freda just came in now with a leaflet that had three bugs on it and there were huge holes in the leaves. More than one plant is affected.

All I can tell you is that the bugs are about 1/4 inch long, are oval and Freda says they're very hard when she squeezes them to kill them. And they have lots of legs, I thought those legs looked reddish when I looked at them and the bug itself is dark brown or black.

No camera here and nothing more I can tell you except there are none of these bugs on any of the other plants out back waiting to be planted and those are all various perennials.

I've never seen such bugs before in many decades of growing tomatoes and in several parts of the country, so am asking if my description sounds familiar to anyone and if so, what insecticide might be used to control this problem?

I'll be honest with you, I want something that will control this problem NOW and at this point don't care if someone suggests TNT, well, you get my point. That is, as Freda said, if you don't do something quick you aren't going to have ANY tomato plants at all.

So there you are.

I'm watching tennis from the French Open but will check here from time to time to see if anyone has a suggestion as to what these bugs are and what can be used to control them and it has to be something that my local Agway has or can order ASAP.

Thanks ever so much.

[nctomatoman]

Weird - I've not seen any red bugs in my plants/my garden - no idea! Maybe play around with Google images putting in "red garden insects/beetles" and see what you can find! Yikes! I brought a little bit of tropical NC to serene NY!

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by nctomatoman

Weird - I've not seen any red bugs in my plants/my garden - no idea! Maybe play around with Google images putting in "red garden insects/beetles" and see what you can find! Yikes! I brought a little bit of tropical NC to serene NY!

Craig, the bugs are dark brown/blackish in color, only the many legs are reddish in color.

If no one comes up with something I'll take a look at some of the disease/pest sites from Cornell and TAMU, which are my faves.

Besides, Agway isn't open today anyway.

Back to tennis for a bit.

[nctomatoman]

I was thinking some sort of Assassin bug - seem to be lots of types, some of which have red legs - and I have seen them around.

[tam91]

Don't "Sevin" or "Eight" kill most things that crawl/fly?

Sevin (carbaryl) comes as a dust, and I think as a liquid also
Eight (Permethrin) is also available as dust or liquid

Here anyway, those are both widely available and they've both killed any bug around for me, I think they're pretty wide spectrum.

[Wi-sunflower]

Actually from the size and shape mentioned, it sounds rather like a "flea beetle" to me. Small round and hard. I've never noted their legs tho so can't say about that part.

Around me they tend to like eggplant and "greens" better than tomatoes, but if you don't have those plants I guess they would go on anything.

Here is a Google images page for "flea beetle" http://www.google.com/search?q=flea+...2&ved=0CEIQsAQ

Obviously not all "flea beetles" tho. But maybe yours will be in there.

Carol

[nctomatoman]

Carol, what turned me away from flea beetles is the size - they are pretty tiny - and Carolyn mentioned 1/4 inch. That would be one hungry, destructive flea beetle!

[Wi-sunflower]

I just looked at a ruler and I guess you are right. 1/4 inch seems small for other things. But with bugs, 1/4 inch is actually rather large.

Well there are plenty of pics to look at to see if any are the bug.

Carol

[b54red]

If they are chewing up the leaves use Sevin. I prefer the liquid but the dust will work. It is highly effective on most chewing insects.

If that doesn't work you can go with Permethrin or Malathion. They are both contact killers. If you use Malathion make sure you spray late in the day and follow the mixing directions because if it is too strong it will burn tomatoes.

[Mark0820]

Another vote for Sevin. I use the liquid, but as others have mentioned it also comes as a dust.

I primarily use it for cucumber beetles, but it works for most "chewing" bugs.

[bughunter99]

Blister beetle?

[bcday]

For me, Carolyn's statement that "they have lots of legs" immediately rules out any six-legged insects.

Sowbugs and pillbugs are dark gray, oval in shape, have 14 legs and hard shells, but they grow to more than 1/4" unless Freda just happened to find some very young ones. And I would imagine that Carolyn is very familiar with them anyway since they are very common here.

Did the three critters that Freda brought in actually hang onto the leaflet all the way into the house?

Is Freda still finding more of them?

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by bcday

For me, Carolyn's statement that "they have lots of legs" immediately rules out any six-legged insects.

Sowbugs and pillbugs are oval in shape, have hard shells and 14 legs, but they grow to more than 1/4" unless Freda just happened to find some very young ones. And I would imagine that Carolyn is very familiar with them anyway since they are very common here.

Did the three critters that Freda brought in actually hang onto the leaflet all the way into the house?

Is Freda still finding more of them?

I know pillbugs but I've only found them under rotting boards and the like and never on tomato plants.

Yes, the three bugs hung onto the leaflet that Freda brought in to me, As I held it in my hand two of them started crawling so I could see those many legs very well.

BCday, she just finished planting all of the tomatoes, had to set up many new gro-bags first b'c quite a few of the older ones had split along the sides, then she replaced the wood at the end of one of the raised beds outside my front door, then she completely rejuvanated that same raised bed b'c it was the one that got wiped out this past winter and since they had to take the gutters down that raised bed has been inundated with water for a couple of months now.

So I lost all the Pulmonarias, all the astilbes, several of the daylilies and more, but have replacements waiting to be planted.

And Freda left for the day and won't be back until Wednesday AM.

The only critters that have ever damaged tomato foliage that I know of, and know them well, are Fungus gnats, Flea Beetles and Colorado Potato Bettles.

it looks like Sevin is maybe the best. Malathion is not permitted in NYS, I've used pyrethrin before on cukes and the like but haven't found it to be very effective.

Lots of strange new things happening here. I've got three beautiful Lupine plants in front of the lowest rock face, a pale yellow, a lavender and a pink. THe yellow has but one spitke with one flower when it's normally a huge plant with many spikes, one puny small spike for the lavender and nothing showing for the pink. Freda says her SIL lost all of her lupines.

In that same small perennial garden I have a huge climbing rose, John Cabot, that has always had dark green foliage but now the foliage looks yellowish. Freda insists it's b'c of the cold wet weather, but who knows.

And she tells me something is eating the buds on my roses as well as destroying foliage and I've never had that here before. When I had my over 100 roses at the old farm I did spray for blackspot and that's about all.

So now to figure out what's eating the roses and Freda says she sees NO bugs at all, so another problem to be solved.

Back to tennis for a while which has been spectacular, and thanks to everyone, to date, for helping me out b/c I've never seen such bugs on tomatoes before and also such problems with the roses.

[bcday]

Carolyn, can you clarify whether "lots of legs" means more than six? For identification purposes it might help to know if we are looking for insect (six *true* legs) or not insect (more than six legs).

Identification aside, Sevin absolutely will nuke them and also any beneficial invertebrate critters that come into contact with it. I've used it in the past as a last resort on potatoes and cucurbits at the expense of earthworms and ladybugs.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by bcday

Carolyn, can you clarify whether "lots of legs" means more than six? For identification purposes it might help to know if we are looking for insect (six *true* legs) or not insect (more than six legs).

Identification aside, Sevin absolutely will nuke them and also any beneficial invertebrate critters that come into contact with it. I've used it in the past as a last resort on potatoes and cucurbits at the expense of earthworms and ladybugs.

Many more than just 6 on each side of wee jointed reddish legs.

I haven' used Sevin, well, I can't remember when I last did use it, but I think right now it's the easiest way to approach this problem so will ask Freda to pick up a couple of those canisters of dust from Agway. That way the sprayer can be left for Fung-O nil and possibly some foliar fertilizers later in the season. Besides, dust is easier than liquid.

What I don't know is if this beetle, and I'll call it a beetle for now, is an adult or what? With that hard shell that Freda told me about I tend to think it is an adult form.

88F here and climbing. I got it cooled down inside b'c I was up early for the tennis matches and the trees help to keep it cool inside as well.

B/c of the possible Black BEar appearances I don't keep the front door screen exposed b'c one swipe and the momma bear could be in here and I don't keep the center portion of the big windows in the front room open to the screens for the same reason.

As soon as the tennis finishes for today I have to do a pen sketch of the two raised beds by the front door and the big one out back to let Freda know where I want this and that planted.

Actually I' d like her to first plant some veggy seed in the big containers out back, like several different kinds of summer squash, same for cukes, my fingerling potatoes, possibly some different kinds of carrots, I dunno about radishes, it seems rather late but it's suposed to get cooler by Thursday, so maybe the radishes, some lettuce and some kohlrabi and possibly some early small white turnips which I eat like candy.

Now back to tennis for a bit.