When should I start spraying for the dreaded HORNWORM?

[materlvr]

It's been between 75-85 here lately and my plants are about 4 1/2 ft tall. I'd like to get a jump on those nasty worms but don't want to spray if I don't need to. Any advice about what time of the year they start gorging? I'm inland Southern California but cooler than far inland.

Thanks for your expert advice!

[saltmarsh]

If you're going to spray, do it when you can look them in the eyes.

Seriously, look at your tomato leaves (and pepper leaves if you have them).

What you are looking for is little black specks on the top of the leaves. That will be worm poop and it does flow downhill.

When you find the poop, look on the leaves directly above for old gaga eyes. At the speck stage the worm will normally be eating along the outside edge of a leaf and will be about a half inch long.

If you can't find it, don't worry, just come back the next day it will have left bigger clues to its whereabouts.

After the third day, bring a pitchfork and be prepared to fight, but if you still can't find it, go to the eye doctor.

When I find them I like to pull them in two and leave them for the birds and ants. If you're squeamish, buy neoprene gloves and use them.

And whether you find the worm or not, flick the poop off the leaves, so you can tell yesterdays poop from todays poop, otherwise you'll waste time looking for worms you've already found.

Don't waste time looking for worms on leaves with holes. If the worm is eating the leaf he's leaving poop below. Claud

[carolyn137]

When I find them I like to pull them in two and leave them for the birds and ants. If you're squeamish, buy neoprene gloves and use them.

*****

And I liked to hand pick them, no gloves necessary, and stomp on them or place them on a small rock and smash them with another rock.

But I leave any of them that happen to have the white dots on their backs b'c those are parasitic wasps and when they hatch out and destroy the hornworm there are lots more of them, and well, call it an organic solution to the hornworm problem.

I have never sprayed for hornworms b'c I never found it to be necessary.

[materlvr]

You guys are brave, I can't stand to touch them and actually cut the branch they are on! Last year I sprayed with Sevan (SP?) spray and it really worked but they can do major damage in a short period of time so I want to be procative. The plants are at my daughter's house and I can only get there once a week to water so I need to be proactive!

[saltmarsh]

Perhaps a lesson on gardening with your daughter is in order.

[carolyn137]

Originally Posted by materlvr

You guys are brave, I can't stand to touch them and actually cut the branch they are on! Last year I sprayed with Sevan (SP?) spray and it really worked but they can do major damage in a short period of time so I want to be procative. The plants are at my daughter's house and I can only get there once a week to water so I need to be proactive!

Please consider using one of the BT ( Bacillus thuriengensis) preps for the hormworms since Sevin is not kind to the environment, let me count the ways, while the BT preps are organic and safe for everyone except hornworms.

Cost is low and Bt is effective, especially at the caterpillar stage. It comes as a dust as well, so if you can't be there your daughter might be able to use the dust.

What it does, and I'll say this kindly, is to form holes in the worm stomach which causes the worms to blow up and die.

[meadowyck]

What it does, and I'll say this kindly, is to form holes in the worm stomach which causes the worms to blow up and die.

Carolyn, I love this detail!

Does everyone get these worms? I ask because when I had a garden in Kentucky, (14 years) I never saw these.

So now I'm wondering if I will have them here in FL? I'm planing on having my tomato plants in the lanai area of our pool.

[materlvr]

Carolyn, I'll take your advice and change my product, I'm all for helping the plant . I just don't want to have to deal with the destruction those buggers cause. As for my daughter, she works 50+ hours a week and is a single parent to two young children. She hates those "dinosaurs" so much she won't even go near the garden!

This is my garden and I don't expect her to do anything except eat my maters!

[materlvr]

Originally Posted by meadowyck

Carolyn, I love this detail!

Does everyone get these worms? I ask because when I had a garden in Kentucky, (14 years) I never saw these.

So now I'm wondering if I will have them here in FL? I'm planing on having my tomato plants in the lanai area of our pool.

In the last 10 years I've only NOT had them my first year. Once they found my mater patch it's like, in the next generations DNA or something!!!! They are the only things that affect my plants except the crows and this year my foliage is so full I doubt they'll be able to easily find them

[livinonfaith]

Oh Yeah, If you aren't going to be able to check them out but once a week, you need to start spraying NOW.

I shudder to think what a single hornworm can do when left alone for a week. If I start thinking about the damage from three or four, I go into panic mode.

[janezee]

You all are making me feel better about my slugs!

I haven't seen a tomato hornworm since I left New England 20 years ago. (loudly knocking on wood!)

j

We had two hornworms this year, but that is it, so far. I got them both when they were 3-4 inches long, and they had destroyed the limb they were munching on. I fed them to the ants and have see no more.

However, my bush beans are being swarmed right now. I killed about 15 last night, they had ate a ton of leaves, and were 'rolled up' between the leaves, i'm guessing to avoid the sun or something. I checked today and didn't see anymore, but I will have to be proactive and maybe do the BT thing this weekend. I think I still have some around here, somewhere.

[livinonfaith]

This is the worst year I've ever had with hornworms. Considering that I used to live beside a tobacco field, (which is like hornworm heaven) that is saying something!

I've picked off countless eggs, at least a couple of hundred so far.

Fortunately, there hasn't been any extensive damage, as I've gotten most of the caterpillars before they were much more than an inch long. Unfortunately, they just keep coming.

I've found at least 40 worms so far. That's probably more than I've found the last three or four years combined.

[desertlzbn]

What its the best brand of bt? home depot had some last year, but they stopped carrying it. errrrrg
So now I have to buy it online.

[Chrissykin]

Originally Posted by livinonfaith

This is the worst year I've ever had with hornworms. Considering that I used to live beside a tobacco field, (which is like hornworm heaven) that is saying something!

I've picked off countless eggs, at least a couple of hundred so far.

Fortunately, there hasn't been any extensive damage, as I've gotten most of the caterpillars before they were much more than an inch long. Unfortunately, they just keep coming.

I've found at least 40 worms so far. That's probably more than I've found the last three or four years combined.

This was me last year. I stopped counting at 100 off from three tomato plants! I had them the year before and didn't quite understand the depth of what they were and I am sure the larvae, eggs or whatever overwintered in my soil. I was super diligent about removing them last year and bought BT this year.