What is chewing the young leaves of my tomatoes?

[jenahakchew]

Some pest has been eating the young leaves and shoots of my tomatoes. At first look I thought it could be possums as I had this problem with my young tomato seedlings earlier. After erecting netting cordoning off the planting area I was able to prevent possums getting to the young plants. Now the tomatoes have grown tall supported by stakes,but I noticed some pests are able to reach and eat the young shoots. They eat mainly the young leaves leaving the stems. Any ideas from anyone? My first thoughts were night crawling caterpillars? Appreciate any advise. Thanks

 

 

[MitchellMc]

Hi @jenahakchew,

I'd be checking the plants over to see if you can locate any Horn worm's. A couple of them are quite capable of this kind of damage over the space of a few days. They are easily removed and disposed of by hand. You might also like to spray the plants with Dipel, as it controls a broad range of caterpillars that also like to munch on new growth. It has no withholding period, so edibles can be eaten straight away, and it does not harm bees, ladybirds, birds, fish, mammals and pets.

Please let me know if you have any questions.

Mitchell

[jenahakchew]

Thanks @MitchellMc for your reply. Do the hornworms feed mainly at night? So far I don't see any during the day

Thanks,

Kind regards,

Chew

[MitchellMc]

They are more active at night and tend to find a spot on the underside of a branch or leaf during the day to avoid predators @jenahakchew. It might be worth doing a nighttime inspection to see if you can catch them in the act. 

Let me mention one of our knowledgeable gardening members, @mich1972, to see if she has some thoughts.

Mitchell

[jenahakchew]

So far I don't see any horn worms..it's strange that mostly the tips of the young shoots are eaten..and most of the other lower leaves are not touched..

 

 

[Jason]

Thanks for the update @jenahakchew.

Let me tag a helpful and experienced member in @ironbark to see how they would tackle the problem.

Jason

[mich1972]

Good morning @jenahakchew sorry for the late reply, been busy with work and getting through another heatwave. I was actually thinking Rats because it’s right on the fence line. Rats always follow the fence line. It could be a grub stripping them or possum snacking on them. 
As @MitchellMc advised, Dipel is brilliant for Caterpillars and grubs. 😊🌿

[jenahakchew]

Thanks Jason for helping out as any advise or inputs from knowledgeable members will be highly appreciated...🙂🙏

[jenahakchew]

@mich1972 thanks very much for your inputs. First I thought possums could be the issue as I had bad possum attack before I netted up the planting area. but the damage is on the top shoots which takes a delicate approach without trampling on the lower leaves and making a mess..unless they're doing a delicate balancing act on my fenceline and supporting stakes😅

I have been avoiding use of pesticides but Dipel seems a good eco friendly approach..

Thanks again for your advise.🙂🙏

 

[mich1972]

Not a problem at all and I hope you can resolve it. Good luck and stay in touch and keep on enjoying your Garden 🌿💚😊