Tomato worms got you down? Watching your plants being eaten before you even get your first tomato?
Tomato worms can do quite a bit of damage to your plants, and tomatoes, if left unchecked. Conventional gardening uses pesticides to reduce this problem, and even organic gardeners have safer, organic insecticides to help with the problem.
But what if you are an organic farm that really doesn't want to spray? Well, you can look for signs of the worms and physically remove them. A couple of things you can look for are actual damage to the plants, and droppings from the worms. Examples of what to look for. I couldn't find any fresh droppings (yeah!) but they are green and a little plumper.
Once you see the signs the hunt begins. You can be successful, but it can take a lot of time, especially on larger plants. Tomato worms blend in very well!
Another method is to hunt for them at night! Using a black light you can quickly scan your plants and locate these pests and remove them from your plants.
Check out these pictures to see what it looks like.
This is not fool-proof either, but it is quicker. The next day I found fresh signs of damage but did not see the worm. Came back at night to that spot and found it immediately. Another huge one. Also found another large one farther down the row. Give it a try!
