My tomatoes are going in one end an comming out the other just as fast. Do you think he will do massive damage to the plants or just some? He has cleared off a cluster of cherry tomato and a quite a few leaves. How long does this stage last?
Is there anything else he eats, maybe I can move him?
chris
Do you have any brugmansias? They love those too. I had the hornworms last year and they'll do quite a number on your tomatoes. Oh, and you have to watch out for the wasps, because they will lay eggs in the hornworms which kills them, and that's not good either. Maybe move him to a butterfly cage and supply him with leaves?
I do have 1 brug, but hubby would kill me if I put him on there. I think caging him is the best idea. I will see what I have around. Thanks.
chris
That's a tobacco horn worm.
http://booksandnature.homestead.com/moth92.html
If you have other members of the Solanaceae family growing in your yard, you could transfer him to one of those or let him have a spare tomato plant to himself.
You should see what he can do to a Brugmansia plant in one day.
You could also put him in a container and feed him some of the tomato leaves that are not crucial to the plants, like the older leaves at the bottom, that way you keep your tomatoes and get to see what he looks like.
Josephine.
Yep, left on his own, he can do a real number overnight. They can strip a plant bare.
Best cage him up and let him have the stuff you want to give him.
Dang, I didnt think he would do that much damage "overnight". I left him out there, I figured I would take care of it tomorrow. LOL, There will be a few less tomatoes for the barbecue. At least he doesnt have any of those gross wasp eggs on him yet. I will get him in the morning.
Thanks for the ideas.
chris
I don't even want to imagine what one can do to a brug overnight. That's where I draw the line, and place him on the tomatoes!!
I agree with you, Felicia! Brugs are NOT on the menu!
I feel for ya. Went out this morning and found not one but two three foot tomatoe plants all much to nothign but a stem from just one worm. he ate every darn leaf to wher e all I have is some poor green funky looking sticks left. I don't mind sharing, but this guy wa s a pig, a real pig.
Just remembered wher e I saw a neat link about them with pic s of the eggs and all the different instar stages.
http://entomology.unl.edu/k12/caterpillars/hornworm/hornwormpage.html
Here's my link where I raised a Sphinx moth using Penta leaves:
http://davesgarden.com/forums/t/709337/
Aren't they similar to the hornworms? (They certainly looks similar!) I wonder if they would eat Penta or other leaves besides tomatoes or brug leaves? Maybe that would be a solution to them eating your good plants? Substitute for a different plant?
They are Hornworms...you are correct. They make a Sphinx moth.
They can strip a tomato patch overnight if there's more than one...I had 14 plants reduced to green sticks and only found 6......and I monitor my tomato plants several times a day. These guys seem to come from nowhere and are eating machines.
Haha, the funny thing is...I planted tomatoes just for them and haven't seen one!!!
ROFL, Rox!
Melody - The hornworms come out at night. That's when they do the majority of their eating. They hide in the dirt or lower branches during the day.
This message was edited Jul 4, 2007 10:39 AM
Hmmm, mine were brave, then. Because they were none too shy about chowing down during the daytime.
Yeah, I know that they're night feeders pretty much...and I know to look down low and underneath. Tomatoes are my 'main thing'.
They can still escape detection till you've got nothing but stems...they're sneaky little critters. And I've found that they eat during the day when they're just about done eating and ready for the next step..it's the big, slow mature cats that you generally find on top of things.
Felicia - I see them sometimes during the day if they are too lazy and slow to climb down the plant. Sometimes they just "sleep" on the branches during the day. (They blend in quite well so you don't always spot them.) The bigger they get (and they do get BIG) the less motivated they are to move except to find more leaves to eat. LOL! The one I raised got almost as big as my finger and took 3 days to pupate into a chrysalis. Now that is SLOW!!! But they are unique and very cool to raise! And the moths are really neat looking, too! I'd raise one again if I should happen to find another one out in my garden. Lately, nothing has been chowing down in my garden. Too many wasps right now. :-( My garden looks great but few flutterbees around! Which defeats the whole purpose of most of the plants that I am growing in my garden beds. Humph! I sure wish there was a way to keep the wasps population down.
Becky, I have him in a cage. I have plenty to feed him as long as he is not loose in the garden.
I have looked on the sites and they dont pupate and hang from a tree branch like others that I have seen. It said something about the going into the ground. I have put about 1/2 inch of soil and then 1" of very small pine nuggets or shavings on top. Will this be ok for him to do his thing?
chris
Chris, the Datura is another plant they will feed on and it grows pretty fast. Maybe you or a neighbor has some of them that you could get a branch from. Also they need soil / leaves in the bottom of the cage to pupate.
Good info. I will put a few leaves on the bottom also.
Havent seen any datura around me. Might have to grow one for next year though.
Chris - It sounds like you are doing all the right things. Now relax, watch, and enjoy your big fella! Do continue to take photos and post them here. I always enjoy seeing these cats! :-)
LOL Becky, Ok, new mom syndrom. I will relax and enjoy.....Thinking about taking him for a walk this morning. LOL
ROTFL, Chris! He's a beaut!!!! I love those big fellas!!! :-)
yeah, it does look like he needs to work off some of that excess fat. What color is his collar? :) If my daughter had anything to do with it, she'd be making him clothes!!
Ok, trying not to panic here but, when he starts to eclose ( i think that the right word) will he just be laying on his side on the dirt looking kinda, DEAD?
chris
Look way down in this link that star posted. I think you will find your answer.
http://davesgarden.com/forums/p.php?pid=3693758
Yep! Mine laid there for 3 days looking dead and then he morphed into his cocoon (which actually looked like a chrysalis). I took mine out of the dirt after it hardened for a couple more days and laid it on a paper towel inside the cage and that's how it stayed for a couple of weeks and then one day I looked and there he was in all his glory! :-)
I have two of them burrowed in the dirt of the tomato plant I took inside with them. They have been buried for almost a week now, should be eclosing and emerging soon.
Yea! he's not dead. Thanks, great links. He never actually burrowed in the ground, just layed on top.
My hand-raised one didn't burrow either. Just rolled a few leaves around him and went to sleep. :-)
Ok, I dont think this is going right.
While he was laying on the ground, he didnt wrap up in leaves just layed on the bottom.
He would kinda kringe every few seconds.
He turned almost all brown the second day.
Then the cage started to smell horrible.
Then he SPLIT open almost in half.
about 5 little wormy white things came crawling out of him.
I took some pics but computor isnt reading my wireless. I will restart in a few minutes.
It smells gross.
Any thoughts?
chris
Oh gross! Apparently something laid eggs on him and ate him from the inside out. Sad! Poor little thing! That would freak me out if I saw something like that. Ewwwwwwwwwwww
Awwww, poor little guy.
Sounds like a parasitoid:
http://www.nysaes.cornell.edu/ent/biocontrol/parasitoids/parasintro.html
This is where is belly is big
Spliting open
Grossssssssssss!!
I feel so bad. If I had known, I would have at least put him out of his missery! He looked fine when I put him in the cage.
Now the question is....What is now living in my emergency cat cage? Is it possible that these things are good? Or should I bag and trash the contents, disinfect and hopefully be ready for new cats.
This is such a downer...this was really disgusting to watch and smell!! makes me want to hurl.
chris
Oh, how terrible. I would probably freak out, plus hurl.
But, how could you have known? I don't think you did anything wrong. Just nature happening. Sad and yucky tho...huh?
Sorry this happened to you.
~Lucy
Well Chris, whatever it is, if it kills caterpillars it can't be good. I would bag and freeze dirt and all!
