Caterpillars on tomato leaves!

[mr.tom]

Thanks Mothhawk I always value your expert opinion
So three of us believe the pests are caterpillars - I think we may be onto something

My first reply so I hope you will excuse the criticism. Since "Tiny little green caterpillars on the underside" was in the original question, this is an amazing reply!

[mr.tom]

caterpillars on tomato leaves

I have holey tomato leaves. Tiny little green caterpillars on the underside. This is a new one for me - anyone know what they are please.
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Probably Quaker moth.--orthosia cerasi. I have them on mine too. I am rearing some in a jar just to be sure. Plenty of food for them as I trim off the lower leaves.

[mr.tom]

caterpillar on tomato leaves

Look what I found today

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The one eating tomatoes id probably not the same as the one eating leaves. I've said in another response the leaf one is probably a common quaker moth. I'm not sure what yours is yet.

[veggiechicken]

Hello Mr Tom and welcome to the Forum

My first reply so I hope you will excuse the criticism. Since "Tiny little green caterpillars on the underside" was in the original question, this is an amazing reply!

As you'll find out, one question usually leads to several different answers - so for 3 of us to agree is amazing, even if the answer was a wee bit vague

Probably Quaker moth.--orthosia cerasi. I have them on mine too. I am rearing some in a jar just to be sure. Plenty of food for them as I trim off the lower leaves.

Hope your new pets survive . I'll check out the Quaker moths. Haven't found any caterpillars so far this year, fortunately.

The one eating tomatoes id probably not the same as the one eating leaves. I've said in another response the leaf one is probably a common quaker moth. I'm not sure what yours is yet.

The tomato eating moth was a Identifying and Controlling Tomato Hornworm

[Jungle Jane]

I found these white eggs on my heritage 'Essex wonder' tomato leaf in early July,never seen them before,googling for an I.D didn't help much,I was waiting for either caterpillars but hoping for a beetle type predator,kept an eye on them for about 2 weeks,they hatched on the leaf,little green caterpillars,I squashed them all,they'd have eaten my plants otherwise.

[mr.tom]

caterpillars on tomato leaves

Hello Mr Tom and welcome to the Forum

As you'll find out, one question usually leads to several different answers - so for 3 of us to agree is amazing, even if the answer was a wee bit vague


Hope your new pets survive . I'll check out the Quaker moths. Haven't found any caterpillars so far this year, fortunately.



The tomato eating moth was a Identifying and Controlling Tomato Hornworm

I am now doubting my 'identification' of quaker moth. It does not look very good against Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Quaker). I will have to wait and hope my 'pets' survive and reach adulthood.
The original comment on tomato eating was from Suffolk but I don't think we have Hornworms in UK, it is an American species.

[rosiepumpkin]

I evicted one of the little darlings out of my greenhouse at the weekend. I know there are more in there because of the poo. Can't find the blighters but so far only minor damage to a few leaves. It's not like when I lived in Florida and caterpillars ate my fennel to the ground within hours.

[Bill HH]

Be warned, do not let these things get a grip on your tomatoes. I have had them several years running and as soon as your tomatoes beging to ripen they will eat them. The caterpillars grow quite big and are buggers to find, they lie on the spine of the leaves in the day and are very hard to find.
All is not lost though, apparently (for indoor toms) letting off a 12 bore shot gun withing the greenhouse causes every single one to drop on the floor. It may most likely blow out all the glass in your greenhouse however.
I keep an eagle eye out for any holes in leaves but even better is looking for the black poo, there will usualy be a caterpillar nearby.
If it gets serious, cutting off as much foilage as you dare aids finding them.

[Sarico]

Have you got some corn around.? I asked some Italian tomato lover and most of them call it heliothis moth. Google it. Usual I are green but as well some brown and the come from the soil. They eventually make tunnel in fruit and is called as well fruit worm.

[rosiepumpkin]

I found 4 today. They've been eating the chickweed, which I don't mind. One was squashed and the other 3 evicted with no ceremony. I haven't found the ones on the cherry tom jungle on the other side of the greenhouse yet. On the plus side, my first Grushovka ripened today

[rosiepumpkin]

Progress VC?

I have an infestation of the little (and very big) *****. Several kinds, all evicted when I find them. Both Latah have been consigned to the compost heap and I'm only keeping one of the Grushovka as it'll stop them eating something else instead.

[meteor]

Blast, I found some this morning, biggish fawn coloured beggars and they had munched holes in a couple of my federle and porterhouse tomatoes. Squashed the lot but now another pest to watch out for on my morning patrol

[Jungle Jane]

Check any rocket & lettuce plants too. About 4 days ago I noticed what looks like slug damage on my rocket leaf (slugs can't get onto my table though) so I looked at the leaf & it had the same tiny caterpillar looking bugs,they'd eaten about 2cm of the leaf,but it did just look like slug damage,so could easily be overlooked.

[muddled]

Oh! poo.

Lots of poo! Came home today from a long weekend and found caterpillar carp all over the tomato leaves on one side of my greenhouse!
Further inspection showed holey leaves and even some partially munched tomatoes.

I've waited all season for toms to ripen and now it looks like the squirmies will eat them anyway!

Gutted.
Has no-one found a solution at all?
(preferably one that doesn't involve 12 bore shotguns, napalm or similar)

[CaroleL]

I think I've got the same problem. I was worried that it was mouse poo, but as I've yet to see a flying mouse, I'm thinking it's probably caterpillars.



The tomato leaves don't look holey, but the chillis and peppers on the other side have got holey leaves, with no mouse poo.

Are the little blighters eating my tomatoes?