Author Topic: Can Anyone Help Me With This Insects on my San Marzano Tomatoes? (Read 3230 times)

norma427 · « **on:** June 11, 2011, 10:55:02 AM »

I was wondering if anyone can help me to know what kind of insects are eating just my San Marzano tomato plants. I only noticed them yesterday and picked about 20 of these insects or worms off my San Marzno tomato plants. Some of them are more brightly colored orange in color. I killed the ones I picked off and then dusted all the tomato plants with dust used to control insects. I also removed many of the leaves the insects were eating. This morning I went outside and found more of these buggers. I sure don’t want them eating all of my tomato plants.

They only seem to be eating the San Marzano and leaving the rest of the tomato plants that are planted together. In different other areas of my yard, there doesn’t seem to be any problems with these buggers on the San Marzano tomato plants, at least not yet. These buggers seem to leave black dirt on the bottom of the tomato plant leaves and eat the leaves fairly quickly. Last year I had some problems with tomato hornworms.

Any help would be appreciated.

Pictures below

Norma

Ev · « **Reply #1 on:** June 11, 2011, 11:20:25 AM »

I think they're the larva of what I call potato beetles, though I don't know if that's a real name or not. I call them that because I get them, as you may guess, on my potato plants. I've never seen one on my tomatoes.

norma427 · « **Reply #2 on:** June 11, 2011, 11:58:25 AM »

Quote from: Ev on June 11, 2011, 11:20:25 AM

I think they're the larva of what I call potato beetles, though I don't know if that's a real name or not. I call them that because I get them, as you may guess, on my potato plants. I've never seen one on my tomatoes.

Steve,

Thanks for your help in identifying what these buggers are.

Now I need to find out how to get rid of them. Wonder why you never got any on any of your tomato plants, when you also plant potatoes. I don't have any potatoes planted, so I wonder where my buggers came from. $:-\$

Norma

norma427 · « **Reply #3 on:** June 12, 2011, 08:05:12 AM »

If anyone else has problems with these little potato beetle larvae, it seems there are ways to control or get rid of them. By what I read on the web, after Steve posted what they might be, it seems like hand picking them and depositing them in soapy water and maybe putting the damaged leaves in some kind of oil might help this problem.

This is what the potato beetle and larvae look like. http://www.vegetablegardener.com/item/5301/control-colorado-potato-beetle-with-a-mix-of-strategies

I remember about a week ago seeing a beetle on the tomato plants that did have the larvae on the leaves, but just flicked the beetle off. Little did I know, the potato beetle must have been laying eggs then.

Thanks Steve for helping me with this darn bugger problem. Seems we have too many kinds of insects in our area. Last year it was the tomato hornworms, and now this year the potato beetle larvae. I have never seen either of these worms or larvae on my tomato plants before last year.

Norma

TXCraig1 · « **Reply #4 on:** June 20, 2011, 08:59:37 PM »

Its not unusual to find them on tomato plants. They can be very difficult to get rid of with insecticides. Killing the larve and eggs by hand as you are doing may be your best bet.

CL

Jackie Tran · « **Reply #5 on:** June 20, 2011, 09:23:47 PM »

It seems as though even the potato beetle prefer SM tomatoes over the other varieties.

norma427 · « **Reply #6 on:** June 20, 2011, 10:14:47 PM »

Quote from: TXCraig1 on June 20, 2011, 08:59:37 PM

Its not unusual to find them on tomato plants. They can be very difficult to get rid of with insecticides. Killing the larve and eggs by hand as you are doing may be your best bet.

CL

Craig,

I never saw them on any of my tomato plants before, but wouldn't you know it, those buggers were here this year.

You are right on killing the larvae and then getting rid of the damaged leaves that have the eggs on. I haven't seen anymore since.

Norma

norma427 · « **Reply #7 on:** June 20, 2011, 10:16:47 PM »

Quote from: Jackie Tran on June 20, 2011, 09:23:47 PM

It seems as though even the potato beetle prefer SM tomatoes over the other varieties.

Chau,

Lol, I guess they were high class potato beetles that picked just the SM tomato plants.

Norma

norma427 · « **Reply #8 on:** June 25, 2011, 08:42:21 AM »

When I was checking my tomato plants yesterday I saw what appeared to be another beetle or larger larvae on one of the tomato leaves. I think it is the same kind of beetle which must be a little older, and has stripes now. http://gardening.sheknows.com/2011/03/10/colorado-potato-beetles/ The other kind of beetle I had seen on the San Marzano tomato plant was this kind of beetle, that the larvae then were eating my leaves, but I now think they are both the same kind of beetle after searching on the web. http://www.ourveggiegarden.com/InsectsPotatoBeetle.html That darn bugger I found yesterday was on the same San Marzano tomato plant. I don’t know why those beetles like the San Manzano tomato plants.

Some of my tomato plants are as tall as I am now.

Picture of beetle killed yesterday, green tomatoes, and how big the tomato plants are. Tomato plants really don’t need a lot of room to grow, but I guess in my area I need to keep watching for beetles. Only a few yellow small tomatoes and grape tomatoes have ripened so far.

Norma

norma427 · « **Reply #9 on:** June 25, 2011, 08:45:48 AM »

pictures of green tomatoes and how big some of the tomato plants are.

Norma

norma427 · « **Reply #10 on:** June 25, 2011, 08:50:20 AM »

last of pictures

Norma

vr6Dad · « **Reply #11 on:** June 30, 2011, 11:30:43 PM »

I can't help much with keeping the beetles off your plants, but dad gum that is a monster mater plant. Very nice!!!

norma427 · « **Reply #12 on:** July 01, 2011, 09:04:17 AM »

Quote from: vr6Dad on June 30, 2011, 11:30:43 PM

I can't help much with keeping the beetles off your plants, but dad gum that is a monster mater plant. Very nice!!!

Adrian,

I am still picking a couple of those beetle insects off of my tomato plants every few days. I planted those tomato plants on 5/12/2011 at Reply http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,10535.msg138806.html#msg138806 and had cultivated Alpaca and Donkey composted poo in the ground before planting at Reply 169 http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,10535.msg137302.html#msg137302. I never tried to fertilize with Alpaca and Donkey composted poo before, but it sure makes everything grow big. Those tomato plants are taller than I am now. I haven’t used any other fertilizer on any of my plants this year. Hopefully I can get some of that composted Alpaca and Donkey poo next year, but the man that gave it to Steve and me might be moving away from our area. I have planted anywhere from 50-75 or more tomato plants this year, in all different spots. (some places shady, some in direct sun, and some really crowded together ). I want to see if the ones planted in the shade or crowded together will also produce good tomatoes. None of the other tomato plants have those beetles on so far.

Norma

ktalbertina · « **Reply #13 on:** July 04, 2011, 07:21:53 PM »

Norma,

May be a Japanese Beetle. Couldn't really tell by the pictures, but they have been horrible in Missouri this year. Also read that the "traps" they market can actually draw more beetles to your yard than they catch. Just my .02 Hope I could help!

Kyle

norma427 · « **Reply #14 on:** July 04, 2011, 08:13:55 PM »

Quote from: ktalbertina on July 04, 2011, 07:21:53 PM

Norma,

May be a Japanese Beetle. Couldn't really tell by the pictures, but they have been horrible in Missouri this year. Also read that the "traps" they market can actually draw more beetles to your yard than they catch. Just my .02 Hope I could help!

Kyle

Kyle,

Thanks for trying to help me identify the kind of insect that were on my tomato plants.

I haven’t seen any more of the what I think are potato beetles for about a week, but we also have many Japanese beetles every year. They seem to get on 3 kinds of my perennials I grow. I was dealing with the Japanese beetles this past week. We also have many stink bugs in our area. At least the Japanese beetles and stink bugs don’t seem to like my tomato plants. The Japanese beetles were eating some of my basil though. I have to check all my plants daily to see what kind of insects might be getting at them. I had hung wash out a few years ago, and somehow a Japanese beetle stayed on my sheets. I ended up with that darn thing in my ear when I was sleeping. It almost drove me nuts, until I got it out. It kept buzzing.

You are right that the traps do draw more Japanese beetles! I tried those traps about 6 years ago and I had more Japanese beetles than I ever had before. That was the end of using those traps. Since you also have many Japanese beetles how do you deal with them? Do they get on your garden plants?

Norma

chickenparm · « **Reply #15 on:** July 04, 2011, 09:01:06 PM »

Norma's secret ingredient to her super sauce....the bugs!

Seriously,wow,those little critters LOVE to eat..can we blame them? Hope you get it solved.Might have to screen everything out like they do in Florida!!

norma427 · « **Reply #16 on:** July 04, 2011, 09:48:27 PM »

Quote from: chickenparm on July 04, 2011, 09:01:06 PM

Norma's secret ingredient to her super sauce....the bugs!

Seriously,wow,those little critters LOVE to eat..can we blame them? Hope you get it solved.Might have to screen everything out like they do in Florida!!

Bill,

I don’t know about where you live, but where I live there are always many bugs or insects in the summer. I just noticed yesterday, there are many camel crickets on my one shed in the evening when it gets dark. I need to also control them or they also will get away from me. Those camel crickets are the nastiest looking insects (they look like something from medieval days) and when I go to get them they can really jump.

I know all little critters like to eat, but they can all be bothersome. $:-\$

Lol, my secret ingredient for my sauce might be bugs.

I will use many of the tomatoes for Les’s sauce. It isn’t my secret recipe, it is his.

Norma

The Dough Doctor · « **Reply #17 on:** July 05, 2011, 02:33:08 PM »

Norma;
Send a couple of the bugs over to your county agricultural agent, or the entomology department at a local university and I'm betting that they will be able to identify it and also provide you with suggested control measures.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor

norma427 · « **Reply #18 on:** July 05, 2011, 09:52:04 PM »

Quote from: The Dough Doctor on July 05, 2011, 02:33:08 PM

Norma;
Send a couple of the bugs over to your county agricultural agent, or the entomology department at a local university and I'm betting that they will be able to identify it and also provide you with suggested control measures.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor

Tom,

Thanks for your suggestions to send a couple of the bugs to our local county agricultural agent or the entomology department for getting help in suggested control measures for all my bugs or insects.

There are so many bugs or insects in my area. I guess many areas of the US do have insect problems.

Norma

norma427 · « **Reply #19 on:** July 07, 2011, 08:35:13 PM »

Well, more problems in my garden.

After I made my last post I went outside to pick some lettuce, grape tomatoes, pear tomatoes, the first tiny San Marzano tomato, cucumbers and some other greens to eat in a salad. I went to bend down and heard a noise that sounded that a grrrrr. Here a big fat groundhog was trapped inside my fenced part of my garden. That darn bugger ate most of my lettuce and had started eating a cucumber. I jumped up quickly, but that darn groundhog sure scared me. Other years I have put traps out for the groundhogs and put fresh fruits and vegetable inside the trap, but those groundhogs sure are smart. They never get into the traps. I would release them at another place, but can’t seem to ever get any. What an adventure is to garden in our area! If it isn’t one problem it is another.

Just look at my poor lettuce!

Norma