TOMATO HORN WORM- and PARASITES!

Tomato horn worm

Well. back out to the garden...results in another find!  Each year I do have to remove the tomato horn-worm from my tomato plants, that is just a given that there will be some.

I have always heard about the Braconid wasp, but had never seen it until yesterday...  

The braconid wasp is a insect parasite. They are actually a parasitoid-a parasite that kill their host.   This wasp usually does not sting humans, it is very small.  

 The female will lay eggs inside the wasp, and the larva will eat away at the worm.  Interesting, as I understand it, they do not eat the vital organs of the worm, so that is why the worm is still living. 

They then chew their way out of the worm, (I wonder if that is the scars I am seeing on the worm 

the brown spots, are covering this worm, and they are not on healthy worms. I wonder if those are the areas that the wasp came thru, as you can see them under where the wasp is connected...

-the circles-that you do not see on the 'healthy' worm in the photo above). 

 They will then pupate, spin a small cocoon.  These cocoons look like tiny eggs, but they are not.  

Eventually the tomato hornworm will die.

A butterfly 'hatches'!

Well it has been a very busy summer....

But wanted to catch everyone up that may read about our adventures on our little farm. The summer has went fast, as it usually does! 




Our little gardens of food has provided enough for Scott and I to eat from, but not enough to can. I did get to can some tomatoes, (24 quarts) and will can about that much more, but not enough cucumbers for pickles. I am sad a bout that. Plenty of zucchini, 

and I will harvest the black eyed peas soon. That is a first for me. I will have some winter squash too-sadly our peppers did not do well.

One of the fun things I did this year was something I use to do when younger-watch the development of a monarch butterfly!  Do you know that if you try to help a butterfly hatch, it can kill it?  It must break out of its 'shell' on its own.  

this one has just come out of its chrysalis see how the wings are wrinkled?  When if first comes out, it is very wrinkled ---looks shriveled up almost!  In order for it to survive, it must do all of this itself...it makes the wings stronger.  

this one has been 'drying for about 2 hours" and it is a male (their are two spots, sort of like dots that are scent spots on the lower wings)

So while out mowing on the back 40, I found some larva (5) and put them into a large gallon jar. Fed them plenty of milk weed and watch them turn into a chrysalis. then the day they would "break out" from their protective chrysalis, the chrysalis turned black, but you could see the butterfly thru the clear protective covering. 

It is neat how it goes from green to clear so you can see it. It looks black because of the change and the clearness-your seeing the black on the  wings. Then you look closer and you see the orange too!

It will hatch that day. 3 hatched on one day, so I did some photos. they are below-from the larva stage to the end-the butterfly! Enjoy!

the larva is getting into the "J" position and ready to spin the chrysalis  

its silk is put on the glass jar to hold it in place...

just getting done, notice the moisture (even a drop of fluid towards the bottom of the photo) and the shape is not very smooth, "bumpy"

the shape is still "bumpy"

the shape is much smoother, notice the gold color on the outside.  this one is about 8 days old, you can see the wings developing.

just before (minutes) it 'hatches"

3 have hatched!

the wings are drying....

I placed them on the flowers just outside my back door, they stayed in the area for about 6 hours before flying away.  They take awhile for the wings to actually
 dry...

This is a female

Tomato Horn Worm

Well, they are out and eating my tomatoes!

A week ago, there was no sign of any insects or damage and today while weeding, I saw damage to the plants and signs of tomato horn worms.  


Time to go 'worming'. 
Below, is how most of my plants looked a week ago and most of them still look like this today...

 Now, look at this!  See below!  The tops are eaten right off!  I will not share my tomatoes with any worm!  No I will not, I am very stingy with my tomato's!~  (well when it comes to insects anyway!)

Look at the tops of the plants- this is showing that you have a tomato horn worm eating away at your plants.

This is the poop that the worms leave behind.  If you see this and your leaves or tomatoes eaten into, look for the worm!

And now in the photo below, is the worm!

Can you see him?

Look close!

Click on the photo to enlarge the photo and see if you can find him.

Here is another photo of him below...

And below is a closer photo of him...

This one is actually a tobacco hornworm.

Fat little things aren't they!  I usually just pull them off. They have little suction cups on their little 'legs' so they can hold on well, and they will hold onto you too when you grab them!. 

The poky thing coming out of its hind end area, is not sharp, But it scares away other bugs because they think they will be stung.  That is one reason why it is called the tomato horn worm/Tobacco hornworm--the poky thing.  You can not get stung by one of these so don't be afraid. But do get rid of them or your plant will not do well.  These worms do not just eat one tomato, they eat a little of every tomato! 

You can see the underside of this worm above. If you do not like to touch them, then just break off the leaf or stem they are feeding on and remove them that way.  Do not just throw them into the yard, trust me, they will be back! You need to destroy them, or remove them to a field or something.

 They can get to be about 5 inches long, and really fat like a marker.  But they are often hard to see as they blend in with the leaves so well.  If you see signs of them on the plants, leaves and tomatoes eaten, then look for their poop, that is usually 'fresh' from the current location they are eating from.  Sometimes you have to just get a lawn chair and sit down by your tomatoes and just 'look' for awhile .

 It takes patience, like those games where you look for hidden things in the picture.  One worm can destroy your tomatoes in just a few days.  They grow fast, so one day they might be really small and the next a big fat worm! 

  I do not use toxins on my farm at all, so I have things like this -and other bugs-to deal with on a  regular basis... 

 This means I have to go out every few days and check my garden.  But your out there anyway, weeding and harvesting --take time to look for the worms too!

 I would rather pull off bugs and feed them to the chickens than use toxic stuff on my plants to keep the weeds and bugs away!  

I know there are organic sprays out there, and I have heard to get an old blender and blend up these bugs and other ones and then spray the plant with their chopped up guts but I would rather not do that!  That is just too gross for me!

By the way, if you ever see one with white things on it like this, (photo below) that is good!  That is from a wasp that laid its eggs on the worm, and the wasp's larva are eating the worm!  So leave it alone! the wasps are good bugs for your garden!

braconid wasp, Cotesia congregatus. 

The wasps like the following plants: Parsley, dill yarrow and Mustard, so these in your garden close to the tomatoes might attract them. The braconid wasp consumes nectar and pollen.  They do not sting humans unless you attack them first. So they are not really harmful (but if you are sensitive to them, still carry your epi pen when gardening).  

My chickens and the peacock just love them, they are a treat for them-so I will continue to pull them off the plants- along with all the other bugs -by hand.  

Oh and by the way, this moth that is made from the tomato horn worm (see photo below)

is not currently endangered so you are not hurting anything to get rid of them in the moth stage or in the larva stage (the horn worm).  

If you do not want to kill them, that is fine, I suggest that you plant a few plants are just for the larva of moths or butterflies then, and move them to those plants. I do that with some of my plants such a Lovage.  

If I find the caterpillar for a swallowtail or monarch butterfly anywhere in my garden, then I will allow them to live, even at the expense of my vegetables!

Happy worm hunting!