What is eating my tomato plants? Is it tomatoes that have been infected with fungal diseases or bacterial infection? Well, most of the time, it is the former. If you notice that your tomato plant is succumbing to one kind of disease but not the other, chances are that both fungi are causing the problem. The following paragraphs will reveal to you what can eat my tomato plants and how the marks they left are tell-tale signs that you need to take action to prevent fungus and bacterial infections from taking over your home organic garden.
Slugs are one of the most common tomato plant pests around. They are also one of the hardest tomato plant pests to spot. Slugs come in all shapes and sizes and depending on their environment, food source, and age, they can cause varying amounts of damage to your tomato crops. To understand what is eating my tomato plants, you first need to understand how they get in and then how you can control them.
One of the easiest ways to control plant diseases is by keeping animals away from your tomato crops. This includes the tomato fruit itself as well as leaves, stems, and petals. Some animals that can eat my tomato plants are leaf-cutting bees, carpenter ants, ground beetles, and aphids. Keep these animals away from your tomatoes, as they can eat up your entire crop in a very short amount of time. You may also want to use an insecticide, but there are many organic methods to do this as well.
Hornworms and slugs are two completely different types of pests. A good way to keep them away is to make sure that you do not allow your tomatoes to be planted in your garden in the first place. There are also natural pest deterrents that you can put in your soil around your tomato plants that will keep them away. The best of these are cricket eggs, and white grubs. These two are a natural enemy for your tomato plant and have been proven to be very effective in keeping slugs and hornworms at bay.
Colorado potato beetles are another problem you may encounter. They also attack green beans, cucumbers, and peppers. To control these beetles, you need to first identify them and kill them. There are different methods you can use, such as a liquid spray, bait, or traps.
Leaf-cutting bees are a plant pest that can really take a toll on your tomato plants. They are particularly destructive around the time of harvest. They will do great harm to any plant in bloom, including tomato plants. The most common way they inflict damage is by cutting off the main stem and eating the supporting stems. Fortunately, you can control this problem with a few techniques, including planting a mothball over the affected area, using some type of insecticide, or using a trellis to provide better protection.
Colorado potato beetles can also wreak havoc on your tomato crops if not taken care of. They do great damage to leaves and roots, which can cause your vines to be defoliated. This leaves your plant looking disheveled and in desperate need of tender loving care. Control these pesky insects by timing you watering to coincide with when the butterflies are out. You can also attract them to your feeder by placing some nectarines or sugary treats within reach of the bugs. This will help to create an environment that the Colorado potato beetles love, resulting in fewer problems for you.
Hornworms and slugs may not seem to have much to do with each other, but that is not the case. If you have a plant overrun with these pests, they will surely do damage to your garden. Hornworms will eat leaves, stems, and even the roots. On the other hand, slugs are known to destroy plant roots, eating them up and then running off to find more to eat. Control these destructive slugs with the same methods that you use to control other garden pests, including a powerful pesticides, or you can take preventative action by protecting your garden against slugs and hornworms by taking some type of action to protect the rest of your garden from such pests.