Hornworms

[ahbee01]

Basil, works, or at least helps!
I did it last year, and didn't find one horn worm.
I planted the basil this year too!
Plus the basil is also supposed to help enhance the flavor
or your maters! A win, win if you ask me!!!
Brenda

 

[Reinbeau]

Feeding them to the chickens sounds like a good plan, but if you find any with white cocoons on them, leave them be. Those are the larvae of a parasitic wasp, the caterpillar will be dead long before it does any lasting damage to your plant. Plus once you've got those wasps you'll never have a problem with hornworms again. I've had them for years, a few leaves get eaten, but then they all end up dead.

 

[Tink]

You know the cartoons you see of the two chickens fighting over a worm that they are both pulling on...well mine girls reinacted that scene for me with a tomatoe worm. Too funny!! They love them
Tink

 

[Grow 4 Food]

picking works about the best. Be careful if you are letting kids do it cause those little bugger hurt like heck if they sting you! I don't feed mine to the chickens ........ they make to good of catfish bait!

 

[OaklandCityFarmer]

picking works about the best. Be careful if you are letting kids do it cause those little bugger hurt like heck if they sting you! I don't feed mine to the chickens ........ they make to good of catfish bait!

Have you actually been stung? It's always been my understanding that they are completely harmless and the "stinger" is only there to scare off predators (and gardeners).

 

[me&thegals]

Aren't they beautiful and gross at the same time? Last year (before I thought about feeding them to my chickens), I would drop them on the ground and then yell loudly while stomping on them so I didn't have to hear them pop--feeling it was bad enough!

 

[OaklandCityFarmer]

Aren't they beautiful and gross at the same time? Last year (before I thought about feeding them to my chickens), I would drop them on the ground and then yell loudly while stomping on them so I didn't have to hear them pop--feeling it was bad enough!

Very funny. They are beautiful I guess.

 

[sunflower]

I don't know if what i had on my tomato plants was hornworms or not but they were BIG, GREEN AND UGLY, had a red thing on one end. Put on my gloves and picked them off to throw to the chickens, guess I have strange chickens, they looked at the worms and walked off. So I dusted down my tomato plants good with DE. Planted my tomato plants in a different area this year, first year I have had worms, next year will go back to regular spot.

 

[janetnjim]

If ya'll any find a hornworm that looks like this one......................

LEAVE IT ALONE, those are the eggs of a braconid wasp on it's body. When those eggs hatch they will burrow into the worm and eat it from the inside out. Allowing this process to take place will add to the population of the wasp which will help to decrease the number of hornworms. You may and probably will lose a little bit of foilage this year but it's a small price to pay to have the wasps in yer garden in the future.
The common wasp will also eat the hornworm itself and also feeds on cabbage loopers and other garden catarpillars.
Organic gardening at it's very best. :dance

 

[Tutter]

I've found other caterpillars parasitized this year. I know it's a good thing, in the scheme of things, but I really do hate it.