Bacillus thuringiensis -1.0 to 2.0 lb Dipel (or OLF).The following options are from the Commercial Vegetable Production Recommendations guide. The products in parenthesis are OMRI approved, but if you are an organic farmer check with your certifier to make sure that they can still be used.
The following biorational options are from Penn State's Vegetable Integrated Pest Management with an Emphasis on Biocontrol manual (available for purchase).
The key to success is to apply them when larvae are less than ¾ inch long. There are several materials that are effective a killing tomato hornworm. When more than one hornworm larvae is found per 10 plants in affected areas of the field, chemical control may be warranted. When the wasps emerge, the hornworm will die and adult wasps will seek out other hornworms to repeat the cycle. Wasp cocoons are easily found on parasitized hornworms. White cocoons appear on the outside of the hornworm body. When the eggs hatch, larvae feed on the insides of the hornworm and then pupate. Braconid wasps ( Cotesia congregtus) are natural enemies of tomato hornworm. Handpicking them from plants and destroying them can be effective in small areas, however be careful to leave any that are parasitized (see photo below).Įggs and early instar stages are vulnerable to attack by lady beetles, minute pirate bugs, green lacewing larvae, parasitoid wasps and spined soldier bugs (prey on larvae). Managing solanaceous weeds eliminates hosts for tomato hornworms. Rotating to crops that are not hosts to tomato hornworm can help in management. Tilling in the spring and fall can expose pupae to wind, weather and predators. Frass can be found on leaves and also on the ground or plastic mulch.
Late instar larvae also feed on fruit leaving large areas with feeding damage.Īnother sign of tomato hornworm presence is their frass, which is large and resembles rabbit droppings. Upper portions of the plant can become defoliated, with the mid-rib being left behind. Larvae go through 5 instar stages with the final stage resulting in the majority (about 90%) of all of the feeding damage. Larvae hatch from the eggs about 6-8 days later and begin feeding on tomato leaves targeting the top portion of the plants. Here in the center of the state, we started noticing single lime green, small (approximately 1/10 cm), shiny eggs on the top or bottom surface of leaves of tomato, pepper and other solanaceous crops in early July.
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