Tomato plants ( Solanum lycopersicum ) are prized for their crimson , juicy fruit . You ’re not the only one who enjoys the taste of Lycopersicon esculentum . Various pests may attack and provender on the tomato industrial plant ’s fruit and leaf , causing leaf loss , plant stress and likely yield loss . Protect your garden from some of the most mutual pests that afflict love apple plants .
Psyllids
Psyllids are tiny icteric or green insects that congregate on the undersurface of tomato leaf and come in a poison into the leaf , turn the tomato plant plant ’s foliation yellow and purple . These pestsrarelyreach population levels that cause true damage ; most gardeners simply dislike psyllids for esthetic intellect .
If you pick out to control and eradicate psyllids , make your own psyllid insecticide at home :
Things Needed
Step 1
Pour1/2 snow leopard of liquified hired hand soaporliquid dish antenna detergentinto a reusable spray bottle .
Step 2
Add2 quarts of waterto the spray bottle .
Step 3
Mix thoroughly .
Step 4
Spray the soapy solution onto affected portions of the tomato plant life , focusing on the underside of leaves where psyllids care to forgather .
Step 5
Repeatonce a weekuntil psyllid activity subsides .
Warning
avert spray the tomato plant with goop - based insecticides when outdoor temperatures are95 degrees Fahrenheit or high . Soap can damage the tomato plant when used during a hot day .
Flea Beetles
Flea beetles , another common Lycopersicon esculentum plague , are chocolate-brown or disgraceful beetle that skip away from you when touched . The grownup mallet run through small muddle into the foliation of the tomato plant life .
Flea mallet seldom cause endure damage to adult tomato plant , but they can pose a scourge to seedling survival of the fittest .
cover up the vegetable bed with afloating row coverto jam out beetles and protect young tomato plants . A floating row covert is an ultralight , ultrathin landscaping sheet that keeps pests from progress to the underlie plant but still allow sun and water get through . Drape the quarrel cover over the garden bed as shortly as tomato seedlings come out , and weigh down the edges of the sheet with rock or with uracil - shaped garden pin .
If flea beetle have already get in , a floating row top will not help . Instead , dust all exposed surfaces of the tomato industrial plant withfood - grade diatomaceous world . This all - natural powder is made from humbled diatoms . The pulverisation ’s petite , sharp edges kill flea mallet .
Tip
When using diatomaceous earth , reapply the powderafter it rainsor after you water the tomato industrial plant .
Hornworms
If you see prominent gray - green or immature caterpillars crawl on your tomato plant , you have a love apple hornworm problem . This pest is a fast eater . In just a few days , the caterpillars can completely undress the entire Lycopersicon esculentum flora of its farewell and fruit .
Pick the hornworms off of the tomato industrial plant by hand . This is a convenient , effective and simple way to extirpate the trouble . squeeze the caterpillars or drop them into a bucket of soapy water system to kill them .
If you choose a hands - off approach shot , use an organic caterpillar insecticide made withBacillus thuringiensis kurstaki . Btis anatural bacteriumthat kills caterpillars when it gets ingested . Bt insecticides come in spray and powders .
Whiteflies and Aphids
whitefly and aphids suck in on the sap of the love apple plant and can cause wilting and leaf loss . A common symptom for either pest is the presence of honeydew — a glutinous , glossy substance excreted by the insect when they ’re feeding .
Spray the tomato plant with astrong jet of waterfrom a garden hose . This is often all that ’s need to knock the aphids and whiteflies off of the plant and kill them . Repeat once a week to keep pestis populations low-spirited .
Stink Bugs
Last but not least on the love apple works ’s most - require pest lean are malodor bugs . These cuticle - shaped mallet add up in various colors , including brown and green . If touched , they let out a pungent smell , hence their name . Stink bugs provender on tomato fruit causing spotting and the inner tissue becomes spongy and clean . The first sign of price appear as tiny dismal spot surround by discolor that can call on yellowish or green as the yield matures .
Handpickthe reek bugs off of the tomato plant — put on gloves if you want to avoid their trademark stink — and beat the bugs or drop them into a bucket of soapy urine . Alternatively , use ahandheld vacuumto quickly suck the insects off of the affected plant . Remove the void ’s debris base , place it in a sealed charge card bag and discard it in your deep freezer for a duet Day to kill the trammel fetor hemipteran .
Handpick or vacuum stink bug in theearly morningwhen the pests are dull .
