Little pests on my tomatoes...
By liquorice
@liquorice (3887)
June 25, 2008 7:50am CST
I've been very happy to find some little tomatoes growing on my plants (see the photo for my first tomatoes of the year!)
However, I've also discovered some things which aren't so nice. Lots and lots of tiny blackflies have set up home on the stalks and leaves of my plants (along with some greenfly and whitefly - seems they can all live happily together 
). There are also lots of tiny black eggs on the underside of some leave, which I presume are their future offspring.
I have several questions for anyone who can help me:
Do little flies like these harm the plants?
(Might be a silly question, I guess they're there for more than just shelter and are probably gradually sucking the life out of them?? )
What can I do to get rid of them?
I don't like the idea of chemicals as I don't want to poison the tomatoes themselves, but is there a natural, harmless (to us!) way of getting rid of these pests? I've been removing some by hand, but I'll be there all day if I do this with all of them.
And lastly, will they try to eat the actual tomatoes?
). There are also lots of tiny black eggs on the underside of some leave, which I presume are their future offspring.
I have several questions for anyone who can help me:
Do little flies like these harm the plants?
(Might be a silly question, I guess they're there for more than just shelter and are probably gradually sucking the life out of them?? )
What can I do to get rid of them?
I don't like the idea of chemicals as I don't want to poison the tomatoes themselves, but is there a natural, harmless (to us!) way of getting rid of these pests? I've been removing some by hand, but I'll be there all day if I do this with all of them.
And lastly, will they try to eat the actual tomatoes?2 people like this
3 responses
@sweetdesign (5142)
• United States
25 Jun 08
I don't have that particular problem I have tomato worms. I have gotten 4 of them and one unhatched one off my various tomato plants. I don't know about the flies and whether they will eat your plants (the worms are eating mine). I have taken 7 dust after my plants. I will be dusting them again today since we have had quite a bit of rain. 7 dust is a chemical pest control that has been around for ages to help the garderner protect his plants you will need to wash your tomatoes with water before consuming them if you use 7 dust but it does not poison the tomato itself.
2 people like this
@sweetdesign (5142)
• United States
25 Jun 08
I have been picking the bugs off they are huge
2 people like this
@liquorice (3887)
•
25 Jun 08
Ooh, I've never heard of tomato worms. They sound nasty, and I wouldn't want to come across them! I hope you manage to get rid of them.
Thanks for your advice on the flies. I haven't heard of 7 dust, and I'm not sure we have that here, but to be honest I'd rather avoid chemical pest control if I have to. It's might sound a bit paranoid, but I'm a bit wary of them ...although I don't really want the flies either. I will be trying the soapy water idea first I think, but might have to resort to something like this if I can't get rid of the problem in a non-chemical way..
2 people like this
@sandyrusty (278)
• Canada
25 Jun 08
Your best solution to tomato worms without using harmful pesticides is to remove them by hand and killing them. I have had these for about 7 years. ONce they come around, they seem to come back every year. They will eat all of the foliage off of your plants and will bite into some of the tomatoes. They can become as big as you little finger and are UGLY!!!
3 people like this
@liquorice (3887)
•
25 Jun 08
Thanks for that suggestion. It seems really simple and pretty harmless for the tomatoes. Do the flies not like soap? Or maybe it stops them being able to cling to the surface of the plant? I'll give it a go.
2 people like this
@saundyl (9783)
• Canada
27 Jun 08
sounds very similar to aphids.
I'd spray soapy water on the tomato plants or make an oil spray.
1 cup canola oil
1/4 cup dish soap
2 cups water
mix thoroughly and spray on foliage. The soap will kill the bugs and the oil will film on the foliage to keep any eggs from hatching or more from being laid.
I've also heard somewhere that cornmeal or eggshells will keep bugs like cutworms away if spread in the soil around the plants.
@liquorice (3887)
•
28 Jun 08
Oh, thanks for that. It sounds simple enough to make, so I'll be trying it! I like the fact that there's no harsh chemicals involved. I've tried coffee grounds for the slugs and snails we are also getting and I think that's working. I haven't come across cutworms, they sound nasty. I'll keep the other suggestions in mind in case I meet one!
1 person likes this
