Tomato hornworms, Manduca quinquemaculata, are large green caterpillars that devour tomato plants along with other nightshades including peppers, potatoes, and eggplant. A tomato hornworm can grow up ... Caterpillars can be cute, but you don't necessarily want them all over your vegetable garden.

Understanding the Context

We have some expert insights on how to get rid of them. I saw your recent column about tomato fruitworms, and was wondering if this pest also eats leaves. The leaves of one of my tomato plants are being eaten by something. A couple of the branches now have ...

Key Insights

AOL: Should You Kill Tomato Hornworms? Why Pros Say They Can Help Your Garden Thrive Should You Kill Tomato Hornworms? Why Pros Say They Can Help Your Garden Thrive Los Angeles Daily News: How to prevent tomato hornworms from destroying your garden vegetables Tomato hornworms can be extremely destructive to tomatoes, eggplants, and pepper plants, especially when the plants are young and small. Luckily, there is an environmentally friendly way to keep them ... The Advocate: It's not too late to put in tomato transplants.

Final Thoughts

But be ready to fight these common pests.