Holy Moly!

I found this poop on my pepper plant this morning as I was doing my daily morning inspection. Any idea what kind of critter (it's obviously BIG!) this might belong to?? I know it's poop because it just rolled right off the leaf and didn't stick.

wow!

Yikes - let us know when you find the culprit. if it's a worm, it's one BIG worm!!

Dang, I thought they were berries till I got a better look

I'm not kidding you! These little balls were the size of peas!! Very shocking!

Its so big it looks like rabbit poop. I'd be affraid to find the thing that pooped those!

It's hard to say for sure but it is the season for hornworms. They love tomatoes, eggplants and pepper plants and I found some of both the worms and the frass in my garden yesterday. Once you know what to look for they're easy to spot, especially in the early evening when they come out into the open. Mine were about 4 inches long!

There are a number of articles on the site about them so you can learn more and decide how you want to address the situation. They can be very destructive but they also turn into beneficial moths, so it's a dilemma.

Good luck!

Yeah, Steph - the likely culprit unfortunalety could be a very large hornworm. But then I'm thinking your plants would be stripped bare by now if it was... I've never seen bug poop that big before - lol. I hope you find "it" 'cuz the suspense is killing me...

Kelly

I've been patrolling for hornworms since I found a smaller one yesterday on my mater. Still not finding anything on the peppers and DH didn't find anything when he went out last night. I got some Bt today, but it's getting ready to rain, so I'll have to wait to apply it.

Yup, looks like little baby ears of corn, but black (or blackberries) that is certainly hornworm poop. At least that's what it looked like in my garden the day before my leaves were all missing off the tops of my tomato plants. Be stealthy! Be brave! They're great at camouflage. Snatch those big squishy suckers off of there.

I hate those suckers..just fllow the poop trail and look toward the top of your plant. I get few of those every year...

Remember to look on the underside of leaves and
along stems. Those devils are good at disguising
themselves.

I've got something chewing big holes in my eggplant leaves, but no telltale droppings anywhere, and never seen a bug on 'em. I have encountered a new phenomenon tho on sev'l other plants that are chewed on -- little short, miniature crickets. Anyone else have them, LMK what to do please. Linda

Hey, Linda.

The crickets won't do much damage unless there are a bunch of them. Squish 'em I tell you!! I have the same thing with my eggplant and am told they are flea beetles. They love eggplant leaves. Again, if your plant is big and healthy they won't do much damage. If you go out in the evening and brush against the eggplant leaves, you'll see this stuff that looks like dust flying. It's the flea beetles jumping to safety. They are very tiny and hard to see. I'm sure there is a way to get rid of them, but I just let them be.

Kelly

Locakelly, are you in Phoenix or up higher elevations? have you had the isues with them hornworms?

Hi, MissJestr - I am in the heart of Phoenix - lol.

Not too many hornworms this year. I caught a few that were literally babies, but have found a couple that made it almost to adulthood - lol. The first about 2" and the one last night about 3.5". I hate those bugs the worst. Nothing like inspecting your plants and coming face to face with one of them. I think the entire city and beyond heard me scream! I did take a pic of it. I'll get around to downloading them and I'll post one.

Here's a pic of the first one I found...

YUCK!!

Kelly

Hey, Steph . . .

The hornworm I found last night on my 'maters definitely could have produced poop that large... He was about 3.5" not fully stretched out.

Did you find anything yet?

Kelly

Nope, nothing yet. We had some severe storms last night that prevented me from getting out and looking or spraying. Maybe tonight, but looks like we might get more rain.

Hey Steph...

How'd did you do with all those storms -- saw the news and Dallas was hit pretty bad with flooding. We had some tree branches down...but I guess we were further north than the brunt of it all.

This is just an unusual summer here in N. Texas.

We had lots of rain and wind. The tornado sirens went off, but I think that was just because of the high winds. Lots of bright lightning and loud thunder with driving rains. No damage here, but I'm in SW Fort Worth. I think the hardest hit areas were up by DFW.

Locakelly,
I was just hoping that I would never see them bugs, I keep going out there and looking and I dont see anything, but something is getting my new shoots of corn, and something got my one last lemon cuke plant, and I had been babying that plant cause I wanted to see what they tasted like. I looked all over and cant find a thing on any of my plants that could be eating them... I am getting frustrated...

Daaaaaaaaang, Kelley! Who stretched him out? Thanks 4 the flea beetle tip.

Hey, Linda.

The guy not stretched out was kinda clinging to the 'mater stem so I couldn't measure him that well. Believe me, I'm not gonna touch that ugly bug - lol!!

MissJestr - are they just eating the leaves or the whole plant? May be birds getting them or possibly cutworms if they look sawed off at the base so to speak . . . Could be a lot of different things for sure...

Kelly

Some I lost all the leaves down to the stem on the older plants, and the newer ones that are just coming up out of the ground, they are munching them back down to the ground.

I have noticed bird dung in the garden, how do I get rid of BIrds without Covering the whole garden??

Hmmmm. Maybe hornworms then. They will strip all the leaves off a plant in no time, especially if there are more than one of them. Could be cabbage loopers as well. Theya re green inch worm looking things that can get pretty big as well.

You can try hanging shiny things like old CDs around your garden. I know a few people who swear this works to keep out birds. I've never actually tried it as I have a shade structure over my garden in the summer and the birds don't seem to like that too well. Except the hummers that come to the feeders - they don't mind^_^

Kelly

Hey Kelly, whil cleaning my stored planters area I discovered a new bug I never saw before. Got pics, but how do you post to bugs forum anymore? That site seems 2 have changed. Also don't wanna hijack a thread with my pic. LMK

When you get it posted, please send link.. I am curious since I am new to bugs....

I'm sorry, but do ya'll know what this is? There was a whole nest of em in a cup. They didn't move very fast and reminded me of scorpions but no tail up. I've gotta finish up and I'd like 2 know what I'm dealing with. Thanks guys! Linda

This message was edited Jun 12, 2009 4:46 PM

Linda - can't figure out the bug forum either:^(

Not too sure what that thing is... It doesn't look like it has pinschers like a scorpion. Definitely need to figure out how to post it for the bug ID folks. Might be something only in Texas - lol.

Kelly

P.S. It doesn't look like it bites, but it doesn't look too friendly either...

Edited to say: see if this link works for your bug ID post . . .

http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/f/bugid/all/#new



This message was edited Jun 12, 2009 2:59 PM

Thanks Kel! Melody answered with that same link as soon as I hit the send button! I posted it there. Not going back in til get answer. There was a cup with five or six good sized bugs. Don't want em crawling up my pantlegs either!

Yikes! Bugs in the pantlegs is nooooo fun. I'll be watching the ID forum for an answer.

EWWWW I just got over the horn worm, now there is another bug...

This is what I found this morning munching on my peppers. My DH declared, "It's a big 'un!" He then dispatched him to worm heaven. LOL

Sorry Msjester, didn't mean 2 creep you out. If it'll help, I used 2 dread my first encounter with a really HUGE hornworm. But since Dave's and working outside so much, I actually look forward 2 the day. It does get better. You learn 2 cohabitate with nature.

Msjester close your eyes! Kelley and Stephanie LOOK at what I'm holding in my hand! As destructive as they can be, it is truly a very beautiful creature! His name is Harry and I'm hoping to grow him up into that bennificial moth if he'll cooperate by staying alive for me. He's totally harmless in my hand. And of course 6 foot tall Bubba_MoCity picked him off first and is standing right next to me. Never woulda held Harry alone! ^_^ Linda

Here's Harry!

I've thought of growing some tomatoes and other stuff for them in a separate area of my yard just so that when they come to visit they'll have a place to stay, but I just don't know if I can stand to do that. LOL They really are cute, in a gross sort of way, but they are so destructive!

Step, they're just ravenously hungry for their favorite food (tomato leaves) ALL THE TIME! And they can play dead better than a possum! ^_^

This message was edited Jun 14, 2009 7:53 AM

It wouldn't bother me so much if they'd just stick to the leaves, but when they take bites out of several tomatoes (don't even eat the whole thing, just bite, bite, bite and move on), then it's war. I got over my first crop of hornwoms about 3 weeks ago and I just saw another baby one yesterday. Here we go again????

Whoa, Linda!! Harry is, well, kinda cute . . .

My husband wanted to keep one to and see if it would turn into a moth, but I beat him to it. No more worm, unfortunately. If you keep it alive. keep us posted on his transformation. You're right - he's just hungry. Born to eat our lovely tomatoes... I've found a couple babies this weekend - teeny, tiny babies. When I get over being lazy I'll download a pic for you MissJestr - they aren't so scary when they are tiny - lol.

Kelly