It's tomato hornworm season. You know, those big fat green striped caterpillars you find on your tomatoes right about now? The ones with the big horn on their backside? Yep. As Nikki and I would describe it if we were having this conversation together...that's some big, fat, meaty, moist, juicy larvae...LOL You have to be careful when you pick these guys off of your plants. If you're not, and you squeezee just a little too tight, they will regurgitate lots of green digestive juices on you a la Alien style. No joke. I usually pick off the tiny branch they are latched on to in order to grab them. Then...they go to the chickens!
Exhibit A:: The hornworm. Exhibit B:: Mona licking the hornworm, then grossing out.
Honkers turns up her nose at it. Eunice gives it a try...then gives up.
Phyllis shows it who's boss. LOL
Btw, hornworms do turn into very cool sphinx months...in case you're wondering.
oh wow I have not seen one of those worms since I was a kid! We used to catapult them into our neighbors yards' and oncoming traffic. haha! One the neighbor kids also convinced us the horn on their rear ends' is poisonous for a while.
Posted by: Lauren | August 18, 2009 at 02:28 PM
I have swallowtail larvae (I think) on my parsley but I have plenty of parsley so I just let them eat away. They are fun to watch. I haven't run across any tomato hornworms this year, amazingly. I'm not so fond of them.
Posted by: Livia | August 18, 2009 at 11:33 AM
yes, it's me. the disappearing gardener. and, if you saw my garden, you'd understand my lack of enthusiasm to post. i will soon. promise! i just need to be in town long enough.
i actually picked off quite a few of those icky things from my tomato plants too. then i sprayed everything down with Green Light Garden Spray with Spinosad. That's my answer to everything, btw. Probably not the best answer in every situation, but it hasn't disappointed me yet.
I am REALLY grossed out by those MEATY little suckers! I don't touch them. I use force to shoot them off, then squish 'em. ick!!
I did let them eat my pentas one year. that was actually pretty cool. I found 2 sphinx moths about 6 mos later. That was fun.
Posted by: nikki | August 17, 2009 at 09:37 PM