Topic: eggs on tomato ...good or bad ?

[straush]

hi, 

i have notices eggs on one leave of a tomato plant.  there are about 40 small,  purple, black eggs ( imagine black currant that went mouldy -  similar colour to that)

before i just desroy it -  can anyone tell me if this might be good eggs e.g.  butterfly ? 

btw - i have loads of little spiders living amongst my tomatoes

thanks

[thifasmom]

not sure about the eggs any chance of a picture.
but if the spiders are really tiny and red then its red spider mite. you could use a biological control, or try misting the plant down every morning with cool water as i believe they don't like damp conditions, someone else will be along to steer you in the right direction, in the mean time google them.

[straush]

ok -  looks like it is some type of moth egg.

now the question is -  are moths good or bad ?   should i just leave it to hatch

oops - just had another look (abt 30mins later ) and half of them has hatched

[thifasmom]

could be the dreaded hornworms  :o see this post and you could also google them to see what their eggs look like.http://www.allotments4all.co.uk/smf/index.php/topic,44663.0.html

[thifasmom]

here is a link of them showing their different stages

http://entomology.unl.edu/k12/caterpillars/hornworm/hornwormpage.html

[ceres]

GrannieAnnie is in the USA.  I don't think we have hornworms over here.

[Borlotti]

OK for breakfast with bacon (ha ha).

[ceres]

I am in th UK.  GrannieAnnie is in the USA.  I don't think we have hornworms here in the UK.

[Fork]

I am in th UK.  GrannieAnnie is in the USA.  I don't think we have hornworms here in the UK.

I seem to remember this subject on another furum and I think we do have theses in the Uk.

Im trying to find what I read before right now.

If you google Hawkmoth catterpillar and Hornworms on images they look the same to me.....and defo in the Uk.

[straush]

i have some photos here - if it helps ...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/29610841@N04/

[ceres]

If you google Hawkmoth catterpillar and Hornworms on images they look the same to me.....and defo in the Uk.

There are 1200 species of hawkmoth according to Wiki and we don't have them all in the UK (thankfully).  The tomato hornworm is the caterpillar of the Five-Spotted Hawkmoth (Manduca quinquemaculata) for which the range is given as "........throughout the United States, northwestern Mexico, and even southern Canada, but is less frequently found throughout the Great Plains and the southeast."  I haven't found a reference to them being in the UK and the RHS doesn't list them among the 'pests'.

[thifasmom]

If you google Hawkmoth catterpillar and Hornworms on images they look the same to me.....and defo in the Uk.

There are 1200 species of hawkmoth according to Wiki and we don't have them all in the UK (thankfully).  The tomato hornworm is the caterpillar of the Five-Spotted Hawkmoth (Manduca quinquemaculata) for which the range is given as "........throughout the United States, northwestern Mexico, and even southern Canada, but is less frequently found throughout the Great Plains and the southeast."  I haven't found a reference to them being in the UK and the RHS doesn't list them among the 'pests'.

this is good to know i thought i would have them to worry about as well  ::)

[ceres]

Too true!  I REALLY don't want to see them on my toms.