Allotments 4 All

Hi all.

Can anyone give me a suggestion of what is eating my tomatoes and how to stop it happening?

I have sprayed with bug clear, put slug pellets down and visually checked, but have failed to prevent the nibbling.

Currently the nibbling is confined to one plant and it seems to be just one side of a tomato is attacked a day.

I look forward to your replies.

I know you say you`ve visually checked, but I suggest a thorough search up the stems and foliage higher up right to the top of the plant.  I suspect that you`ll find a snail happily lodging there. If so, slug pellets will do no good because the blighter has no need to come down to soil level once he`s safely esconsed.   It`s happened to me with tomatoes, cucumbers, runner beans - anything which grows up a stick.

Have you got any leaves that's been nibbled..there is quite a lot some moths about this year ..their Caterpillar does lots of fruit and leaf munching..
..says one who have some of them visiting in GH.. >:(...and that one has done  caterpillar picking and found quite few recently.. ::)

Got any blackbirds nesting nearby they are quite partial to tomatoes and known to raid greenhouses.

Thanks for you comments. Any more suggestions would be well received.

Keporous - I'll certainly have a check upwards as I suspected bugs or downwards and as you say snails could be hidden above the damage,

Goodlife - it's only the fruit that has been attacked so I guess from your comments it is probably not moths/caterpillars.

Davyw1 - the damage seems to occur at night (I probably should have mentioned that) when the green house is closed.

Again thanks for your suggestions and any further thoughts.

Regards

Bluecar

We could have our gardens and allotments like Fort Knox, but still something would get past the security. This year has been a right battle between me and 'them'. The mice have had me demented. >:( ;D

Bluecar, did you find out what was nibbling your tomatoes?  We`re dying to know

Hi all.

No I didn't find the cause, but fortunately 'it' has gone away albeit 48 hours after I sprayed and put the slug pellets down. There is no obvious casualty of my efforts. As long as the problem doesn't recur then it will remain a mystery!

Regards

Bluecar

Slugs and snails are eating my tomatoes as soon as they're ripe, I've put slug pellets down, but I'm going to take Kepouros's advice and remove snails from the stems as well. Thanks Kepouros.

I hope your tomatoes stay unnibbled now, bluecar - except by you of course!  :)

Thanks pigeonseed.

So far so good. I hope you eliminate the culprits.

Regards

Bluecar

I found a few caterpillars on my tomatoes.
Any idea on what it is?



Andrew