Death Warrants Issued. Help. Warning: CLOSE-UPs of my finger!

[ginger2778]

Originally Posted by coastal bend

They are bad news. I had them 4 years ago. I had already set a big crop of tomatoes so I still had a good crop of tomatoes. but everything above what was already set did not make one tomato. they feed on the stem below the terminal and any truss above that is history.I used malathion to kill them. I haven't had a problem since then but I keep a eye out for them. Nobody around here has had a problem with them. They didn't know what they were.

Malathion, huh? That works, good to know. How long do you have to wait to harvest after sprsying that stuff? Smelly stuff!

[coastal bend]

I don't remember but the tomatoes were still green and it was a while before they started blushing.I only had the one infestation and did not have to repeat.

[pauldavid]

Thats bad Gerardo! Never seen these before though. Good luck to you amigo.

[Gerardo]

Originally Posted by pauldavid

Thats bad Gerardo! Never seen these before though. Good luck to you amigo.

Gracias! Eviction ongoing. Still have two months of heat left, fingers crossed.

[b54red]

I imagine Permethrin would kill them and it isn't nearly as toxic as Malathion even if used at higher than normal mixes. Another good thing about it is the very short wait time after using it. I would apply it very late in the day as to not kill bees.

I have been using DE sprayed on my plants to stop a massive spider mite infestation which had to be stopped or nothing would have been left. I'll keep an eye out for these little buggers and if I see any I will try the Permethrin. If that doesn't work I can always go to Malathion but I hate using it on tomatoes because at lethel levels it can cause some significant leaf burn and you have to wait about a week after using it. I have seen a few of them in the past but didn't know what they were or if they were good or bad. Usually I just leave bugs alone unless I see them causing some real damage. I'll keep a closer eye out for them now. Thanks for the warning.

Bill

[Gerardo]

Originally Posted by b54red

I imagine Permethrin would kill them and it isn't nearly as toxic as Malathion even if used at higher than normal mixes. Another good thing about it is the very short wait time after using it. I would apply it very late in the day as to not kill bees.

I have been using DE sprayed on my plants to stop a massive spider mite infestation which had to be stopped or nothing would have been left. I'll keep an eye out for these little buggers and if I see any I will try the Permethrin. If that doesn't work I can always go to Malathion but I hate using it on tomatoes because at lethel levels it can cause some significant leaf burn and you have to wait about a week after using it. I have seen a few of them in the past but didn't know what they were or if they were good or bad. Usually I just leave bugs alone unless I see them causing some real damage. I'll keep a closer eye out for them now. Thanks for the warning.

Bill

I'll look at the pyrethroids, most definitely. I'm thinking a 2nd insecticide with a different mechanism of action might help too. The stink bug reqs have a couple of different regimens. I'm gonna stay away from the neonicotinoids.

I was thinking of adding M-Pede, but I have a difficult time (not financial, but just on principal) shelling out 100+ for Potassium Salts and some Propylene Glycol mixed together. Any suggestions on an alternate product that isn't as pricey? I'm tempted to attack with dilute Liquinox and see what happens.

I like to leave bugs alone too, that's why it got away from me. Learning.

[Gerardo]

Thanks for the input guys and gals. I spent the day at the beach so I was away from my computer and the phone stays in the car. Plus I'm a firm believer in no web/text while driving so finally home and here we go.

1. CULPRIT
I'm glad we ID'd them, but kind of bummed they require napalm to eradicate.

2. OTHER PLAYERS
I had a pretty decent ecosystem going for a while, with everyone in balance. Spidermites moved in and I responded with DE/Neem. Irreversible disruption and now these guys are everywhere, I'd guesstimate about a 5-fold increase in numbers.
I've also seen aphids and thrips, but in much lesser numbers.

3. WHERE IT HAPPENS
Their movements are restricted to the new growth.

4. CONSEQUENCES
Trusses form, but w/o a single blossom. They have a yellow band right around the bend and dry/fall off.

5. TREATMENT
I have access to a bunch of poisons. Here's the list of available liver exercises:

• Diazinon 25
• Carbaryl
• Cypermethrin 20
• Deltamethrin 20
• Chlorpyrifos
• Triazicide
• Malathion

Any thoughts?

6. GLASS HALF-FULL

They were pretty big trusses, even in the face of the insect pressure.

Some plants seem to take their presence in stride. Here's a Brad's Black Heart two weeks ago:

brads plant tv.jpg

And here it is this morning:

brads heartPLANT.tv.jpg

And these are on the way.

brads heart TV2222.jpg

Cool nipple.

brads heart 2.tv.jpg

7. RE: Stanley Kirk Burrel

You should have seen the bee's moves, would have put Mr. Burrel to shame.

Here's another shot of the pants.

happy bee 2.jpg


8. DEAD BUG WALKING

death warrant 1.TV.jpg

death warrant 2.TV.jpg


PS All (except the 1st pic of #6 glass half full) taken with a Canon PowerShot A4000 from a few years back. My dogs have chewed on it (tooth marks on the back LCD and most of the front casing) and it's been dropped more times than I can count. Tough little camera. I keep using it because it still does the job and I know no one will steal it. Recommend highly.

[MissS]

I had a type of true bug the Four-lined Plant Bug this spring and last year that were on my perennials. These bugs were just decimating the flower buds and new growth tips. http://www.tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=36885 I used Dr. Bronner's Pure-Castile Soap with very good results. The only problem with it was that these bugs can fly and mine were quite shy and moved quickly. The soap has to cover the bug or it is ineffective. I do not like to spray my whole garden because I don't want to harm my beneficials. So then you have to be on the lookout and keep a spry bottle with you to spray as found.

[Gerardo]

Originally Posted by MissS

I had a type of true bug the Four-lined Plant Bug this spring and last year that were on my perennials. These bugs were just decimating the flower buds and new growth tips. http://www.tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=36885 I used Dr. Bronner's Pure-Castile Soap with very good results. The only problem with it was that these bugs can fly and mine were quite shy and moved quickly. The soap has to cover the bug or it is ineffective. I do not like to spray my whole garden because I don't want to harm my beneficials. So then you have to be on the lookout and keep a spry bottle with you to spray as found.

Thanks for the heads up. While I'll likely integrate it into my life for other uses, this time I'm gonna resort to the big guns, given garden-time constraints and the pervasiveness of the current attack. I imagine it'll be a great tool for mopping up the stragglers.

[coastal bend]

That is what I use now. I have to spray Spinosad every 10-14 days to keep the worms at bay I will put a half a dose of Permethrin in with the Spinosad ever other spraying. So far I havent had anymore problems since the. I doubt that I could grow tomatoes without Spinosad.There is constant worm pressure during the growing season. This is normal for me here.

[b54red]

Originally Posted by coastal bend

That is what I use now. I have to spray Spinosad every 10-14 days to keep the worms at bay I will put a half a dose of Permethrin in with the Spinosad ever other spraying. So far I havent had anymore problems since the. I doubt that I could grow tomatoes without Spinosad.There is constant worm pressure during the growing season. This is normal for me here.

When those worms get bad like that I usually use a bit of Sevin on the undersides of the lower leaves and it will wipe them out in just a few minutes. BT helps with them but sometimes not fast enough and with some worms it doesn't work good at all. This year I think the abundance of Assassin bugs and wasps have made it unnecessary to use a poison on worms but I did have to use DE to slow the terrible case of spider mites that developed in a very hot dry July and now I don't have any bugs on my tomatoes so I'm assuming the DE did in the good with the bad. I haven't used the DE on my bell peppers and they still have a good number of Assassin bugs left on them but I worry that the DE on the tomatoes may affect them if they move onto the plants.

Bill

[Gerardo]

Originally Posted by coastal bend

That is what I use now. I have to spray Spinosad every 10-14 days to keep the worms at bay I will put a half a dose of Permethrin in with the Spinosad ever other spraying. So far I havent had anymore problems since the. I doubt that I could grow tomatoes without Spinosad.There is constant worm pressure during the growing season. This is normal for me here.

I'm gonna acquire some Spinosad. Any recommendation on brands?

[coastal bend]

Originally Posted by Gerardo

I'm gonna acquire some Spinosad. Any recommendation on brands?

I use Montery Garden insect spray. I know it comes in other brands but now sure of the brand names. It will last a longer than the older BT.

[Gerardo]

Originally Posted by coastal bend

I use Montery Garden insect spray. I know it comes in other brands but now sure of the brand names. It will last a longer than the older BT.

Excellent. Thanks!

[Kikaida]

Wow, you just never know what you're going to come across on this amazing forum. Guess what, I have these! I thought they were some type of wasp and didn't pay much attention to them...This has solved some mysterious symptoms!