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| So I am new to gardening but I wanted to try. Within the first week something almost demolished my first basil plant. My tomato plant has a few small holes and the jalapeño plant has holes in the leaves. The jalapeño plant has holes inside the leaves with veins left and one leaf was chewed clean off! Also my second basil plant is getting chewed on the outside of leaves and holes inside them, and it's in a pot! At first I knew it was earwigs and have been trapping those, but in my traps I sometimes get cockroaches (YUCK!) would they cause the damage? I haven't found slugs or snails, nor have I found aphids, there are a lot of black flies, black ants, and these weird red and black mite/beetle things? I'm not sure what they are. I will post pictures of the damage (once I figure out how), I would appreciate any ideas or suggestions. I want to try to keep this garden organic. Please help! I feel like I am killing these poor plants! |
Follow-Up Postings:
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Tue, Jun 12, 12 at 20:54
| Both of these images are basil damage. |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Tue, Jun 12, 12 at 20:55
| Also basil. Sorry they are separate and not one post. |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Tue, Jun 12, 12 at 20:57
| Jalapeno leaf damage |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Tue, Jun 12, 12 at 20:59
| Also sorry jalapeno showed up weird in my original post, it's because of the accent on the spelling. |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Tue, Jun 12, 12 at 21:00
| Tomato damage and last picture. Help please? |
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- Posted by Greenthumb.5 6a-7b (My Page) on Wed, Jun 13, 12 at 0:36
| Its nothing to worry about but if you want to save your plants just go to walmart or a hardware/garden store and buy some Sevin dust and it will take care of the problem and keep watering well and fertilize. Plus it looks like a worm or a caterpiller damage but follow my advice and buy some Sevin dust. |
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| Sevindust! Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooooooooo |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Wed, Jun 13, 12 at 1:11
| I thought Sevin wasn't organic, isn't it a pesticide? I don't want to kill the good bugs just maintain the bad. Also I have dogs, yes my garden is fenced but I don't want to risk it. I have heard that stuff is potent but not always best? But thank you for the suggestion. Anyone else have any ideas on what I maybe dealing with? I can't find any caterpillars or slug paths or only the prior listed. |
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| Looks like bird damage to me, pesticides wouldn't do anything. Not much you can do other than buy bird netting. The birds will leave your plants alone later in the season. |
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| Hi Chelsey, Im only a second year veggie gardener but I did recognize the "red and black mite/beetle things" comment and I believe those to be Ladybug larve. They usually are there eating aphids and mites. I think ants usually follow aphids too. Maybe the ladybugs are eating the aphids before they get large enough quantity/size to easily see them? I had a lot of them on my beans last week. I just hosed them off a few days in a row and let the LB larve feast. Nature is doing a great job taking care of it. One of your pics looks like maybe june bug damage. If you go out at after-dark with a flashlight you will probably see the culprit. Happy Gardening! |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Wed, Jun 13, 12 at 14:18
| Thank you both for your suggestions, I really appreciate the help!! weirdtrev: What makes you think bird damage? I ask because we have a lot of birds in our backyard so I want to know what to look out for. TracyOKC: I looked up on google what ladybug larvae look like and unfortunately they look nothing like the mite/beetles that I have :( I would prefer lady bugs. I only ever get a few. Yeah I haven't seen any aphids so I don't know. Every time I have gone out at night I find earwigs, cockroaches,weird small black beetles (maybe weevils but only 1 or 2 which I kill), but nothing more. Does anyone know of any good sites or books that depict plant damage and from which pests? Good luck everyone! |
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| Two books I have found very useful: What's Wrong With My Plant? (And How Do I Fix It?): A Visual Guide to Easy Diagnosis and Organic Remedies (There is a version for vegetable gardens that I did not like as much as this original) The Organic Gardener's Handbook of Natural Pest and Disease Control: A Complete Guide to Maintaining a Healthy Garden and Yard the Earth-Friendly Way (Rodale Organic Gardening Books) The damage you showed does not look like anything to be concerned with. To attract beneficial insects, you can grow flowers around your garden if you have space (just google to get suggestions), but I've found just letting some parsley and cilantro flower is extremely helpful. good luck! |
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| I believe it is bird damage because I have seen it before. Looking at the pictures I see no sign of insect damage. There is no frass or any of the more typical signs of insect damage. The leaves are jagged and irregular, like something just poked a hole or ripped a chunk off. I'm no bird expert but I believe the culprit is the starling. Have you seen this bird in your yard:
These birds apparently use green vegetation to build nests. I never had problems with them until last year, they kept attacking my plants. |
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| Chelsey, Good call on not using sevindust, that stuff is horrible and should be banned from stores. If someone uses that stuff, they may as well just go buy commercial non organic produce from the store. I second that the red and black things may be ladybug larvae, though a picture would help to identify them for sure. If they are, definetly leave them be, they will help a lot. If you are going to use a pesticide, something like BT would be a good choice. And remember, just because one thing is organic or natural does not mean it is safe. Just do your homework before using any product. Mechanical controls like squishing with your fingers, covering with bird or insect netting are always good choices. Just don't give up, gardening is a challenge, but well worth it in the end. Adding different types of flowering plants that bloom at different times throughout the season will also help to attract and keep the beneficials around. Good luck with everything :) |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Wed, Jun 13, 12 at 16:22
| veeta : Thank you for the book suggestions I will definitely look into them!!! Maybe I am just over reacting because this is my first garden, but then again you all should have seen what happened to the first basil plant I had!! weirdtrev: I have seen birds like that in my neighborhood but not in my back yard, I have doves, blue jays, and blackbirds in my yard from time to time. The doves tend to hang out the longest but I know where their nest is and it's not fresh plants. I am probably going to look into the bird netting though. Will the netting still allow bees and good flying bugs in? Thanks for all the help, I am kinda new to this so its nice to have guidance. howelbama: Yeah the Sevin line seems a bit extreme for me. I'll try my best to get a picture of the bugs but they are really tricky and I can't even find a picture of them online! They almost look like baby stink bugs but a little different. I'll post a link, that's what they look similar to, but I'm not 100% sure it's the same. What I have been doing to trap the earwigs and roaches is I make a mix of soy sauce, molasses, and water and put them in plastic cups about half full then put those in the ground so the bugs get attracted to them for food but can't get out. It seems cruel but once I started doing it I saw a decrease in the destruction to my plants. Although I'm not sure the earwigs are attracted to it, I've never really checked I was just happy there was less damage. As far as the flowers go, the only thing I have there right now is marigolds around the tomatoes because I heard that helps ward off the dreaded tomato worms! But any other suggestions would be appreciated? Not sure if it's worth mentioning but there is a variety of flowers in the front yard. Thank you everyone sooo much for your time and suggestions!! |
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| If it is your local birds they will eventually leave your plants alone once the breeding season is over. Might not be worth the net if none of your plants are being killed. The plants look healthy other than the damaged leaves. The bird nets will let pollinators through. However not a single one of the plants you posted requires a pollinator. Basil you don't want to flower, tomatoes and peppers just require movement (i.e. wind). Bees can help but they aren't required. |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Wed, Jun 13, 12 at 17:17
| Thanks weirdtrev. I guess I am just overreacting. The tomatoes are doing awesome and the jalapeno and basil are really the ones being eaten most. My raspberry bush and strawberries aren't being bothered. It's just annoying that every other basil leaf has a hole in it :/. To be honest I didn't know basil did flower, should it flower do I need to pluck them off? Or are they fine? I forgot that they didn't need help ha ha. Although if I do need netting I am not sure how I would put it over my grafted apricot and nectarine tree, I am hoping you are right and it dies down after the season is up! Thanks for all the help! Hope your garden is flourishing! |
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| Chelsey, you should prune off the flowers on the basil, you'll know when they are starting to form. It will look like a bunch of tightly packed leaves forming in the center of two big basil leaves...at the top of a stem. I prune my back down to the next node on the stem. Two new stems will usually then form from that point. They will be more bitter and less sweet if you allow them to flower. The holes cn be annoying, but the leaves shouldbe edible still, just give them a good rinsing, you could always cut that partoutif it bothers you as well. The only time I won't eat a leafy green is when leaf miners have attacked them...ewe lol, eating fly larvae which some jus consider "added protein" is disgusting lol |
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| I don't think anyone has mentioned grasshoppers but that's what it looks like to me, could also be caterpillars. Diatomaceous earth will def take care of the caterpillars (and earwigs) but is less effective on grasshoppers. I use a mesh strainer and sprinkle it just like powdered sugar then tap the excess off the plants. If it doesn't kill the offender I feel it at least makes the plant less appealing. |
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| I am a believer in the marigolds repel hornworms theory. And I also believe in "trap crops".... planting something they like better to feast on. My hornworms go to the nicotania flowers and potatos. I also keep pots of mint growing in the veggie garden. Coco King mentioned grasshoppers, Ive seen a few around my place, I was wondering what to watch for from them. I really think your plants look great! |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Thu, Jun 14, 12 at 2:28
| howelbama: Good tip! Thank you very much I would have never known! And yeah I will still use them since mostly we chop it up and add it to spaghetti sauce or lasagna sauce. And no I think I am good without the extra protein! Ha ha to each their own!!! I am really grateful for the advice! Coco King: I have never seen a grasshopper in my area to be honest.But I will definitely look into the diatomaceous earth, I think I would rather have that then hear my mom ask if I am growing red plastic cups. Ha ha Thanks for the suggestions!!! TraceyOKC: So it works?? Sweet! I am probably gonna get more because it's supposed to help jalapenos as well. I have mint actually, how does that help because I'll spread it out or whatever needs to be done! That mint grows like crazy!!! I can sacrifice flowers but not veggies it upsets me ha ha I don't care about flowers so much, sounds crazy I know. And thanks, I am on summer vacation because I am a full time college student so I actually have the time to really devote to my garden! But I appreciate the compliment and suggestions a lot!! Thank you everyone so much, I am learning a lot! Keep it coming! |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Fri, Jun 15, 12 at 0:55
| So I figured out what the red and black bug was, it's a stink bug, which can cause damage. If a picture is still wanted let me know if it will help you? Also if anyone is in California watch out for grasshoppers they are apparently coming from Sacramento and have reached Modesto and Madera. I am going to do what I can to ward them off. First year I garden and a plague of grasshoppers may eat my garden... Suggestions are welcome, I've never had to deal with them before. |
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| Chelsey, Row covers may be your best bet to ward off the grasshoppers. If you try them, just make sure you get some really lightweight ones so you dont cook your plants. Other than covering them, I'm not really sure what you could do to protect them if you truly did get hit with a swarm of grasshoppers. Maybe employ lots of hungry toads, lizards, and birds? Lol :) Good luck, hope they don't notice your garden! |
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- Posted by 1Chelsey2009 none (My Page) on Sat, Jun 16, 12 at 3:51
| howelbama, I am sooooo hoping they just don't notice it and hit the empty field a couple blocks away, they say aluminum screening works best. I am thinking flame thrower? No? Too much? Lol I am just hoping I am missed. I'm gonna put in more garlic, marigolds, and hopefully the netting if I get the chance. Thank you for all your responses. Best of luck to you too!! |
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