An Easy Trick for Getting Rid of Hornworms (Without Chemical Sprays)

Garden Betty

Hornworms are a common pest in the garden if you grow tomatoes or other nightshade plants.

These caterpillars can devour an entire plant within days but because of their size and life cycle, they’re also easy to find and control—naturally.

Here are four ways you can get rid of tomato hornworms and tobacco hornworms without resorting to chemical sprays.

Hand-pick hornworms as you see them

Because of their size, hornworms are easy to pick off and discard.

They’re an excellent source of protein for chickens, if you raise your own flock at home, but you can also simply drop the hornworms into soapy water to destroy them. (I keep empty coffee cans and yogurt containers around for this reason.)

Remove them one by one and either smush them, drop them into a can of soapy water, or collect them in a jar to feed your chickens. (Don’t forget to check your other nightshade plants too.)

Leave parasitized hornworms alone

If you see a hornworm on your tomato plant with tiny white “rice grains” attached to its body, leave it alone. It’s been parasitized by braconid wasps, and those white things are their cocoons.

Grow flowering tobacco as a trap crop

Flowering tobacco (Nicotiana spp.) is a highly fragrant flower that’s part of the nightshade family. A few species are quite attractive and make a beautiful addition to a flower garden.

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Garden Betty