Maggots in my tomatoes

[djayz]

I've just halved another tomato (cherry) and found yet again a white maggot crawling around inside it. I've lost count of how many toms I've had to throw away because of these maggots (not to mention lose my appetite). 

 

Any ideas as to what they are and why am I losing so many beautiful tomatoes because of them?

 

[Hutch68]

djayz, last time I grew tomatoes I enclosed them in the fine blue mesh stuff, no sprays no insects, at the same time  grew others outside the mesh and they were no good. Stop the insects getting onto them.

[tonray]

Likely fruit fly larval stage if they are shaped like magoots

[djayz]

3 hours ago, tonray said:

Likely fruit fly larval stage if they are shaped like magoots

Thanks. Any tips on how to prevent them? I do things organically so off the shelf strays/pesticides aren't any help to me. 

[drtreelove]

On 7/29/2017 at 10:10 AM, djayz said:

 

[drtreelove]

I messed up that post. Trying to link you up with pinned subject started way back. Jandtaa put my name on this, but there are many contributions by dedicated IPM practitioners over the years in this and other discussions.

 

I vote for repeated spray applications with botanical insect pest repellent like neem seed oil extract with the active ingredient of Azadirachtin.  Thai Neem sells it through website. and I've seen their product on shelf at a couple of ag shops in Chiang Mai. 

[Gumballl]

I don't know if this will work for you, but back home (in the eastern US, where there are plenty of critters), we spray our fruit plants with a mixture of jabenero peppers and water.  This natural recipe helps repel the critters.  As for you, just make sure to hand wash any fruit before consuming it.

 

Here's more info:  http://homeguides.sfgate.com/homemade-liquid-hot-pepper-spray-fruit-trees-32596.html

[djayz]

10 hours ago, drtreelove said:

I messed up that post. Trying to link you up with pinned subject started way back. Jandtaa put my name on this, but there are many contributions by dedicated IPM practitioners over the years in this and other discussions.

 

I vote for repeated spray applications with botanical insect pest repellent like neem seed oil extract with the active ingredient of Azadirachtin.  Thai Neem sells it through website. and I've seen their product on shelf at a couple of ag shops in Chiang Mai. 

Thank you Dr. Treelove! Great advice as usual. Much appreciated. 

[djayz]

2 hours ago, Gumballl said:

I don't know if this will work for you, but back home (in the eastern US, where there are plenty of critters), we spray our fruit plants with a mixture of jabenero peppers and water.  This natural recipe helps repel the critters.  As for you, just make sure to hand wash any fruit before consuming it.

 

Here's more info:  http://homeguides.sfgate.com/homemade-liquid-hot-pepper-spray-fruit-trees-32596.html

Thanks a lot Gumball. I'll try something similar using the chillies I have. 

[rice555]

I have found that weekly spraying of neem or woodvinegar. Neem i$ x 8 the cost of

wood vinegar, some people make their own from the smoke/vapor off making charcoal.

The thick heavy oil that comes off can be used to treat fence posts, you use the lighter

oil for plant sprays. Many u-Tube vids on how to do.

 The neem was Bt. 700-750?? and the WV was Bt.100.

rice555

[djayz]

3 hours ago, rice555 said:

I have found that weekly spraying of neem or woodvinegar. Neem i$ x 8 the cost of

wood vinegar, some people make their own from the smoke/vapor off making charcoal.

The thick heavy oil that comes off can be used to treat fence posts, you use the lighter

oil for plant sprays. Many u-Tube vids on how to do.

 The neem was Bt. 700-750?? and the WV was Bt.100.

rice555

Thanks! I've seen the wood vinegar bottle in loads of shops. Now I know what I'm looking for. 

[rice555]

The WV is from DoHome and the neem is from the Ag store

out past Home Pro on the Hwy on the W. side of Korat, it's

where I buy my hydro chems(WESCO).

rice555

 

Not the Home Pro across from Lotus on the way to Korat Imm.

[Thian]

A bottle of neemoil of that size costs about 200 baht.

[drtreelove]

Even though I know it's useful, I have a personal aversion to vinegar in all forms, its just so harsh and so stinky. (Comes from a traumatic incident when I was a kid I chugged a half a glass of white vinegar before it hit me and blew my head off.  My mother had set it out on the kitchen counter to rinse her hair, I ran in from playing outside in the summer sun, thirsty as hell and saw it sitting there, ; well I've never been the same, don't even like vinegarette salad dressing.

 

Since being introduced to the beautiful and useful neem tree while living for two years in India in the 70s, I really like the botanical pesticide products and have good success in using them, after I learned how.  Many people get discouraged because they try one application and it doesn't bring full control of a pest, so they think it didn't work.  Well it only works with repeated applications, much like most organic program compatible bio pesticides. And you have to use it preventively, not like hard chemistry synthetics that achieve a nearly complete knock down of an advanced infestation, with one application.  It takes different thinking, and anticipation of potential pest problems, and early intervention. If you wait for advanced infestations to develop, and plant or crop damage to occur then botanical insecticides and biological fungicides are not appropriate and won't work the way you might hope for.

 

But this is one of the challenges, in learning to garden and farm organically.  Regular monitoring/inspections, even daily, at least weekly, are an essential component of IPM. Look for moths and beetles present, eggs on underside of leaves, young first instar caterpillars, etc and control them before they start to do much damage. Better yet, know what problems the plants and products you grow are susceptible to and start with preventive barrier treatments before the infestation or infection gets started. This is where neem is at it's best, for preventive treatment, disruption of pest reproduction and feeding. But you need to apply every two weeks for purely preventive action, every week if you have missed your morning monitoring walk through, and let the pest get ahead of you, and now you have to try and control an active infestation. 

 

There are different types of neem products. 70% neem oil is the most useful and affordable in my opinion, but I have not seen it in Thailand.  

 

Thaineem.co.th appears to only distribute the Azadirachtin extract. (aza A content not less than .1%). And it's relatively expensive.  

 

In the US I use "clarified hydrophobic extract of neem" or 70% neem oil, see attached Trilogy label.  This product contains more of the full spectrum of neem seed oil biochemistry, not just the potent Aza extract. So it is a biofungicide as well as botanical insecticide and miticide.  I pay about US$100 for 2 1/2 gals (10 liters) of Trilogy. But I pay the same price for a quart (liter) of Azatrol or other brand of azadirachtin product. 

 

If anybody finds 70% neem oil or can talk to Thaineem about availability, please post the information. 

 

 

Trilogy-label.pdf

[JaseTheBass]

djayz, last time I grew tomatoes I enclosed them in the fine blue mesh stuff, no sprays no insects, at the same time  grew others outside the mesh and they were no good. Stop the insects getting onto them.

Better than spraying.

Sent from my Cray II supercomputer

[rice555]

On August 11, 2017 at 6:15 AM, Thian said:

A bottle of neemoil of that size costs about 200 baht.

You might be right about the price.

In Dr. TL post of the pdf. of Sadao, I have a pic I posted on one of

the many neem threads, when HomePro was still at The Mall Korat

they stocked it there. Just the 2 larger of the 3 in the pic. Without

searching, the middle size of the 3  was Bt. 450/550?? and the large

one was Bt.950/1050??? It's been a while, but prices in LOS don't

go down. Pic of the Ag store where I got the neem I pictured. The

white building wasn't there last time I went, were heading back to

Nonsung, just left Home Pro.

rice555

[djayz]

On 11/08/2017 at 11:07 AM, drtreelove said:

Even though I know it's useful, I have a personal aversion to vinegar in all forms, its just so harsh and so stinky. (Comes from a traumatic incident when I was a kid I chugged a half a glass of white vinegar before it hit me and blew my head off.  My mother had set it out on the kitchen counter to rinse her hair, I ran in from playing outside in the summer sun, thirsty as hell and saw it sitting there, ; well I've never been the same, don't even like vinegarette salad dressing.

 

Since being introduced to the beautiful and useful neem tree while living for two years in India in the 70s, I really like the botanical pesticide products and have good success in using them, after I learned how.  Many people get discouraged because they try one application and it doesn't bring full control of a pest, so they think it didn't work.  Well it only works with repeated applications, much like most organic program compatible bio pesticides. And you have to use it preventively, not like hard chemistry synthetics that achieve a nearly complete knock down of an advanced infestation, with one application.  It takes different thinking, and anticipation of potential pest problems, and early intervention. If you wait for advanced infestations to develop, and plant or crop damage to occur then botanical insecticides and biological fungicides are not appropriate and won't work the way you might hope for.

 

But this is one of the challenges, in learning to garden and farm organically.  Regular monitoring/inspections, even daily, at least weekly, are an essential component of IPM. Look for moths and beetles present, eggs on underside of leaves, young first instar caterpillars, etc and control them before they start to do much damage. Better yet, know what problems the plants and products you grow are susceptible to and start with preventive barrier treatments before the infestation or infection gets started. This is where neem is at it's best, for preventive treatment, disruption of pest reproduction and feeding. But you need to apply every two weeks for purely preventive action, every week if you have missed your morning monitoring walk through, and let the pest get ahead of you, and now you have to try and control an active infestation. 

 

There are different types of neem products. 70% neem oil is the most useful and affordable in my opinion, but I have not seen it in Thailand.  

 

Thaineem.co.th appears to only distribute the Azadirachtin extract. (aza A content not less than .1%). And it's relatively expensive.  

 

In the US I use "clarified hydrophobic extract of neem" or 70% neem oil, see attached Trilogy label.  This product contains more of the full spectrum of neem seed oil biochemistry, not just the potent Aza extract. So it is a biofungicide as well as botanical insecticide and miticide.  I pay about US$100 for 2 1/2 gals (10 liters) of Trilogy. But I pay the same price for a quart (liter) of Azatrol or other brand of azadirachtin product. 

 

If anybody finds 70% neem oil or can talk to Thaineem about availability, please post the information. 

 

 

Trilogy-label.pdf

Thank you Dr Treelove. Another very intetesting post from you.