Hmm. I'm no expert on wildlife but I seriously doubt anything big enough to do that damage is getting into that cage. Awesome setup.

I will guess that you already have something on your tomatoes. Look inside for this:

It's very hard to spot when on the inner leaves of a tomato plant (darker), but if you look, I'll bet you find it or them. Those feet look dark brownish when inside the plant FYI.

If you find it, it will look like this on the leaves flipped over. Nasty creatures with voracious appetites, these tomato hornworms.

For a telltale signs, look at your leaves and see if you see black specks (baby hornworms) or something like this in the soil (adults):

Good luck!

Thanks for the tip. I checked really close but can't see any of these critters. I will look again tomorrow, as the light's fading....whatever it is, I hope it's something I can get rid of!!

If it's the tomato hornworm, you would see foliage also missing. Hornworms are voracious eaters. I found out the hard way :-( They do camouflage VERY well on the plants, though.

How long have you had those tomatoes in that cage? Also, I am willing to bet a chipmunk could still squeeze through that fence, and certainly a vole, but doubt a vole could jump into those pots. How many inches is that chicken wire? I have similar damage to my tomatoes this year. Squirrels/chipmunks are the culprits for me. I would walk around the perimeter of that cage and make sure there are no openings or weak spots. Is the cage sitting flush against the ground? Are there any gaps underneath it?

Hi Chris

The tomatoes have been in there for 3 or 4 weeks (I bought them pretty big). I just built the cage in early July. I have seen raccoon droppings outside the cage, so I'm pretty sure they have been thwarted. But you're right, I think maybe chipmunks and voles, etc. can get through the chicken wire, the holes in it are approx. 1" x 1.5". So, this morning I stapled black plastic 1" bird netting over the entire thing. The cage sits 1/2" off the ground, just enough to keep the wood from standing in water in a heavy rain.

Will see how it goes with the netting. Next issue seems to be some fungus of some type. Looking for something to treat that with that is not harmful to the environment or to us!

Ok - hope it works out for you! I know how discouraging it can be to see pests getting to the fruits of your labor. Part of me wants to get them back, but part of me realizes that they are just trying to get food to survive.

As for the fungus, you should post some pics. There are lots of gardeners/farmers here would empathize and give great advice for what to do.

Good luck!

Chris

Thanks Chris! I know what you mean--I just can't kill the little buggers, no matter how mad I get. I do let them get what bird seed falls from my feeders and other vegetables from the garden--because you can still buy cukes and carrots and so on that taste good. But you can't buy a tomato at the market anymore that has any taste, or even any smell. It freaks me out that all tomatoes at the store look exactly alike! And if you drop one from 5 or 6 feet, they don't even break. So wrong.

I did post some pics of what must be some type of fungus or other disease....looking to treat it with something that isn't harmful.

Thanks again, so great to have such good advice on this site!

There's nothing like fresh vegetables! Tomato flavor is night/day compared to store bought. Makes growing them yourself even more rewarding.

Good luck with the fungus.

Chris

eewww!

Haha I'm not willing to go that far.

I serve them up to the birds, but I think it would take Timon and Pumbaa to eat those suckers.

Probably squirrels or rats.

And tomato horn worms are great for pet lizards or other insectivores and chickens, very good for chickens.

Wow, I never thought about a plant cam, too funny! I found a half eaten tomato and lots of droppings and posted pics in another thread; and with helpful suggestions there, I found out it's hornworms or catepillars. Had I looked closer at the picture above I would have known right away....but the good news is, I think I've gotten rid of all of them and have beautiful tomatoes ripening! Yay!

It ended up being the hornworm after all, huh!? Those suckers blend very well. At first glance you would never see them.

I couldn't believe how well they blended in! Great idea about shaking some loose!! :-)

That's what happened to a lot of mine, Pamela.

*sad face*