Where in the world is hornworm? That's how I feel each day when I search for these quintessential chameleons under the tomato leaves and bell pepper leaves.
The bells are actually where I’ve found the most (and largest) buggers. Boy are they hard to remove! Most of the larger ones I’ve had to cut out with it’s section of leaf. There’s a great family story about my dad dispatching “the largest hornworm imaginable” (my mom’s words) from their backyard tomato plant in the early 80’s. My mom showed him the varmint and he went to the garage to get a tool. What tool you may wonder? Not a gardening tool, but a tennis racquet! My mom says she couldn’t bear to watch, so listening inside she heard a huge “whack!” and then an immediate deadly “thud” against the fence. That’s one way of dealing with the ones you don’t want to touch!!
The black droppings seen on this yellow squash leaf are a tell-tale sign that there is a hornworm in your midst. Look under the leaves directly above.
Bountiful Backyard 