What Does a Pinworm Eat?
The tomato pinworm is a nasty little pest that can cause significant damage to a variety of plants in your garden. Though it may look cute and cuddly from afar, the tiny tomato pinworm will make a sheltered home in your plant while it eats its way to moth-hood. Commonly confused with other similar garden pets, the pinworm is a significant concern to farmers due to its detrimental effect on the affected plants' leaves and fruit. Does this Spark an idea?
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Identification
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A tomato pinworm is a small moth that is a green worm in larva form. The green larva later turns into a gray worm, which transforms into a moth.
Types
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Types of plants fed on by the tomato pinworm include tomato, eggplant, chili and potato, known as solanaceous plants. Of these, tomato is most frequently infested with pinworms.
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Cycle
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Young pinworm larvae start by eating holes in leaves. Older larvae progress to folding and wrapping leaves around themselves with silk to provide protection while they consume the plant; some older larvae burrow into the plant's fruit.
Significance
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According to Dr. Kenneth A. Sorensen of North Carolina State University's cooperative extension, pinworms inflict a considerable enough amount of damage on national crops. Pinworms are found in fields and greenhouses in many states including California, Florida, and North Carolina, in Mexico, and in Central and South America.
Misconceptions
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According to Sorenson, The pinworm is often confused with the serpentine leafminer and potato tuberworm, which are similar in appearance but attack different types of plants than the tomato pinworm. The serpentine leafminer attacks cabbage and broccoli, and the potato tuberworm attacks potatoes and tobacco.
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