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Tomato Hornworms: How to Identify, Control, and Prevent Them

Image Credit:
Amanda Hill
Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Big, green, and hungry—tomato hornworms can wipe out your tomato crop almost overnight. These giant caterpillars love to feast on tomato leaves and fruit, and they won’t stop there. Peppers, eggplants, and potatoes are also on their menu.

”This one is nobody’s friend if you’re a gardener and like to grow tomatoes,” says entomologist Jeff Smith, curator of the Bohart Museum of Entomology’s Lepidoptera collection.

The good news is that these pests are easy to spot once you know what to look for, and they can be controlled without resorting to harsh chemicals. In this guide, learn how to identify tomato hornworms, understand their life cycle, and discover effective natural ways to get rid of them—plus tips to keep them from coming back next year.

🐛 Hornworms munching your tomatoes? Our Almanac Garden Club members get exclusive pest guides, expert webinars, and practical tips to protect their crops. Protect Your Garden Now.

What Are Tomato Hornworms?

If you’ve ever walked out to your tomato plants and found bare stems where lush foliage used to be, chances are hornworms were at work.

  • The tomato hornworm (Manduca quinquemaculata) and the closely related tobacco hornworm (Manduca sexta) are garden pests found throughout most of the U.S. and southern Canada.
  • Both species feed on plants in the nightshade family (Solanaceae): tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, tobacco, and potatoes.
  • Because of their size and appetite, a small number of hornworms can defoliate plants quickly.

These pests are the larval stage of large night-flying moths (sphinx or hawk moths).

Tomato Hornworm crawling on a tomato vine.
Tomato troublemaker in action—meet the tomato hornworm! Photo by Amanda Hill.

Identification

How to Identify Tomato Hornworms

Look for big, green worms on tomato plants! Hornworms are some of the largest caterpillars in the garden. Key features include:

  • Color: Pale green with V-shaped white markings along the body
  • Horn: Dark, pointed “horn” protruding from the rear
  • Camouflage: Blends almost perfectly with tomato leaves, making them tricky to spot
  • Size: Can reach up to 4–5 inches in length

Tip: Inspect your tomato plants daily. Check the undersides of leaves for eggs and watch for early signs of feeding damage.

Tomato Hornworm vs. Tobacco Hornworm

Both species damage tomato plants, but here’s how to tell them apart:

  • Tomato hornworm: White V-shaped markings; black horn
  • Tobacco hornworm: Diagonal white stripes with black spots; red horn
tobacco hornworm
Can you tell which hornworm this is? 
(It’s a tobacco hornworm! Notice the white stripes with dotted black lines and a red “horn.”) 

Signs of Tomato Hornworm Damage

  • Chewed or missing leaves, often starting at the top of the plant
  • Wilted stems and bare stalks
  • Dark green droppings (frass) on leaves or soil
  • Chewed fruit and sunscald on tomatoes (caused by loss of leaf cover)

Tomato Hornworm Life Cycle

Understanding the life cycle helps you prevent infestations:

  1. Eggs: Laid on undersides of leaves in late spring; hatch within 1 week
  2. Larvae (hornworms): Feed heavily for 3–4 weeks
  3. Pupae: Burrow into soil to overwinter in a cocoon
  4. Adult moths: Five-spotted hawk moths emerge in spring to repeat the cycle

In warmer regions, there may be two generations per year.

Tomato hornworm moth (female)
Tomato hornworm moth (female). Look out for the moths in late spring. Photo by Didier Descouens/Wikimedia Commons.

Control and Prevention

How to Get Rid of Tomato Hornworms

1. Handpicking

  • The most effective method for small gardens:
  • Check plants daily and remove caterpillars by hand
  • Drop them in soapy water, or feed them to backyard chickens

2. Use Organic Controls

  • Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt): A safe, natural bacterium that kills young caterpillars (must be ingested).
  • Neem oil or insecticidal soap: Can work on small caterpillars, but less effective on large hornworms

3. Encourage Natural Predators

  • Parasitic wasps lay eggs on hornworms (you may see white cocoons attached)
  • Ladybugs, green lacewings, and birds also feed on eggs and larvae

If you find a hornworm covered with white cocoons, leave it—the wasps will do the control work for you

A tobacco hornworm covered with parasitic wasp eggs.
Nature’s drama! A tobacco hornworm becomes a nursery for parasitic wasps.

How to Prevent Hornworm Infestations

  • Till soil in fall or spring to destroy overwintering pupae (up to 90% mortality)
  • Rotate crops—avoid planting tomatoes in the same spot year after year
  • Use companion planting: Interplant dill or basil to deter pests; plant marigolds at borders
  • Attract  beneficial insects  by planting nectar-rich flowers

Frequently Asked Questions

Do tomato hornworms bite?
No. They look intimidating, but they cannot sting or bite humans.

What does a tomato hornworm turn into?
A large five-spotted hawk moth, also called a sphinx or hummingbird moth.

When do tomato hornworms appear?
Eggs are laid in late spring, and larvae are most destructive from June through August.

Can tomato hornworms eat other plants?
Yes. They also feed on peppers, potatoes, eggplants, and tobacco.

More Help for Gardeners: See our Garden Pest and Disease Library for tips on other common problems.

Do you have tomato hornworms? How do you handle them in the garden?

Garden Pests

About The Author

Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann

Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Catherine Boeckmann loves nature, stargazing, and gardening so it’s not surprising that she and The Old Farmer’s Almanac found each other. She leads digital content for the Almanac website, and is also a certified master gardener in the state of Indiana.

Read more from Catherine Boeckmann

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Comments

<span>Sally Roesner</span> Tue, 05/17/2022 - 09:31
If the garden isn't too dry, touched with a very small flame from a charcoal grill lighter dispatches them quickly.
<span>Judy Byra</span> Fri, 08/05/2022 - 22:04
I was horrified when I came upon my almost stripped tomatoes, and spotted about 20 of them on 3 container grown plants. I pulled them off and “MURDERED” them in my garbage disposal. I will never let another one live if I see them.
<span>Tom Chase</span> Sun, 11/21/2021 - 13:45
Being a photographer of the Monarch Butterfly, I often see the Hummingbird moth without knowing what it does. Thanks to the Old Farmers Almanac articles, I have a deep disrespect for this insect. It is amazing to see how it flies around the milkweed blossoms. Hard to photograph. I do container gardening. The previous year I ruined the lives of over 40 Hornworms, they about ruined my tomatoes. They seem to appear overnight as I water the plants often and could have noticed them earlier. I usually till the soil and add more nutrients. This past summer I destroyed five. Observing the leaf chewing indicates to look closely. A neighbor has had this Cat bite him. I don't let them chew on me and clip the branch they are on and put 216 lbs on them. If they didn't bite, I'd use them for fish bait.
<span>Andrew</span> Sat, 06/11/2022 - 17:29
They don't bite. So your neighbor might have been bitten by something else. They are soooooo plump, I think a fish would be very happy to see one.
<span>Joyce</span> Mon, 09/20/2021 - 11:03
I find taking some small snippers outside with me when I check my tomato plants is my best option. Upon locating a caterpillar, I just snip it in half instead of grabbing it off the stem and placing it on a hard surface to squash. It’s also much faster. I then see wasps coming to feast on what’s left of the caterpillars.
<span>Nancy</span> Tue, 08/31/2021 - 20:29
I've been checking the plants every couple of nights with the UV light ever since I put them in the ground. They glow nice and bright. I've gotten at least 5 of them while small and plants are doing great!
<span>Michael Demayo Iii</span> Wed, 08/11/2021 - 19:44
Noticed several of our tomato plants' leaves "crinkling up" ... examined our 14 tomato plants closely, discovered 7 tomato hornworms - had never seen these little green buggers before. If we had chickens, we'd feed them the hornworms, but we don't, so the immediate remedy was/is to pluck them off the plant they are on and squish them, straight away.
<span>Kim Shields</span> Thu, 06/02/2022 - 13:03
man they keep cutting off my blooms but for the life of me i can see anything on my plants. how did you find them???????
<span>Shane Lowrey</span> Sun, 07/17/2022 - 18:47
I never catch them young, usually when they are big and fat, often with wasp cocoons. Funny the cocoons make them stand out. I leave the cocooned one alone. However, several people swear by UV lights. I got mine from a pet store with one of those Urine Destroyer type products. Cheap, too.
<span>D T Knutt</span> Tue, 07/20/2021 - 22:07
Use a black light at night. You will see every single one in your garden. Repeat for a few days until you see no more. Hit them quick. They will destroy your garden quickly.