INSECTS AFFECTING THE TOMATO. 



INJURING THE LEAVES. 



The Tomato Worm. 



Ph legeth ontius celens. 

 This insect in its larval state is familiar to every 

 one who has owned a garden. The moths, which 

 belong to the handsome Sphinx family, appear early 

 in summer, and fly about just at dusk, sipping the 

 nectar from various flowers through their long 

 tongues or sucking tubes. Their general appearance 

 is well illustrated at Plate V. The ground color of 

 the body and wings is gray, and there are various 

 dots and stripes of different shades. On each side of 

 the abdomen are five orange-colored spots. The 

 female moths lay the eggs in the evening on tomato 

 plants, where they soon hatch into green worms that 

 feed voraciously on the foliage. These caterpillars 

 grow rapidly, and in a few weeks become three inches 

 long and nearly as thick as a man's finger. They 

 are light green, with several oblique, whitish stripes 

 along each side of the body : sometimes brown 

 specimens are found. Early in September, in the 

 Northern States, these caterpillars complete their 

 larval growth, and burrow into the ground some 

 distance, where they form oval cells in the soil, shed 

 their larval skins, and change to pupae. The pupa 



