Insect Pests of Vegetables and

their Management

Powell Smith,

Extension Associate

Lexington, SC

Clemson Extension Service

OverviewVegetable Crops – tomato/pepper, cucurbits,

cabbage/leafy greens, beans

Principal Insect pests – caterpillars, aphids/

whiteflies, beetles, sucking bugs

Chemical Management

Natural enemies – What? Predators and

parasitoids

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Tomato and Pepper Insects

Green Stinkbug

Brown Stinkbug Leaffooted Bug

Yellow Striped Armyworm

Tomato Fruitworm

Beet Armyworm

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Tomato Pests That Are Disease Vectors

Western Flower Thrips - TSWV

Green Peach Aphid –

CMV and others

Whitefly – Tomato

Leaf Curl Virus

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Tomato Pinworm -

A fall pest on the coast‘Blotch’ mine from

young pinworm larvae

Typical mine from serpentine

leafminer

Mature Larva – rice grain size

Typical fruit damage

Pheromone available for detection and

mating disruption

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Cucurbit Pests

Aphids

Pickleworm larva

Squash bugs

Striped and

Spotted

Cucumber

beetles

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Pests of Cabbage and Leafy Greens

Diamondback MothLarva Adult

Normal Pupa

Pupae parasitized by a wasp

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Cabbage LooperEgg

Larva

Adult

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Imported Cabbageworm

Egg

Larva

Adult - Butterfly

Pupae – no cocoon, a chrysalis

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Cutworm

Flea Beetle

Wireworms

Cabbage

aphid

Other Pests

Clemson Extension ServiceBean aphid

Cutworms

Thrips

Foliage and Pod-Feeding Caterpillars

Bean and Pea Pests

Stink Bugs

Cowpea

curculio

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Chemical Management

Caterpillars – Bt products, pyrethroid sprays,

spinosad (Entrust – OMRI), DE? for cutworms.

Aphids/whiteflies – spray oils/soap, pyrethrins,

malathion, neem

Thrips – spinosad, spray oils/soaps, pyrethrins

Stink bugs – pyrethroids, neem

Beetles – pyrethroids, spinosad, malathion

Grubs/Wireworms – entomopathogenic

nematodes, Bacillus popilliae (Japanese beetles)

Drawbacks of Insecticides

Non-target effects – broad spectrum

insecticides kill indiscriminately; eliminate

natural enemies that may keep other pest

species in check; damaging to pollinator species

Pest resurgence – from above effect; pests

proliferate due to lack of predation/parasitism

Effect on humans and other vertebrates – both

chronic and acute effects

Long term effects on ecosystems

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Natural Enemies

Predators – immatures or adults actively seek out

prey. Most adults can fly. Beetles, wasps, flies,

spiders, bugs, & vertebrates.

Parasitoids – Adults usually do not consume pests,

although some do. Eggs are laid in or on pests;

developing larvae consume pests. Reduce feeding

and prevent development into an adult.

Very important in natural population control. Usually more

so than predators.

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Parasitoids

Copidosoma in cabbage

looper larva

Trisulcus basalis on stink

bug eggs

Trichogramma on an

earworm egg

Voria, a tachinid fly parasitoid of

many caterpillarsAphid parasitoids

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Minute pirate bug

Lacewing larva

Assassin bug

Ground beetle

Nabid

bug

Big-eyed

bugSyrphid fly life cycle

Ladybird beetle life

cycle

Predators