Groasis Waterboxx Cost Calculator

This blog is dedicated to education about trees and the value of growing trees with the Groasis Waterboxx.  One of the objections people have to the Groasis Waterboxx is it's initial cost.  This cost must not be considered in isolation, however, as the traditional method of planting trees has many hidden costs as well.  Below you will find an spreadsheet where you can enter costs of traditional tree planting or tree planting with the Waterboxx.  The blue boxes require inputs (you can change the current values), red indicates the more expensive planting option, and green the more affordable option.  It must be remembered that this is a calculator only for the cost of planting the first year - and the Waterboxx can last for up to 10 years.  The same calculator, as well as much other information, can be found at our website, Dew Harvest.

From Groasis.com

As you can see above, the Groasis Waterboxx is frequently cheaper than traditional tree planting in the first year.  Be sure to look at your water bill, however, because the Waterboxx will allow you to conserve water as it is refilling from natural sources. We would love to hear your comments below - to leave one, please click on "Comments".

Carbon Realism and the Groasis Waterboxx

A great deal of ink has been spilled discussing carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere.  Some scientists and politicians state that this increase in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases poses a short term threat to climate, but this doesn't seem to be born out by recent evidence (a pause in warming over the past 15 years).  However, it is clear that as we burn much of the carbon sequestered over the past several hundred million years in coal, oil, and natural gas that carbon in the atmosphere will increase greatly.  Carbon concentrations could perhaps double or triple from below 300 parts per million (ppm) at the beginning of the industrial revolution.   We have have already increased from around 300 ppm in the middle part of the last century to 400 ppm now.

Carbon Dioxide Concentration in that atmosphere over the past 50 years. Note the saw toothed shaped (variation up to 5 ppm) annually, caused by sequestration in vegetation like trees - From NASA

Even if unsure about man-made global warming, we do not increasing carbon dioxide causes ocean acidification.  So, assuming that increasing atmospheric carbon is a problem, we should consider solutions.   Most solutions that have been put forward are clearly worse than the current disease.  Politicians give us false choices that are, perhaps not incidentally, destined to concentrate much more power and wealth in national capitals with, surprise, politicians!  On the disincentive side, we are given the choice between huge new taxes on carbon or a similar cap and trade tax scheme.  These policies have proven so restrictive in Europe that they have largely reversed course due to the clearly more pressing economic problems and Australia just repealed its carbon tax.

 When trying to be positive when speaking about climate change, politicians speak about "green" energy production.  Solar and wind power are the two most broadly deployed "green" power production technologies.  Wind power has been around for several hundred years, has severe limitations imposed by the laws of physics (at most turbines can only capture 59.3% of the energy of the wind, a property know as Betz' Law), and has profound detrimental effects on the environment itself.  These environmental effects include deaths of huge numbers of migratory birds (including many different eagle species) to noise pollution to ruination of the natural beauty of land and sky.  Solar is far more promising, and has not yet reached anywhere near maximal theoretical efficiency with photovoltaic cells.  However, both of these options remain far too expensive to be used on a large scale, especially in developing countries where the cheapest option for electricity generation is almost always coal (which produces the most carbon emissions).

An option that politicians don't mention, likely because they wouldn't see their influence increase were it implemented, is something termed the "Treesolution" by the inventor of the Groasis Waterboxx, Pieter Hoff.  The Treesolution is this - use the ingenious power of the Groasis Waterboxx to plant trees on nearly worthless land that currently lies fallow.  These trees can be chosen to be suitable to the environment chosen and commercially valuable.  This will upgrade near worthless land, but will also sequester huge amounts of carbon.  One average mature tree can sequester one metric ton (2200 lbs) of carbon dioxide.  This means that 25 trees planted each year could fully counterbalance the carbon emissions of the average American.  This number of 25 trees per person per year seems large, and would be were it to cost money.  But trees are profitable, they produce fruits, nuts, and of course timber (for construction or heat) when planted on a large scale.  When planted on a small scale (on a housing lot), they increase property value significantly and decrease heating and cooling costs.  Planting trees to mitigate carbon pollution is the only win-win option in the whole climate change debate.  

How does the Groasis Waterboxx figure in to this?  The Waterboxx was designed to plant trees in areas where there is sufficient rainfall, but where this precipitation happens in too short a span (usually one week of monsoon like rain, common in most of the American Southwest).  The Waterboxx encourages trees to grow deep tap roots down to underground water.  It provides a steady supply of water to a growing tree during the tree's critical period, preventing death from drought.  It prevents evaporation of soil moisture from evaporation.  It allows the natural capillary channels and mycorrhizae of the soil to remain intact, speeding growth and increasing water absorption.  The Groasis Waterboxx also collects dew and rainwater, freeing the tree planter from having to tend to the tree until it has outgrown the Waterboxx.  The Waterboxx was so impressive that it was named Popular Science's 2010 Innovation of the Year.  After reading about the Waterboxx, we were so impressed we decided to start a company to promote the Waterboxx in the United States.  Dew Harvest is that company.  At Dew Harvest we believe that man made problems like increased atmospheric carbon can have man made answers - in this case the "Treesolution" in Mr. Hoff's inimitable word.  We can repair the damage we have done to the Earth both from pollution and deforestation, and the Groasis Waterboxx can be part of that solution.

Rather than fretting over increasing carbon and possible global warming, rather than waiting for politicians to act, be part of the solution.  Start planting trees on a large scale with the Groasis Waterboxx, either on your land or with a local city beautification (tree planting) group.   We would love to hear your comments below - to leave one, please click on "Comments". 

Sources:

http://www.americanforests.org/discover-forests/tree-facts/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_greenhouse_gas_emissions_per_capita

Plant Transpiration

Clouds formed by transpiration over the Amazon Rain Forest - from Wikipedia/USGS

Humans have a process through which they release water in their blood vessels to the air around them - called perspiration.  Plants have a similar system, where water drawn up from the soil is released through pores - called transpiration.

Transpiration is very important in plants, as it one of the processes that allows lifting of water from the soil up the vasculature of the plant (the xylem).  Without transpiration, neither water nor other nutrients would be lifted to the canopy of the tree where they are needed.

Transpiration is a reason why areas with heavy vegetation (forests) tend to be more humid than regions with little vegetation (deserts).  Transpiration can be significant enough to contribute to rainfall.  Transpiration is also tightly regulated, higher in low relative humidity, and higher on warmer days and in higher wind speeds.


Because transpiration is an invisible process, a simple demonstration can help convince yourself that this process is taking place.  Below you see images of an indoor jade plant (Crassula ovata).  This plant is then watered, and has one of its branches covered with a clear plastic bag.  The jade plant is then placed outside on a warm, sunny day.  The bag quickly fills with droplets of water.  This is transpiration in action.

While plants do have a system to regulate how much water they transpire, slowing of transpiration slows the growth of the plant.  This is why a consistent water supply to the roots of the plant is important.  The Groasis Waterboxx is the best way to ensure this consistent supply of water.

A cut away view of the Waterboxx - showing how water is stored, and funneled through a wick to the roots of a growing plant - from Groasis.com 

The Groasis Waterboxx is a self-refilling water battery that provides a consistent source of water to a growing plant.  The Waterboxx contains a water reservoir, filled only once (at setup).  The water is then slowly released through a wick in the base of the Waterboxx, around 50 mL (10 teaspoons) of water per day.  Daily dew and occasional rain refill the Waterboxx.  Because the Groasis Waterboxx delivers water to the growing plant every day, the plant can remain metabolically active and growing, not dependent on irregular rainfall.  The Waterboxx can be removed after about one year and used again.  The Waterboxx can be bought from Dew Harvest in the United States. We would love to hear your comments below - to leave one, please click on "Comments".

Capillary Water

Capillary Water

Water is a fascinating substance, renowned for its chemical properties.  This is the reason scientists believe it is essential for life, and so much of our search for life elsewhere is based on finding water first.  Detailed here is one of the less understood but utterly essential properties of water - capillary action.

Capillary action is the ability of water to lift itself up the sides of narrow tubes.  Water does this by forming bonds (called hydrogen bonds) with the sides of the tube it resides in.  This property of water - binding to another substance - is called adhesion, while water's bonding to itself is called cohesion.  This is very evident in a glass rain gauge, where the water on the sides of the glass curves upward (making the water form a concave meniscus).  This effect is more pronounced the thinner the tube, lessening the depressing effects of gravity in the center of the meniscus.  A somewhat opposite effect is seen with the element mercury, which is more attracted to itself than to the glass walls of a tube.  

From Messer Woland via Wikipedia

Without water's capillary action, life would not be possible.  Trees and other plants rely on capillary action to "wick" up water from the soil in narrow tubes called xylem.  The water is released from the leaves in a process called transpiration.  Water, which is itself necessary to the plant, is also an excellent solvent and carries nutrients to where the plant needs without a pump.  

The soil is also dependent on capillary action, as it has many small pathways formed by microorganisms.  This is the way in water is able to spread both laterally throughout the soil, as well as from deeper (where aquifers are present) to higher up.  This water then evaporates from the top layer of the soil unless something blocks the sun.  This is clearly evident by lifting up a stepping stone on a hot sunny day, and feeling the soil beneath it versus the soil around it.  The ground underneath the stepping stone is moist, while the ground around it is dry.  

 Nature doesn't need to dig a well and insert an electric pump to move water; it uses this capillary action.  We ignore Nature's wisdom when we ignore this phenomenon.  Nature does rain, but this can be infrequent, and it doesn't need daily or even weekly watering of seeds to keep them alive because seedlings can get water from the ground via capillary action.

 Capillary action can be easily demonstrated by placing colored water in a bowl, and then inserting a strip of paper towel as below:

You can see water working against gravity climbing up the paper towel.  The same process happens in the soil through the capillary channels already established there.  Feel free to try this simple experiment at home to help children (or yourself) understand capillary action.

It is important to note that capillary water is not ground water in the traditional sense.  Capillary water is water held by physical forces only a few (<10) feet from the surface, while ground water is much deeper where there is enough water to saturate the soil.  Plant roots rarely reach ground water (except in places with a high water table) but still do very well by accessing capillary water.  In deserts where the water table (ground water level) is extremely deep (if present at all), trees survive by roots accessing capillary water.

So consider the traditional tree planting method in light of what you learned above.  You buy a tree from a nursery in a pot.  You dig a large hole for that pot (with current recommendations being as deep and twice as wide as the root ball) - disturbing both the bottom and side capillary channels in the soil - essentially guaranteeing that the tree will quickly dry out without watering from above (namely, you or an irrigation system).  You then have two choices for preventing evaporation of the water from the soil around the tree.  Choice one is wood mulch, which works fair but allows weeds and grass to grow through, robbing the tree of water and space.  Also, mulch is made of wood, and wood is porous to water, so you still get considerable evaporation.  Your second choice is the rather expensive rubber tree mats made from old tires.  The good news is that these vulcanized rubber mats are almost completely impermeable to water, preventing evaporation of water from the soil.  The bad news is that the vulcanized rubber mats are almost completely impermeable to water, preventing almost all rainwater from reaching the roots beneath them.  All of this means that the tree will need to be watered by human intervention until the roots grow down to capillary water and the tree canopy becomes large enough to cast a shadow on the soil beneath it, preventing evaporation from the soil.  We will call the method just described the electric water pump method of tree planting because it uses a great deal of unnecessary energy and materials to replicate a system Nature has already perfected.

From Groasis.com, explaining the benefits of capillary water and the problem with traditional planting of trees

Compare this to planting a seed or small bare root tree with the Groasis Waterboxx.  The Groasis Waterboxx is a brilliantly conceived water battery for trees, which uses the principle of capillary water to plant trees in dry climates. If planting a seed with the Waterboxx, the seed is placed directly on the existing soil and in contact with the capillary channels of the soil.  The primary root sprouts, and is sustained both by water coming up from the soil as well as water dripping down to it from the reservoir of the Waterboxx (the Waterboxx is refilled with dew and rain water, without human intervention).  The specialized UV resistant plastic of the Waterboxx prevents evaporation and drying out of the soil beneath it (like the rubber mat).  However, unlike the mat, it channels rainwater directly to the roots (like the wood mulch) with its lotus leaf inspired lid.  Unlike the wood mulch, the Waterboxx prevents grass and weed growth around the tree, will last for many years, and can be reused.  The Waterboxx combines the best features of both the synthetic and the natural.

If planting a small bare root tree, the principles are the same as planting a seed, but the primary root is inserted directly into a small hole in the soil beneath the Waterboxx.  The primary root (taproot) receives enough water from the Waterboxx to grow, and roots grow only where there is water, so its primary root pushes deeper until it reaches deeper underground capillary water. The Waterboxx is removed at this time (which is usually evidenced by a growth spurt). We will call this method the Natural Method, or perhaps the Efficient Method.

It is small wonder that the Waterboxx both increases tree survival rate and increases the rate of tree growth.  The Groasis Waterboxx took seven years and 7.1 million dollars to develop, with every possible consideration given.  It has successfully been used to grow trees in the Sahara desert with 88% success rate.  The Waterboxx can be purchased here.

In addition to increasing the survival rate of trees, the Groasis Waterboxx also helps landowners conserve water.  If you do decide to try out the Waterboxx, check the cost of your water bill for a given month before the Waterboxx and after.  The Waterboxx can have a significant positive effect, rainfall and other variables being kept equal.  You can use our Waterboxx cost calculator here.

We document the success of the Waterboxx growing many things elsewhere on this site, from Giant Sequoia and red oak, to pear trees and pumpkins.   We have more information on the Waterboxx at hour main Dew Harvest site here.   You can also buy the Waterboxx at our website.  Be the first in your area to start growing plants with the Groasis Waterboxx today.

For more information about capillary action, please see our sources: 

http://science.jrank.org/pages/1182/Capillary-Action.html
http://www.ec.gc.ca/eau-water/default.asp?lang=En&n=BCCCF74B-1#tension
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capillary_action
http://www.madsci.org/posts/archives/1998-02/887637827.Ch.r.html
http://www.biologylessons.sdsu.edu/classes/lab1/semnet/hydrogen_bonding.htm

http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/capillaryaction.html

We would love to hear your comments below - to leave one, please click on "Comments". 

Do Trees Make It Rain?

Most people have the old diagram of the water cycle (the system of evaporation, cloud formation, and rainfall) that they learned in grade school hidden somewhere in the back of their minds.  In this diagram the sun warms the ocean, water evaporates from the ocean and forms clouds.  These clouds move inland and release their moisture as rain (or sometimes snow or other frozen precipitation). While this picture isn't wrong, it is incomplete.

Trees play a large role in increasing rainfall.  In fact, scientists believe 33-40% of precipitation is due to evapotranspiration from forests.  In the summer in areas, the amount of rainfall originally derived from forests can be as high as 50%.  Evapotranspiration is the process by which trees elevate water from the ground, through their roots up to their canopies and up into the air.  It is remarkably efficient way to liberate ground water and allow it to come down again as rain.  Without trees, most of the ground water would return to the oceans and mix with salt water without ever being used.  Trees can lift up to 100 gallons of water from the ground into the air in one day.

Scientists have long suspected that clouds gain more moisture as they travel over forests, but recent satellite imagery has found "that the more vegetation [forest] the air had traveled over, the more moisture it carried and more rain was produced" (see link below). The fear is that deforestation of the Amazon may lead to drier climates all around.   

We know in many areas summers are getting drier, an a possible cause for this is deforestation.  In Indiana, our rich, productive farmland is almost all cleared forest, as is much of the Eastern United States.  We have also seen our summers getting drier recently. 

A more complete and accurate, if more complicated, diagram of the water cycle from the USGS.  It shows the significant contribution of trees to air moisture and precipitation.  The trees lift water from deep underground using their roots and capillary action to grow.  

There are even questions about whether once successful classical civilizations like the Maya in central America or the Minoans on ancient Crete induced local climate destroying droughts by clearing large forests (for farming in the case of the Maya, for shipbuilding for the Minoans).  

Of course, no society is going to replant productive crop land with trees on a large scale because of risks of decreasing rainfall.  Planting forests could help drought, but we won't plant forests on good farmland because the farmland itself is so valuable.  So is there anything that can be done?  

Yes!  New technology, designed in Holland to be used in dry areas around the Earth, allows trees to be planted in very dry areas regardless of rainfall.  This technology, called the Groasis Waterboxx, acts a self recharging water battery, filling up with dew and rare rainwater, and slowly channeling this water to the roots of the growing tree.  This forms a column of water beneath the Waterboxx, inducing the tree's roots to reach deep to underground water reservoirs called capillary water (the underground water that would sit stagnant or flow to the sea without the Waterboxx).  The Waterboxx is removed once the tree reaches deeper water stores (evidenced by a growth spurt), and reused up to nine more times.  

The Waterboxx is literally earth changing because it allows trees to be established for profit in areas that have too irregular rainfall to have any other crops.  It works so well that 88% of trees planted with the Waterboxx survived a year in the Sahara, compared to around 11% planted without the Waterboxx but with weekly planting.  This survival rate increases to 99% if two trees are planted per Waterboxx and only the stronger one is kept.  The Waterboxx will allow orchards and timber farms to be established in what was otherwise considered useless land, slowly changing climate.  

Salt cedar trees growing in the Sahara Desert over 3 years with the Waterboxx PlantCocoon® - no water was given to these trees or added to their Waterboxxes at any time after planting!

Clearly no single planting, no orchard, park or forest planted in a current arid area is going to substantially increase rainfall.  But as planting trees with the Waterboxx is profitable, in the future we can reverse the damage we have previously done to our climate by planting large numbers of orchards, parks, timberland on private land.  Their cumulative effect will not just enrich our individual lives and properties, but our world as a whole.  Imagine the entire western Great Plains, from Canada to Texas, an area generally too dry to farm, planted with an uninterrupted swath of trees native to the area.  Imagine parks throughout the eastern U.S. planted with massive trees like sequoias, that recycle huge amounts of water into the atmosphere.   The Waterboxx can allow us to plant trees in dry areas without irrigation and with irregular rainfall.

The Groasis Waterboxx is sold by Dew Harvest LLC in the United States.  Buy the Waterboxx here.  

A schematic view with a cutaway corner of the Groasis Waterboxx PlantCocoon.  Water is collected by the lotus leaf inspired lid, channeled and stored in the green reservoir, and slowly released via a wick to the roots of a growing tree or plant. 

We would love to hear your comments below - to leave one, please click on "Comments".

Do Trees Reduce Stress?

Trees have many well known benefits - cleaning water, reducing flooding, production of fruit and nuts, production of timber, stabilization of climate.  However, most people have not heard of the research regarding trees and psychology.

Neighborhoods with more trees have lower crime rates.  In research conducted by Sullivan and Kuo in housing projects in Chicago, it was found that buildings with trees had objectively higher interaction between residents within the community.  They theorized that this was due to trees making outdoor spaces more inviting for people, allowing neighbors to get to know each other better.  This was associated with less violence.  "The researchers found fewer reports of physical violence in homes that had trees outside the buildings" according the University of Illinois (link below).  

A treeless building of the Robert Taylor Homes in Chicago prior to demolition (from Wikipedia, see below for attribution).

Trees are also well known to increase property value.  For homeowners wanting to make their neighborhood more inviting (and their property more valuable), planting trees can be a low cost investment with continuing returns.  This is also true of landowners with rental properties.

Perhaps the largest obstacle to planting trees on residential property is the belief, previously well founded, that trees are expensive to care for during periods of drought, difficult to plant, and require groundskeepers or lawn care contractors.  While this perhaps was once true, the Groasis Waterboxx has changed much of that.  The Groasis Waterboxx is a device that allows small, inexpensive, bare root trees to be planted for minimal cost.  These trees grow much faster than larger, root bound store bought trees.  The Waterboxx, filled only at tree planting with water, refills itself from both rain (when available) and daily dew.  This water is slowly released to the roots of the growing tree, until the tree has a growth spurt after reaching deeper water.  The Waterboxx is then removed, and the tree is resistant to further droughts.  The Waterboxx can be reused for other trees.  No care is needed after the initial planting of the tree - no groundskeepers or lawn care workers must be paid.

The Groasis Waterboxx

Trees change the character of neighborhoods and properties.  The Groasis Waterboxx offers an inexpensive and reusable means of establishing long-lived trees on private or public property.  The Waterboxx can be purchased in the United States from Dew Harvest LLC.

If you are associated with a civic organization and are interested in the Waterboxx, please contact us here. We would love to hear your comments below - to leave one, please click on "Comments".

Sources:

http://permanent.access.gpo.gov/lps2091/tb4.htm

http://lhhl.illinois.edu/media/thepoweroftrees.htm

Robert Taylor Homes: By Kaffeeringe.de at en.wikipedia [CC BY-SA 2.5 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5)], from Wikimedia Commons

Do Trees Reduce Flooding and Erosion?

Elsewhere on this site, the many benefits of trees have been discussed.  With a wet spring and recent tragic landslides in the national news, we thought we would discuss the positive effects of trees on flood control and erosion prevention.

Trees prevent flooding during heavy rains by several mechanisms.  First, broad leaf trees slow rainfall when rain hits their leaves and must slowly percolate to the ground.  This gives more time for the ground to absorb the water as the rain reaches the ground over a longer time period.  Just as leaves of a tree decrease vertical water speed, trunks and roots of the tree (and other vegetation) slow the horizontal speed of water once it has reached the ground.  This also gives the water more time to be absorbed into the soil.

The roots of the tree increase space between soil particles, allowing the water that does reach the ground to follow these root created channels to deeper water reservoirs.  Once rainfall does reach the roots of the tree, it is absorbed by the roots, and lifted by the tree into the canopy and atmosphere again in a process called evapotranspiration.  This process decreases the total amount of water with which our streams and rivers need to deal.

Trees also prevent erosion.  The most obvious way trees to this is through the binding effect of their roots, turning soil into a type of reinforced dirt.  As mentioned above, trees also slow water flows, which decreases erosion.  The canopies of trees also decrease wind speed, another cause of erosion when the soil is dry or being plowed for agriculture.  Trees planted as riparian buffers (along waterways) prevent soil erosion by fast flowing water already in the stream, as demonstrated by the image of a unforested waterway below.

A creek bank that has continually eroded due to the lack of stabilizing tree roots along it.  This creek will get ever wider (and shallower) until trees are planted.

How can the Groasis Waterboxx help with prevention of flooding and erosion?  Trees can be hard to establish, prone to death after transplant and during their critical first year.  When trees are bought from the big box stores they generally have fine canopies but very poor root systems, with a destroyed primary or tap root.  Because of their poor roots, these trees require frequent watering, and don't become well established and stabilize the soil for several years.  The Groasis Waterboxx allows smaller, bare root (with tap root intact) trees to be purchased (or found wild), and planted with the Waterboxx.  The Waterboxx requires watering only at initial set up, and never again.  Dew and rain water will fill the Waterboxx.  The Waterboxx slowly releases water to the roots of a growing tree, forming a water column in the soil beneath the tree that allows the tree's roots to get well established and grow straight down.  Once the tree's roots reach deeper water, you will see a growth spurt and the Waterboxx can be removed. The Waterboxx can be reused several more times (for up to ten years) on other trees.  Watch a video of the Waterboxx in action below

You can buy the Groasis Waterboxx in the United States from Dew Harvest. We would love to hear your comments below - to leave one, please click on "Comments".


https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/learn/threats-to-our-woodland/human-impact/how-tree-planting-could-help-reduce-flood-risk-in-wales/

http://www.sciences360.com/index.php/how-trees-prevent-flooding-3031/

http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/soil-erosion-and-conservation/page-7

http://www.agroforestry.net.au/edit/pdfs/Design%20Principles%20Soil%20Cons%20Chapter%203.pdf

Controlling leaf miners on tomato plants

A few leaf-mining flies are common pests of tomato plants, including Liriomyza sativae, L. trifolii and L. huidobrensis. These small yellow-and-black flies lay their eggs inside the leaves of tomatoes, where the larvae hatch and proceed to consume the nutrient-rich, chlorophyll-filled cells. Eventually, they meander to the edge of the leaf, where they drop to the ground and pupate. These pupating larvae are easy targets for predators and other biological controls, but foliage-applied pesticides can also destroy leaf miners.



Description and appearance

 

 

Leafminer adults are small, black and yellow flies. Liriomyza sativae is shiny black on the upper surface except for a prominent yellow triangle between the bases of the wings; the underside and the face between the eyes are yellow. Liriomyza trifolii differs in having the thorax covered with overlapping bristles that give fresh specimens a silvery gray colour; specimens that are carelessly handled or placed in alcohol lose the gray and appear black. Also, the portion of the head behind the eyes is mostly yellow in L. trifolii, with only a small black area touching the rear edge of the eye; in L. sativae, the area behind the eyes is predominantly black. Liriomyza huidobrensis adults are similar to L. trifolii, but slightly larger. With practice, field identification is possible. However, you may wish to contact your local farm advisor for verification. The yellowish maggots and the brown, seed-like pupae of the three species are too similar to distinguish in the field.

 

The leafminers Liriomyza sativae and L. trifolii are common. Both species can reach damaging levels quite rapidly if certain disruptive insecticides are used repeatedly. There has been a recent change in the pest status of a related species, L. huidobrensis, which has suddenly become dominant on other vegetable crops grown in coastal regions, and it appears to be spreading southward.

 

The three leafminer species are similar in life history. Eggs are inserted in leaves and larvae feed between leaf surfaces, creating a meandering track or "mine." At high population levels, entire leaves may be covered with mines. Mature larvae leave the mines, dropping to the ground to pupate. The life cycle takes only 2 weeks in warm weather; there are seven to ten generations a year. All three species feed on a wide variety of crops and weeds; development continues all year and the population moves from one host to another as new host plants become available.

 

Damage to the crop

 

Leafminer feeding results in serpentine mines (slender, white, winding trails); heavily mined leaflets have large whitish blotches. Leaves injured by leafminers drop prematurely; heavily infested plants may lose most of their leaves. If it occurs early in the fruiting period, defoliation can reduce yield and fruit size and expose fruit to sunburn. Pole tomatoes, which have a long fruiting period, are more vulnerable than other tomato crops. Leafminers are normally a pest of late summer tomatoes and can reach high numbers.

 

Vegetable leafminer can cause significant damage to host plants. Damage is caused by larvae feeding under the surface of  leaves and petioles. Typically, this feeding causes long, narrow 'mines' which appear as white or grey lines on leaves (and can also look like coils) widening towards the end. Multiple mines on an individual leaf greatly reduces the result in the photosynthetic ability of the plant. Damage caused by vegetable leafminers considerably reduces the growth and development of seedlings and young plants, and can lead to plant death.

The presence of unsightly leaf damage in ornamental plants can lead to reduced market value.

Prevention

• Remove with pruners any isolated leaves with newly formed mines to stop a new leaf miner infestation before it can become serious. Monitor plants closely for the appearance of new mines. Wait for the appearance of one to three mines on each leaf before considering insecticides.
• Place plastic trays beneath the foliage of the affected tomato plants and check them daily for bright yellow leaf miner pupae. Kill those found by hand, but wait to apply an insecticide until you see 10 pupae appear daily over three to four days.
• Apply spinosad as a drench to the soil beneath the tomato's foliage to crops that are organically grown. Continue to monitor for new pupae using the plastic trays, and reapply spinosad every seven to 10 days until few or no pupae appear.
• Use a rotation of abamectin and cyromazine on the foliage of plants being produced using traditional chemical inputs. Apply abamectin first, and then wait two to three weeks to apply cyromazine. Repeat this rotation throughout the season, allowing two to three weeks between applications, until you no longer see leaf miners.
• Minimize leaf miner populations for the following year by plowing under spent tomato plants immediately. Rototill the garden thoroughly to ensure that pupae are buried deep underground.

Management

The most important aspect of leafminer management is conserving their natural enemies, which are often killed by broad-spectrum insecticides applied for other tomato pests. Reduce the risk of leafminer outbreaks by applying insecticides for fruit pests only when monitoring shows treatment is needed and by choosing insecticides that will not destroy the leafminer parasites.

Biological Control
Several species of parasitic wasps, particularly Chrysocharis parksi and Diglyphus begini, attack leafminer larvae; left undisturbed, parasites often keep leafminers under control.

Cultural Control
Check transplants before planting and destroy any that are infested; leafminers reach damaging levels earlier when infestations begin on seedlings. Tomato varieties with curled leaves, such as VF145s, are less susceptible to leafminer damage and may provide suitable alternatives where leafminer damage is expected, as in fields adjacent to other infested crops. Where a series of tomato crops is planted in the same area, you can reduce early infestations in a new crop by removing old plantings immediately after the last harvest.

Organically Acceptable Methods
Biological and cultural controls as well as sprays of the Entrust formulation of spinosad are acceptable for use on an organically certified crop.

Monitoring and Treatment Decisions
A monitoring technique for leafminers in fresh market tomatoes is to place plastic trays about 12 by 15 inches in size beneath plants at several randomly chosen places in the field. Mature larvae that drop from foliage accumulate on the trays and pupate there, providing a measure of leafminer activity. A treatment threshold used experimentally for L. sativae and L. trifolii in southern coastal fresh market tomato fields is to treat when an average of 10 pupae per tray per day accumulates over a 3- or 4-day period. In all areas, do not treat unless pupae are present. Absence of pupae, even if new mines are present, indicates that natural controls are keeping leafminers controlled.

The dominant species of Liriomyza leafminers is in flux. All species, however, have high resistance to organophosphates, carbamates, and pyrethroids. If these types of insecticides are used, leafminer populations will increase. Treatment recommendations currently involve the rotation of abamectin and cyromazine. Some species are also controlled to a certain degree by spinosad.



Tomato pinworms

Tomato pinworms naturally occur in the hot agricultural areas. These tomato eating worms are primarily a greenhouse problem. In addition to their namesakes, tomato pinworms feed only on Solanaceous plants; that is, members of the nightshade family, such as tomatoes, eggplant and potato. As tiny worms on tomato plants, these insects can do tremendous crop damage.

Key: TPW is a short form of Tomato Pin Worm

Tomato pinworm identification

 

In warmer climes, the tomato pinworms spend the winter as pupae at the soil’s surface. Where the winter weather is too cold for survival, the pupae hide in the dirt floors and plant detritus of the greenhouse.

The small grey-brown moths lay their eggs on the underside of leaves during the night and because of their tiny size, the eggs are hardly noticeable. Because of this, tomato pinworm control rarely begins at this stage. It’s not until the larval stages that damage begins to mount and when the worms in tomato’s leaves leave their tunnels behind, the evidence is clear.

 

During the next stage of development, the tomato eating worms drill pinholes into the stems, buds and fruit and eat the flesh until they are ready to pupate or move on to the next stage of development. While leaf damage is of little importance, the damage to the fruit crop can be devastating. In areas where the moths are prevalent, growers must be vigilant with tomato pinworm control because these tiny insects multiply at a remarkable rate and can produce up to eight generations a year.

Damage to the crop

 

The tomato pinworm attacks both the leaves and fruits of tomato. Tunnelling or mining by larvae in the leaves is the most common type of injury. Initially, the mine is long and narrow, but it later widens to become blotch-shaped. Older larvae may fold the leaf over itself, or knit 2 leaves together, between which they continue to feed, causing large blotches. In severe infestations, all leaves on a plant are attacked giving the crop a burnt appearance. More direct damage is caused to the crop when the older larvae may penetrate nearby fruits by burrowing under the calyx into the fruit. Very small pinholes are left at the points of entry, which are often marked by the presence of a small amount frass or droppings. Points of entry under the calyx are inconspicuous and can easily be overlooked during packing. Larvae may also bore into the sides of tomato fruits in heavily-infested crops.

 

Stages of its life

 

Eggs

Eggs are laid scattered, or in small groups of 3-7, mainly on the upper leaves, and on both upper and lower leaf surfaces. The egg is oval in shape and very tiny (approximately 0.4 mm long). Its colour is pearly white at first, and then becomes pale yellow before hatching. The egg stage lasts from four to eight days at 22-240C.

 

Larva

The larva molts 4 times. The newly-hatched larva is tiny (about 0.7 mm long), with a black or dark brown head capsule, and a cream-colour body. The fully-grown larva is 6-8 mm long, and has brownish to purplish markings along the body. Tomato pinworm larvae are characteristically very active and wriggle when touched. The larval stage lasts 10 days at 24-260C.

 

Pupa

Pupation takes place within a loosely-spun cocoon in several possible locations including under debris on the ground, just under the soil surface, within the folds of leaves, on strings supporting tomato plants, or, rarely, in the fruits. The pupa is spindle-shaped; greenish at first, but soon changes to a dark chestnut brown colour. The pupal stage lasts 8-20 days depending on temperature.

 

Adult

The adult resembles a clothes moth in size and colour. It is greyish-brown in colour and is 6-8 mm long. Adults live for about 7-9 days at 24-260C, and for about 23 days at 130C.

 

How to control tomato pinworms?

The first step toward tomato pinworm control is cultural. End of season clean-up is essential for the prevention of future contamination. Garden debris should be cleared and burned and the soil should be turned under to deeply bury any overwintering pupae of the tomato eating worms.

For the following planting season, carefully inspect all hothouse grown seedlings before transplanting them into the bed to avoid transfer of the eggs. Continue to survey the foliage after transplant for the mines and folded leaf shelters that indicate and infestation. Conduct weekly inspections until signs of the worms on tomato plant’s leaves are discovered. If you find two or three worms on tomato plants in each row, it’s time to apply treatment. Pheromone traps have been used effectively in larger field plantings, but are impractical for smaller homestead gardens.

Once evidence of the worms in tomatoes is discovered, chemical treatment is called for. Broad spectrum insecticides can be used successfully to kill the tiny worms on tomatoes but must be applied at regular intervals throughout the season. If crops continue to show signs of damage, the narrow spectrum insecticide abamectin can be used, but this is rarely necessary in the home garden.

For the organic gardener, garden cleanliness is a must. Remove brown and curled leaves daily and pick any visible worms by hand.

And lastly, for those wondering is it harmful to ingest a pinworm from a tomato, the answer is a resounding no! Tomato pinworms are infectious only to Solenaceous plants and NOT to humans. While it might give you the willies to see half of one after you have bitten into a tomato, tomato pin worms are not poisonous to people.

 

Control strategies

 

Use of a combination of techniques is the best approach for managing TPW. Such techniques are as follows:

1. Monitoring is key to detecting initial populations and preventing any build-up. This is most efficiently done by weekly inspection of pheromone traps that are placed in the greenhouse throughout the season to detect male adults. Place traps at the same height as the tops of the plants. Note that the pheromone lures placed in the traps must be replaced regularly according to the manufacturer's instructions.
2. Sanitation - Thorough clean up of an infested crop is essential to preventing, or at least minimizing, carryover of populations to the next crop. Ensure that all crop debris is properly destroyed by burning or burying deeply. Adults cannot emerge normally if the pupal stages are buried at least 7-9 cm in the soil.
3. Physical Hand Removal - By regularly inspecting the crop from the very start, and hand removing and destroying infested leaves, a build-up in a population could be prevented or at least minimized.
4. Disinfest Crates - Ensure crates or boxes are properly disinfested before moving them from one operation to another. Adults, infested leaves, or fruits resting in crates can serve as a source of infestation.
5. Biological Control - Studies at the Greenhouse and Processing Crops Research Centre in Harrow, Ontario, indicate that some Trichogramma species hold promise as a biological control agent for TPW, but should be integrated with other control options.
6. Mating Disruption - Slow release of the TPW sex pheromone into the atmosphere serves to confuse male TPW in their search for female TPW. This confusion results in the disruption of mating. When TPW populations in a greenhouse are low, and when there are no neighbouring sources of infestation, use of mating disruption is effective in suppressing populations of TPW.
7. Light traps - Tomato pinworm adults are attracted to lights and commercially-available light-traps can assist in reducing adult populations.



Budworms on tomato plants

Budworms, also known as tobacco budworms, are caterpillars of the Helicoverpa moth family (previously called Heliothis moths). These destructive pests also attack stressed plants of sweet corn, tomatoes, a range of other fruits and vegetable plants and ornamentals.

An adult budworm.

Larva of budworm.



The moths lay their eggs at night on young foliage close to fruits or flower buds and the young caterpillars feed on the foliage first before moving into buds or developing fruits. After several weeks of feeding, the caterpillars burrow into the topsoil beneath the plant and pupate until rain that produces a burst of new plant growth will signal an opportune time for adult moths to emerge from pupa cases and lay eggs. If you netted plants after the first moth attack, they won’t be protected from further attacks because the pupating moths will be inside the netting.

 

Damage on the crop

 

Larvae bore into buds and blossoms (the basis for the common name of this insect), and sometimes the tender terminal foliar growth, leaf petioles, and stalks. In the absence of reproductive tissue, larvae feed readily on foliar tissue. It is infested tobacco with both tobacco budworm and corn earworm, and observed very similar patterns and levels of injury by these closely related species. Entry of larvae into fruit increases frequency of plant disease. Research in southern Arkansas tomato fields indicated that although tobacco budworm was present from May through July, they were not nearly as abundant or damaging as corn earworm.

Natural Remedy

Numerous general predators have been observed to feed upon budworm. Among the most common are Polistes spp. wasps (Hymenoptera: Vespidae); bigeye bug, Geocoris punctipes (Hemiptera: Lygaeidae); damsel bugs, Nabis spp. (Hemiptera: Nabidae); minute pirate bugs, Orius spp. (Hemiptera: Anthocoridae), and spiders. You can buy anyone of these and spread on plants which are infected by budworm.

Management

Several management methods can be used to flee budworms from your tomato plants. Some of them are as follows.

Sampling
Large cone-shaped wire traps baited with sex pheromone lures are commonly used to capture tobacco budworm moths. Smaller bucket traps can capture these moths, but they are not very efficient.

Insecticides
Foliar insecticides are commonly used in crops where tobacco budworm damage is likely to occur. However, destruction of beneficial organisms often results, and this is thought to exacerbate budworm damage. Also, resistance to insecticides is widespread, particularly in crops where pyrethroid use is frequent. Larvae will also consume bait formulated from cornmeal and insecticide.

Cultural techniques
Early season destruction of weeds with herbicide or mowing, or destruction of larvae on the weeds by treatment with insecticides, can reduce tobacco budworm population size later in the year.

Biological Control
The microbial insecticide Bacillus thuringiensis is effective against budworm. Heliothis nuclear polyhedrosis virus has been used effectively to suppress tobacco budworm on field crops and on early season weed hosts. Tobacco budworm also is susceptible to nuclear polyhedrosis virus from alfalfa looper, Autographa californica. Release of Trichogramma egg parasitoids has been shown to be beneficial in some vegetable crops.

Host plant resistance
Although there is little evidence for natural resistance to tobacco budworm among many crops, cotton is being genetically engineered to express resistance. Enhanced resistance to larval survival by cotton should result in lower insect pressure on nearby vegetable crops.